Powered by Papercast: Innotrend is helping Hungary to move into smart sustainable transport

Nearly two years ago, Innotrend approached Papercast with a vision. Innotrend aims to be at the forefront of smart city sustainable transport technology solutions. They saw an opportunity to include Papercast solar powered e-paper displays in their pioneering solution. A rewarding partnership was formed.

We have pleasure in introducing you to Innotrend, who are leading the way in innovative smart transportation solutions in Hungary, with Papercast by its side. 

Interview with Attila Balogh, Project Manager at Innotrend.

When did you become a Papercast partner?

We first met Papercast in 2017 at IT-TRANS in Karlsruhe. We were interested in how their technology fits with some of the smart city concepts coming up in Hungary.

How does the Papercast e-paper display solution enhance your overall offering?

Like many other countries, Hungary is investing in smart city strategies, including sustainable transport systems. At Innotrend, we support these future transport initiatives with innovative technology solutions. We felt that e-paper based technologies play a key role in this market, complementing our current technologies, such as AVL systems and on-board displays.

How do you view the opportunity for Papercast in your market?

The Government of Hungary is supporting the implementation of smart city projects in key cities. While Papercast e-paper displays have an obvious application in providing real-time passenger information, we are also looking to position this technology in other areas, such as parking assistance boards and general information boards.

What feedback have you had so far from your customers?

From a technology point of view, it has been very promising. Because of the low power consumption and solar power, Papercast displays are very easy and flexible to install. We are still working on the challenge of acquisition cost. Compared with other technologies it can be more expensive, but for certain uses e-paper offers a much better solution which justifies the slight premium. You also have the consider the low operational costs as the units are solar powered. Another point to note is that cloud-based solutions are not yet widely adopted in Hungary due to Government expectations, but Papercast has been able to support this.

What key features/benefits are resonating in your market right now?

There are four key points that really stand out:

1. It is an out-of-the-box solution, both the software and the hardware.
2. It can operate entirely on solar power.
3. The standard data interface makes connection easy, SIRI is a must-have for Hungary.
4. All these points combined make it very easy to install.

Tell us about any live Papercast projects

We have installed and operate a solution for our client ÉNYKK (Északnyugat-Magyarországi Közlekedési kKözpont Zrt.), the Northwest Hungarian Transport Center, which includes 14 double 13.3” and 3 double 32” solar powered e-paper bus stop displays.

What 3 words would you use to describe your experience with Papercast so far?

1. Agile
2. Solution-oriented
3. Friendly

What advice would you give to other Papercast partners that may help them to succeed?

I would advise that you are as open and transparent as possible. Share as much information with Papercast as you can. If they understand your client goals, they will do everything they can to help. Strong project management on your side will help to keep your project on track and Papercast can ‘feed’ you.

ABOUT INNOTREND

Innotrend was founded in 2007 to provide technology solutions and consultancy throughout Hungary. With a focus on public transport, the company specializes in general contracting, passenger information systems and IT project management.

A huge thanks to Attila for sharing with us.

Please look out for future articles in the Powered by Papercast series.

If you are interested in becoming a Papercast partner, please contact us.