We will get through this together
The unprecedented situation surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic affects every one of us, whether it is our health, the way our businesses operate, or our daily lives. We truly appreciate having you with us, and we want to reassure you that even in these difficult times you can still count on us. All of our services are running without any restrictions, and the entire XC TECH team is here for you.
How are we working right now?
We have put safe working procedures in place and are operating roughly on a 50:50 home office / office split, or as current needs dictate. Technical support and remote management are running without restrictions, and now that cinemas are not screening, it is the ideal time to carry out software updates on cinema servers and projectors. If your cinema server feels slow, do not hesitate to reach out: we can remotely reinstall the OS, format the disks, update the firmware, and more. We are also shipping items such as 3D glasses, batteries, lamps, and other products without restrictions. When packing shipments we follow protective measures, and every package is prepared while wearing gloves, a face mask, and a protective face shield. So if you need to restock, do not hesitate to contact us.
We have a few tips for you. Some are worth following while the technology is idle, and others are simply good to be aware of.
TIP #1 Power up your equipment regularly
Besides a great deal of electronics, both the projector and the cinema server contain a number of various batteries that can, especially in older machines, drain completely, which in some cases can lead to irreversible damage to the component in question. So please switch on both the cinema server and the projector for several hours at least once a month.
TIP #2 Do not switch off the UPS
If your setup includes a UPS backup power unit, keep in mind that switching the UPS off will, after a certain time, fully drain its battery, and if the UPS is older, you probably will not get it to start up again. If for some reason you have to turn the UPS off, remember to switch it on regularly for a few hours so the battery can recharge.
TIP #3 Run test screenings
Check that the whole system is working on a regular basis. Switch everything on just as you would for a live screening and try it out, for instance on a trailer, to see whether everything works. Many projectors use coolant to cool the DLP chips, and particles of that coolant can settle in the cooling system. In an extreme case, this can lead to a complete blockage and the subsequent overheating of the DLP chips, the electronics, and other optical components. The pump in the cooling circuit only starts when the lamp is switched on, or when the "top-up" mode is started manually. So make time for a test screening every now and then.
TIP #4 Do not let audiences forget about your cinema
Out of sight, out of mind. Do not let your audience base forget that you exist. These days there are plenty of tools you can use to stay visible. Share posts on social media: even when there is nothing to screen, you can always share trailers for upcoming films, news from showbusiness, or get involved in the #vasekino project and screen online.
TIP #5 Screen online
Most of you are probably familiar with the #vasekino project. It will not make up for the revenue of regular screenings, but it is definitely a good way to let people know you are still here, and a way to give your audiences and fans the chance to support your cinema even during this time. We believe many viewers will take part, if only to support their favorite cinema.
And we will look at more tips next time 🙂
We have realized that even a YouTube tutorial from Dejv is not enough for us to build a nanobot that would neutralize the virus right inside a patient's body, or even to sew a usable and nice-looking face mask. We admire everyone who manages to do it, and we say THANK YOU.
It turned out that sewing face masks is not our strong suit, so we decided to take a different route. We are using the capacity of our 3D printers, which mainly serve for prototyping (and printing figurines of the Avengers superheroes 🙂), and we are printing protective face shields that we then deliver and hand out, not only to healthcare facilities but generally wherever frontline workers are. We are aware that it is only a drop in the ocean, but even so we believe that every bit of help counts. To date we have handed out more than 120 face shields among healthcare workers, as well as to a police station, for example.
For anyone interested, we use a modified version of the face shield model from Prusa Research, lowered and optimized for faster printing.
If you have someone on the frontline in your family or among your friends and you are worried they might get infected, try writing to us, and if our printing capacity allows, we will gladly send you an improvised 3D-printed face shield free of charge.
SURVEY: As a cinema, would you be interested in protective equipment and disinfectants?
Phew, it is a difficult topic, and we hesitated for a long time over whether to even bring it up, but in the end we decided that we would.
Several cinema operators independently asked us about disinfectant wipes for 3D glasses, which we normally sell, and questions also came up about whether we plan to offer hand sanitizers, sanitizer dispensers, protective gear, and the like.
Without wanting to profit in any way from the situation around COVID-19, we tried casting a wide net among our suppliers, and we found that we are able to offer customers hand sanitizing gels in various forms and quantities, protective goggles, ordinary face masks as well as KN95 masks, sanitizer dispensers, and essentially all the protective supplies that the government is currently importing into the Czech Republic. All products carry CE certification.
Prices are, of course, inflated at the moment, but we are able to secure "hopefully" normal prices for you that are not over the top and should be cheaper than those available online. The largest part of a product's price right now is shipping, which is genuinely very high at the moment.
So we would like to ask you whether there would be interest on your side in these products, and we would be glad if you sent us a non-binding inquiry.
We should have final and current prices available within the next week, so if you are interested, do not hesitate to reach out to us.