With the development of its new head office, Unity Place, Santander moved its core location from London to Milton Keynes, developing a space that focuses on reducing environmental impact and improving the employee experience. Working to enable a true hybrid working arrangement for team members who have become accustomed to working in this way, the new ultra-modern facilities provide the home for technology, risk, HR and audit teams, as well as for its ‘Everyday banking’ and financial crime functions. The building’s facilities include a food market, shops, restaurant, event auditorium, boardrooms and back office operational hubs.

The new-build site was a hive of activity, with principal contractor, architect and a range of fit-out contractors present for the duration of works. Project timelines were fluid with a range of change requests and variations requiring flexibility and agility of all those involved. From a technical perspective, the project required cutting-edge, professional audio-visual equipment to be installed in a range of locations, from the main reception, food hall and auditorium, to its event areas, boardroom and security centres. With each space coming together as part of the build process, collaboration was key, not only to navigate the unique access and availability of the spaces at any given time, but also to ensure the alignment of design, deployment and usability of the technologies across the many applications.

DPi were selected by Samsung to support the installation and on-going maintenance of the professional displays at the new site. Full management of the installation included surveys, management of power and data, sourcing of access equipment and installing the 12 displays in a range of rooms and spaces. Technologies ranged from 1.2mm narrow pixel pitch LED, to large format back-lit displays and MicroLED product. DPi installed, commissioned and handed over displays into the maintenance phase, ensuring all asset registers and access requirements were captured for support. Rolling seamlessly from project to service support, DPi continue to maintain the equipment as part of a five-year maintenance agreement on a next business day response basis.

DPi’s end to end management of the works facilitated the complex nature of installing technologies in a newly built environment (with a variety of snags and final stages being managed concurrently). DPi’s breadth of knowledge for digital signage and display application, supported by their rigorous attention to detail, quality and health and safety ensured a level of confidence for the client for the latter stage of the project ahead of doors opening.