Pro Display looking to expand after global Oscars exposure

The company, based in Hoyland, south of Barnsley, hit the headlines earlier this year when it provided 36 Clearview transparent screens on stage at the Oscars.

Now it is keen to take the expertise it has gained from working on Hollywood movie sets into the home.

The first new division will be Home Theatre, which will offer hi-tech screen technology for use in people’s homes.

The products vary from Mirrorvision, which turns into a mirror when switched off, to Flat Panel Art speakers, which look like a picture on the wall.

Paul Beswick, managing director of Pro Display, said: “We’ve been developing these products for a number of years. We are at the point now where all the screens have been developed and tested.We’ve completed the new ranges and are gearing up to launch the Home Theatre division in June.”

The group will also launch its Intelligent Glass division next month.

This will sell smart glass technologies such as films and coatings that can be applied to glass which can turn the pane frosted or clear at the flick of a switch.

Pro Display’s screen technology has appeared on a number of aspirational TV programmes such as Grand Designs.

The technology provides home owners with privacy when they want it without having to resort to old fashioned methods such as net curtains.

Images can also be projected onto the pane of glass. This technology has been used in a number of Hollywood films as well as popular TV programmes, such as Waking the Dead and Extreme Makeover, to create special effects.

The technology can be adapted for use outside the home and Pro Display is looking at developing touch screens for use in hospitals.

After five years in development the group recently launched a self-adhesive version of the switchable smart film technology, which will be targeted at the retro fit and after sales market.

No glue is needed as the film bonds to the glass surface using a specially designed silicon cling liner.

The company is also producing a number of self-adhesive projection films that incorporate an optical coating to recreate images that are up to 10 times brighter and sharper than conventional projection screens.

Pro Display said the films will allow customers to project large images in well lit rooms and even outdoors.

The third new division is Digital Signage, which will develop screens used for advertising.

The technology will allow retailers to turn their store windows into touch screens while shopping centres will use the screens to advertise products.

The fourth subsidiary will be the Rental Division. “Not everyone will want to buy the screens so we will offer them for rental,” said Mr Beswick. “It will be for customers who want something different at their product launch, exhibition, trade show or conference.

“It’s for people who want more than a flat panel, they want innovative high tech screens with switchable glass.”

Nearly 80 per cent of Pro Display’s products are exported to over 40 countries, including the US, Japan and the Middle East.

Pro Display’s front projection film was recently installed on a huge glass display case in Europe’s largest dinosaur gallery in Belgium.

The 100 inch switchable film screen allows visitors to see the dinosaur skeletons through the glass.

At the flick of a switch the material transforms into a high definition projection screen.

It also completed a £1.2m project for the world’s first stackable LED perimeter advertising system for a sports stadium in Saudi Arabia.

The system uses Pro Display’s new high brightness technology which improves the colour and contrast, even in direct sunlight.

Its glass screen technology was recently installed into the prestigious Mercedes-Benz World at Brooklands Race Track in Surrey.

The switchable glass screen is linked to an interactive projection system displaying images on the glass surface.

The images take viewers through the history of Mercedes-Benz and at the end of the presentation the glass is switched clear to unveil one of the car company’s first automobiles.