A LONG Eaton videoconferencing firm has transformed its boardroom into a "telepresence" suite and dedicated it to a little girl who benefited from the company's technology.
Questmark's boardroom has been named Fullerton after Hayley Fullerton, who was part of a project in Northern Ireland whereby children with heart defects could be monitored by doctors at home by a video link.
The "telemedicine" project allowed Hayley, who died in 2009, aged one, to spend much of her life at home with her family rather than in hospital. Questmark provided the technology and technical support free of charge.
To mark the launch of their remodelled boardroom, members of the Questmark team set up a video link with members of Hayley's family in Belfast and Brisbane.
The company has invested heavily in the new suite, which will double as both a meeting room and a means to demonstrate the company's telepresence and videoconferencing technology to potential customers.
Telepresence, as distinct from traditional videoconferencing, uses technology that enables people to meet by a secure high-quality video link.
Questmark director Jamie McMaster said: "The Children's Heartbeat Trust is important to us and we decided to name the boardroom after Hayley as a memorial.
"As a company, we are pleased to offer our technology to support the doctors and nurses who give up their free time to keep the project going, helping children with heart problems.
"It was moving to speak to Hayley's family and touching that they thanked us for our help. We are inspired by the families in this programme as they make us realise how fortunate we are."
Questmark has already sold four telepresence systems and has landed contracts with large public sector customers that require secure means to communicate without having to travel long distances and incurring significant costs. Typically, a telepresence system could cost £250,000 but Questmark's product sells for around £60,000.
Mr McMaster said: "The new boardroom really has the wow factor and being able to demonstrate the technology will certainly help. The market for this system is mainly in the public sector but there is also demand from manufacturers who have a presence in several countries."
