LAUSANNE, Switzerland & SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 12, 2024--
Logitech (SIX: LOGN) (NASDAQ: LOGI), today released a suite of Sync smart office tools to improve the workplace experience for employees and strengthen analytics for business IT teams. Auto Book and Auto Release features automatically reserve and cancel room bookings based on workplace behavior, and Logitech View interactive digital office maps make navigation through large office complexes intuitive.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241112053346/en/
A Steelcase Workplace Survey found that 40% of employees waste up to 30 minutes per day searching for meeting spaces,* a problem caused by people occupying meeting rooms without booking them, remaining in rooms beyond the time of their reservation, or failing to show up to (“ghosting”’) booked rooms.
“With hybrid work so pervasive, the office can feel like the Wild West,” said Henry Levak, VP of Product, Logitech for Business. “Logitech’s smart office tools are the not-so-secret weapon to bring predictability and detailed insights into these dynamic work environments.”
Auto Book and Auto Release solve these challenges: When employees start using a meeting room, Auto Book reserves it. Conversely, if a room is reserved but no one shows up, Auto Release frees the space for others to use. After multiple no-show meetings, the entire recurring series can also be automatically canceled, with the changes reflected in the calendar and on Tap Scheduler.
“Rally Bars use AI in-camera sensors to automatically detect and respond to natural workplace behaviors with no human intervention needed,” Levak added. “Employees can focus less on manual actions and more on collaboration, and IT admins get a realistic picture of which rooms are actually used, not just which rooms are booked.”
Unlock these features in rooms with Rally Bar or Rally Bar Mini, whether your organization uses Appspace, Envoy, Microsoft, RICOH Spaces, Robin, Zoom, or other booking platforms.
“Auto Book and Auto Release are prime examples of how Logitech shares our commitment to consumer-friendly, intuitive experiences that seamlessly integrate into daily life,” said Paul Alley, VP of Global Partnerships at Appspace. “Together, we’re removing obstacles that stand in the way of employee productivity, while also harnessing valuable data to address today’s business challenges.”
Availability status updates are reflected in near real time in Logitech View, a digital office mapping solution that keeps hybrid workers and visitors oriented with easier wayfinding in large office complexes via quick, color-coded visibility of meeting rooms, workstations, amenities, and exits. Maps can be displayed on large monitors or TV screens using Logitech RoomMate. Using the touchscreen, people can book rooms directly on the map or search for their colleagues’ desks.
The benefits run deep for IT teams responsible for ensuring that conference rooms are equipped with the right technology at the right times, and Facilities teams charged with optimizing office real estate.
“Underutilized and overutilized rooms are bad news for the bottom line,” said Prakash Arunkundrum, Chief Operating Officer and GM of Logitech for Business, ”Logitech Sync Insights gives you data analytics on space usage, occupancy, and the use of video conferencing equipment during meetings so you can make smarter decisions about tech investments and space planning.”
Pricing and availability
Logitech View, Auto Book and Auto Release are available with a Logitech Essential or Select service plan, priced at $199 and $399 per room annually, respectively. To start using Logitech View, update your RoomMate to CollabOS 1.14 (request early access here ). Auto Book and Auto Release require a Rally Bar or Rally Bar Mini on CollabOS 1.13 or higher.
About Logitech
Logitech designs software-enabled hardware solutions that help businesses thrive and bring people together when working, creating, gaming and streaming. As the point of connection between people and the digital world, our mission is to extend human potential in work and play, in a way that is good for people and the planet. Founded in 1981, Logitech International is a Swiss public company listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (LOGN) and the Nasdaq Global Select Market (LOGI). Find Logitech and more of its business products and enterprise solutions at www.logitech.com/business, the company blog, Logitech Business or @LogitechBiz.
Logitech and other Logitech marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of Logitech Europe S.A. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. For more information about Logitech and its products, visit the company’s website at www.logitech.com
*The New Era of Hybrid Work: It’s Time to Give People What They Want, Steelcase Global Research Study, 2022
Logitech Auto Book and Auto Release automatically reserve and cancel room bookings based on workplace behavior, and Logitech View interactive digital office maps make office navigation intuitive. (Photo: Business Wire)
SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — A crack in a damaged chemical tank in Southern California has eliminated the risk of a catastrophic explosion but it's still not safe enough for the remaining 16,000 residents living closest to the aerospace plant to go home, officials said Tuesday.
Crews were spraying water to keep cooling the tank that overheated last week, prompting the evacuation of 50,000 people in the Orange County city of Garden Grove. Most returned home after a crack formed over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, relieving pressure inside.
The evacuation zone remained the same on Tuesday morning, said Orange County Fire Capt. Brian Yau.
Crews worked overnight to ensure two other nearby tanks were neutralized and would not be affected by the compromised tank, he said, adding that material from one of these two tanks was transferred to another that has a neutralizing agent.
“They are moving material over to ensure that all threats have been eliminated,” Yau said.
Those threats include the risk of a very small explosion and potential spill, officials said.
Exposure to methyl methacrylate — a highly flammable chemical used to make plastics — can cause serious respiratory problems, neurological problems and irritation to the skin, eyes and throat, according to the federal Environmental Protection Agency. The tank at the GKN Aerospace Transparency Systems plant contains 6,000 to 7,000 gallons (22,700 to 26,500 liters) of the chemical.
The interior cooled to 93 degrees F (33.9 degrees C), the county's fire division chief Craig Covey said Monday, down from 100 degrees (37.7 degrees C) a day earlier. The company said its technical specialists and the county fire authority have removed insulation from the tank to help cool it.
Health officials sought to reassure people who are returning to homes near the plant.
“There was no contamination. There were no fumes,” Orange County Health Director Regina Chinsio-Kwong said at Monday's news conference. “There was not a leak. So it should be, you should feel comfortable going home even if you’re across the street from that new zone line.”
The South Coast Air Quality Management District will monitor the air for several months and the EPA will be checking sewer and storm drains for spills, Orange County Supervisor Janet Nguyen said.
Garden Grove Unified School District said last week it was shutting a dozen schools through what was supposed to be the last day of the school year on Wednesday but later said only three would remain closed Tuesday. It was unclear if they would reopen before the school year ends this week.
At a parking lot at a large park in Fountain Valley, just southwest of Garden Grove, people sought refuge in an ad hoc shelter there or pitched tents outside. Other people gathered in the park to enjoy Memorial Day.
Kim Yen, a retiree who was still evacuated from her home two blocks from the plant, welcomed news that the worst was not expected.
“I am happy and many of us are happy,” she said Monday.
She said she's ready to go back but wants to be sure it’s safe first. She's also been worrying about the emergency workers, who she called “our heroes.”
As the tank heated up, the chemical converted from liquid to gas, ramping up the pressure and explosion risk, said Andrew Whelton, a Purdue University engineering professor who has studied environmental contamination. Some of the methyl methacrylate may already have hardened into a stable plastic similar to plexiglass, reducing the danger, he said.
The tank could eventually cool enough for crews to safely stabilize and drain the remaining material without triggering a spark or ignition, Whelton said.
However, he said there is still a risk of an explosion while the chemical remains hot and reactive. Temperatures need to fall closer to 60 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit (15.6 to 21.1 degrees C) before conditions are considered significantly safer, he said.
GKN Aerospace Transparency Systems makes cockpit windows, canopies and windshields for military and commercial aircraft. It employs about 16,000 people across 32 manufacturing sites in 12 countries, according to the company website.
“We apologize for the ongoing disruption this incident is causing and our priority remains its safe resolution, so that residents can return to their homes as quickly as possible,” the company said.
GKN Aerospace agreed in 2025 to pay state regulators more than $900,000 to settle violations involving recordkeeping, permitting issues and nitrogen oxide emissions, according to a report on the South Coast Air Quality Management District website.
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This story has been corrected to attribute a quote to TJ McGovern, interim fire chief of the Orange County Fire Authority, not to division chief Craig Covey.
Willingham reported from Boston. Contributing were Associated Press journalists Jamie Stengle in Dallas; Ethan Swope in Garden Grove, California; and Christopher Weber in Los Angeles.
Two evacuees sit in their pickup truck at a gas station within the evacuation zone in Stanton, Calif., Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
An aerial view shows a police checkpoint enforcing a road closure at the evacuation zone boundary in Anaheim, Calif., Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Jan De Jonge and fiancé Sher Stuckman set up a tent with their belonging and pet outside the Elks Lodge in Garden Grove, Calif., on Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
An evacuation map is displayed at the incident command post at the Los Alamitos Race Course in Cypress, Calif., on Sunday, May 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Water is sprayed on a damaged tank at GKN Aerospace in Garden Grove, Calif., on Sunday, May 24, 2026, after the tank containing a chemical used to make plastic parts overheated Thursday. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
People walk outside Freedom Hall, an evacuation center in Fountain Valley, Calif., on Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
An American Red Cross volunteer walks outside Freedom Hall, an evacuation center in Fountain Valley, Calif.,on Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
People tend to their pets outside Freedom Hall, an evacuation center in Fountain Valley, Calif., on Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
