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Digital signage video walls take the podium at 2015 Toronto Pan Am & Parapan Am Games

The 2015 Toronto Pan Am & Parapan Am Games earlier this year incorporated two digital signage video walls into Ontario's Harbourfront Centre 'celebration zone' venue, according to an announcement today from APG Displays.

December 14, 2015

The 2015 Toronto Pan Am & Parapan Am Games earlier this year incorporated two digital signage video walls into Ontario's Harbourfront Centre "celebration zone" venue, according to an announcement today from APG Displays.

APG Displays, a North American distributor and sub-renter of video walls, designed, developed and constructed a 55-inch LCD modular NEC X554UN videowall and a 46-inch LCD modular NEC X462UN video wall for the world's third largest international multisporting event, according to the announcement.

"The Harbourfront 'celebration zone' is one of the event's most frequently visited areas, serving as a cultural hub," APG Displays President David Weatherhead said in the announcement. "To capture attendees' attention, we were tasked with the challenge of designing and constructing two temporary video walls in an environment that varies in temperature, lighting and climate over a 26-day period. I can confidently say that we rose to the challenge, carefully selecting two large-format NEC LCD video walls that performed brilliantly and consistently."

To ensure that the displays' content would be clear despite the tent's outdoor-like conditions, APG Displays said it recommended NEC Display Solutions displays for the job. "The professional-grade backlit NEC LCD panels deliver superb color clarity and full-HD resolution, qualities that are ideal for this particular application," APG Displays General Manager Dan Ayerst said. "We designed a 54-paneled 55-inch NEC X554UN video wall and a 54-paneled 46-inch NEC X462UN video wall, both of which were scaled in size to suit a large viewing audience."

The company also said the NEC panel's mechanical design and low power consumption capabilities proved to be an excellent fit for a public venue of this nature. The panels' slim structure took up virtually no space at the event, which was much appreciated, according to the announcement. "With live, high-profile events, less space taken is more," Ayerst said. "With NEC, we were able to deliver big impact with slim structure."

At high-profile events, Weatherhead said, easy video wall accessibility is a must, so APG Displays made it a point to "daisy chain" the displays from a single software platform, to ensure easy content control. Additionally, in the event of any required maintenance, the video walls' panels were attached to APG Displays' custom bracket system. If a malfunction occurred, an APG Displays engineer could quickly switch out the panel. "It's absolutely essential to create a system that simplifies possible maintenance during a live event," Weatherhead said. "Putting these cautionary steps in place truly makes a difference."