LED screen installation company ADI has unveiled its latest 22.5sqm slim-line screen at the Highcross shopping centre, Leicester, UK. The new high resolution LED screen is designed as an advertising medium, featuring the shape and size of a scaled-up digital six-sheet.
Based in the heart of Leicester, Highcross opened in 2008, arriving as the largest regeneration project to ever take place in the city. The facility, which is owned by European-wide retail property developer Hammerson, offers over 120 retailers, cinemas, cafes and restaurants, and receives over 18 million visitors a year.
The Highcross screen is said to be a similar solution to one that was recently installed at Bullring shopping centre in Birmingham, UK, also under ownership of Hammerson.
For this project, ADI provided a fully managed solution which encompassed initial visualisations, structural engineering, manufacture and installation, as well as on-going localised support and maintenance over the lifetime of the technology. The company specified a slim-line screen, with a depth of just 45mm.
“When we originally specified the Highcross screen we realised that the affixing wall could allow us to offer a far more flexible and refined solution,” said ADI’s business development manager Drew Burrow. “Most screens have a depth of at least 100mm, we’ve been able to dramatically reduce this by specifying a custom solution that locates all screen circuitry and power supply on the rear of the wall. Aside from creating a screen that’s far more elegant to look at it also ensures easy access for any service and maintenance. With content that’s advertising driven any screen downtime is directly measurable in lost revenue to the client, so the installation we’ve created therefore maximises up-time.”
Support for the new solution will be provided by ADI’s internal monitoring, with a live link via a dedicated HD webcam to their European Operations Centre due to be installed. “This will provide ADI with real-time visual surveillance, allowing us to remotely diagnose and instantly react should any programming or technical faults occur,” Burrow added. “We have continual desktop connection to all screens on our network, allowing us to rectify many issues without the requirement for a visit from an on-site engineer, helping to save both time and money.”
The screen is strategically located on a prominent central position where it’s clearly visible to shoppers on both the lower and upper malls, which maximises the screen’s commerciality and boosts cut-through for brand advertisers.
The high resolution LED tiles – which offer a pixel pitch of 6mm – were fixed to a bespoke steelwork cabinet, with ADI’s in-house team installing the screen during the centre’s closing hours to ensure there was no impact on trading at Highcross. All racking and power-supplies are located on the rear of the affixing wall, meaning servicing and maintenance can be done with ease, with minimal disruption to the centre.
Karen Heyes, commercialisation manager at Highcross Leicester, added, “We chose ADI because of the successful installations they’ve created at other premium shopping centres across the UK, which means they were extremely well placed to oversee the entire process from an operational perspective – from conception through to completion. ADI’s ability to centrally manage and advise provided us with confidence in what was a complex and multi-faceted project. The installation went incredibly smoothly and the ADI team commissioned the screen ahead of schedule.”
