Moody Gardens Aquarium Pyramid in Galveston, Texas has undergone a complete AV renovation from 1220 Exhibits, which includes a PixelFLEX FLEXLite NXG LED system to upgrade the lobby experience.
“With the project, we won the bid to oversee the complete AV installation for the renovation of the Aquarium Pyramid where the original design for the lobby called for a 25K projector system,” said Dan Chadwick, director of interactive services, 1220 Exhibits. “Once we ran the numbers, we were able to show how using a LED video system would be a better long-term solution while giving them a much more compelling digital display for the lobby experience.”
“One of our primary goals with this renovation was to create a dynamic, immersive experience for guests the moment they stepped foot in the Aquarium Pyramid,” said John Zendt, president/CEO Moody Gardens.
Chadwick continued: “Since all of the exhibit houses at Moody Gardens are built in a pyramid-style with the outer façade being made of glass, we knew there would be an uncontrollable amount of natural light that would bleed into the space. Because of this, they would need to install a fairly large projector to counteract the natural light, and even at its maximum capacity, a projection system would not provide the image quality that we could achieve with the high-definition FLEXLite NXG 3.9mm LED wall.”
As the system installation got underway, the LED video panels would be mounted high above the crowd on a curved wall greeting guests as they arrive. In a busy AV renovation schedule where time is an asset, the design features of the FLEXLite NXG system added an additional benefit to the project, allowing it to install quickly and easily.
“The completed videowall now measures 20ft wide by 10ft high and is mounted over a stairwell approximately 15-20 feet above the ground,” added Chadwick. “To connect the panels to the curved mounting wall, we first removed the drywall and fastened ¾in plywood to the metal sub-structure underneath. We then bolted the panels directly to the plywood with about a 5° curve. We ended up using 72 total FLEXLite NXG panels and it went pretty smooth as we completed the full LED video system installation in only three days.”
With the full project complete, Moody Gardens opened the doors to the renovated Aquarium Pyramid, allowing guests to now explore the oceans of the world in a 1.5 million-gallon aquarium.