This recently opened visitor attraction explores the many facets of an iconic British motorcycle brand. Tom Bradbury reports on the installed AV that makes Triumph victorious.
The Triumph Factory Visitor Experience is a brand new world-class exhibition showcasing the design excellence, engineering precision and human endeavour that goes in to the manufacture of Triumph motorcycles. Located at the company’s factory HQ in Hinckley, Leicestershire, this immersive experience allows visitors to connect with some iconic Triumph motorbikes at the home of their manufacture.
AV design and installation was undertaken by Sysco, while Studio MB created the master plan, concept design, interpretative and exhibition design.
Eight zones
Visitors embark on an engaging journey throughout eight themed zones divided across two floors: Attitude, BloodLine, Performance, Iconic, For the Ride, Individuality, Belonging, and Design. Complementary audiovisual technology animates the motorbikes and enlivens the rich story of this genuine British icon and international super brand. As visitors explore the space, their connection is heightened by an audio narrative and visually stunning installations, which instil a broader understanding and deeper appreciation for the heritage and ongoing success of Triumph.
A Crestron control processor handles all show control requirements including control of the media servers. It also handles equipment start-up and shutdown, basic volume controls and scheduler functionality.
The tour commences with Attitude, where visitors are welcomed by a looping video highlighting the devotion and ambition behind what makes a Triumph… well, such a triumph. With two blended 7,000-lumen Epson laser projectors and local audio, driven by Extron amplifiers and delivered here and elsewhere in the venue through compact Audica Microline speakers, this opening encounter sets the scene for the journey ahead.
Throughout the exhibition, projections are synchronised with audio, delivering a dynamic and immersive experience that both informs and inspires. Playback is courtesy of a rack-mounted six-channel Watchout server running Version 6 of the software, which also handles image blending and geometry correction. Video signals travel to the projectors over HDBaseT.
The media content and spirited chronicles offer a vibrant, punchy and dramatic backdrop for these beautifully elegant and powerful motorbikes. Internationally recognised personalities who ride or have ridden Triumphs are spotlighted to exemplify the prestige associated with both the brand and bike.
Speed achievements
A chronology of speed is delivered by a looped projection, seamlessly blended across a curved wall using two 8,000-lumen Epson projectors with short-throw lenses. Precisely co-ordinated with audio and synchronised with a circular speedometer floor projection (using another Epson), Performance focuses on five bikes and their achievements in speed as part of the bloodline of today’s fastest Triumph bikes. Audio is delivered through a rack of Canford headphones, driven by RDL headphone amplifiers.
The passion for excellence is emphasised in For the Ride, with a looping video that encapsulates all of the elements that are fused in to making the perfect bike ride. The video display is comprised of three Epson projectors, each fed by a BrightSign XD233 signage player and mounted on a geared Peerless-AV projector mount. Multi-channel audio works in sync with the video, alluding to the movement of fleeting motorbikes to give depth of reality.
Praise for Triumph is further highlighted in Belonging, which celebrates the vast community of Triumph fans located across the globe. A striking array of 114 digital photo frames is collated to share photographs of owners and dealerships alike, representing the widespread relationships to the motorbike and united passion for the brand. As the Triumph community grows, so too does the media content on display.
The visitor experience is completed by praise for the outstanding and passionate Triumph family. Multiple 32in Iiyama ProLite wall-mounted LCD screens showcase the design process and meticulous engineering behind the construction of their bikes, with further offerings of CAD drawings, renderings, models, sketches and interviews.
Visitors can also enjoy guided tours of the exhibition and with a control iPad, tour guides can walk through the space with complete control and flexibility to adjust audiovisual settings, thereby tailoring the experience to audience accordingly.
Team integration
Close integration between the design teams and Triumph inspired a strong appreciation of the passion behind the brand, and a thorough understanding of its aspirations; this helped to deliver an experience that truly represents the spirit of the Triumph motorcycle, its history and its future.
Miles Perkins at Triumph Motorcycles comments: “We had a very high expectation for the AV in the new factory visitor experience, and the result has not only exceeded this but delivered a truly engaging and immersive experience. The close collaboration we had on the design and technology plan was key to the success of this great new motorcycling and engineering venue.”
Jack Strong, sales and marketing manager at Sysco, adds: “From the early stages of the project, we were motivated by the passionate team at Triumph and their dedication to delivering a memorable visitor experience. Throughout the design and installation we worked closely with Studio MB, offering advice on creative solutions and the best technologies available. As a result, the audiovisual elements have been hugely successful in animating the displays and creating an engaging, dynamic and immersive exhibition space.”
Pictures: Sysco Productions
www.audicapro.co.uk
www.brightsign.biz
www.canford-audio.com
www.crestron.eu
www.dataton.com
www.epson.eu
www.extron.eu
www.iiyama.com
www.lightware.com
www.peerless-av.com
www.rdlnet.com
www.studiomb.co.uk
www.syscoproductions.com
