WASHINGTON, Feb. 1, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Visitors to Verizon Center are enjoying recent upgrades to the arena's visual experience, including a cutting-edge, high-resolution LED digital video wall, as they walk through the arena's main concourse at F Street. The digital video wall, manufactured and installed by Sansi North America (SNA), features the highest-density LED configuration for a sports venue in the United States.
Verizon Center is a 20,000-seat sports and entertainment venue owned and operated by Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE) in downtown Washington, D.C. The arena is home to three professional sports teams, also owned by MSE: the NBA's Washington Wizards, NHL's Washington Capitals and WNBA's Washington Mystics. On average the arena hosts 220 events per year inclusive of games, concerts, family shows and world-class sporting events as well as home games for the Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball team.
"About 60% of visitors for events come in through our main entrance," said David Touhey, MSE senior vice president and general manager of Verizon Center. "We wanted something to engage visitors and improve the overall fan experience. The video wall provides for a variety of content, including live in-game video feeds, partner and social media content, and wayfinding."
The interior LED video wall features a 1.25 mm pixel pitch, meaning the distance from the center of one pixel to the center of an adjacent pixel is only 1/20 of an inch, just less than the thickness of a dime. It is the only 1.25 mm LED display in a U.S. sports venue.
The digital video wall is approximately 7 feet 10 inches high by 21 feet 1 inch wide and 1,440 by 4,800 pixels. Despite being only 165 square feet, the Verizon Center digital video wall is comprised of 6,912,000 pixels because of the incredibly high density of pixels. Further, there are three diodes packaged into each pixel using surface-mount device (SMD) technology, meaning the video wall is comprised of more than 62 million diodes.
The digital wall is part of a broader upgrade of display assets throughout the arena, including courtside displays and other elements within the interior bowl. MSE engaged project consultant Sensory Interactive to oversee the design, technology selection, bidding, and project management of thee arena-wide enhancements and to integrate them with the existing comprehensive content management system.
Following a thorough review of multiple vendors, Sensory Interactive selected SNA for the concourse installation based on its ability to adapt to the project requirements and deliver a display with the remarkable resolution and build quality demanded by the high-visibility, high-traffic location.
"Installing one of the tightest-pitch permanent displays in the country created some unique challenges," said Carl Hubben, SNA project manager for the video wall installation. "Eliminating seams on such a tight product takes a great deal of attention to detail in the design stage for the display's structure and subframe. We relied heavily on the skill of our project team during the installation process."
Because of the tight pixels, which blend to the viewer even at close proximity, the display looks like an LCD display. However, because of the LED technology, the viewing angles and brightness are much more enhanced when compared with other video technologies.
"Even at three feet away, it's very difficult to distinguish individual pixels," said Hubben.
The display has a higher NIT rating (brightness) on its off-axis angles, which is indicative of its excellent viewing angles. The LED video wall has a viewing cone of approximately 179 degrees.
"The clarity and viewing angles are great," said Touhey. "People just love it. Some will just stand there and stare at it for a while."
SNA custom-designed and fabricated the concourse video wall's enclosure and access doors.
Additionally, SNA manufactured and installed nine exterior out-of-home digital boards at Verizon Center in 2013. Learn more about these projects at www.snallc.com.
For more information and photos of Verizon Center's LED digital video wall, visit http://www.snallc.com/projects/verizon-center-concourse.
About SNA
Sansi North America (SNA) (www.snallc.com) is a turn-key provider of LED digital displays and lighting solutions. SNA has managed, fabricated, implemented and installed some of the U.S.'s largest, high-definition LED screens, including Times Square spectaculars, Las Vegas LED video displays, and other high-profile installations, while offering its clients a single source for both indoor and outdoor lighting, text, graphic, and video products. Due to heavy growth and several high-profile awards in Manhattan, SNA has recently moved its corporate headquarters to 1500 Broadway in Times Square.
About Monumental Sports & Entertainment
Monumental Sports & Entertainment is one of the largest integrated sports and entertainment companies in the country with one of the most diverse partnership groups in all of sports. MSE owns and operates three professional sports teams: the NBA's Washington Wizards, NHL's Washington Capitals and WNBA's Washington Mystics. The group also owns and operates Verizon Center, the premier sports and entertainment venue in Washington, D.C. Monumental Sports & Entertainment also oversees the management of Kettler Capitals Iceplex, the state-of-the-art training facility for the Capitals and George Mason University's EagleBank Arena. In January 2013 Monumental Sports & Entertainment launched Monumental Network, a digital platform that serves as the hub for the region's sports and entertainment news. Visit MonumentalNetwork.com for more information.
About Sensory Interactive
Sensory Interactive (www.sensoryinteractive.net) evaluates, plans, launches, and operates technology-driven experiences that generate revenue and connect brands with customers. The company works as a consultant to some of the world's largest and most prestigious developers, property owners, retailers, healthcare organizations, corporations, and public institutions. Sensory Interactive's dynamic, high-profile projects range from engaging interactive donor walls to sports arena promotional platforms and large-format LED spectaculars.
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SOURCE SNA
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