The UK's biggest digital signage projects of the year

When digital signage is mentioned, the immediate reaction is to think of advertising and places such as Piccadilly Circus in London or Times Square in New York.However, digital signage plays a much bigger impact than showcasing the latest iPhone or blockbuster film. It is critical for communicating messages clearly to a large number of people. This may be via the timetables at London Paddington or road signals warning of traffic ahead.Digital signage is everywhere and it plays a big part in providing up-to-date information at a specific time. To highlight the importance of this technology, we've listed some of the biggest projects from across 2018.

Lords Cricket gets a major signage upgrade

For 200 years, Lords Cricket Ground has played host to international and country cricket, drawing in spectators from all over.The stadium is one of the most iconic venues in the world and is synonymous with the English game which was introduced to India, Australia, and the rest of the Commonwealth during the 19^th century at the height of the British Empire.Lords has 3 giant LED scoreboards that cover almost 3,000 square feet which are used to deliver scoring information, player data, and advertisements to a crowd of 30,000 at maximum capacity.However, after 10 years of 24/7 use, their AV system needed a major upgrade.The new system was installed in 2018. It is now able to operate as a multi-function AV solution as Lords plays host to a plethora of events.The biggest pain point the digital signage has relieved is that of the people updating the score of the cricket. The boards now tell the scorekeepers of an upcoming milestone, something the scorekeepers had to do manually.The full case study is available here.

KFC moves to digital menus

KFC currently has 890 stores spread across the UK and Ireland. These all, naturally, need to have the correct menu information at the correct time.Traditionally, the menu information would be updated using sheets of paper which would slide in and out of a plastic container above the counter. However, updating the menu and pushing certain promotions would, therefore, be labour intensive. Thousands of sheets of paper would need to be printed and installed at the same time.That is why the fast-food chain decided to transform its menu space. Over the last year, they installed 8,500 digital screens in order to display their options.Check out the full case study here.

Crossrail passenger communication

Crossrail is the biggest infrastructure project in Europe and is due to open in 2019 after delays meant the original 2018 opening was postponed.The digital signage on the new line has to communicate quickly and effectively. As London's population is expected to continue to rise for the foreseeable future, this need will, therefore, only be compounded.This means that the space on the opposite wall to the standing platform will be used to deliver information to passengers all the way along the platform instantly.Currently, information on display on platforms is not always correct and there is often only a small digital sign for a platform that stretches for hundreds of feet. This is an issue that has been recognised by the Crossrail team, who will be installing significantly better digital signage on the new line.