GE Consumer & Industrial is a worldwide industry leader in major appliance, lighting and integrated industrial equipment, systems and services. To help guide the technical aspect of its new Monogram Design Center, GE worked with Rethink Innovations, an audio/video, network and IT data infrastructure design company that provides cost-effective professional content for commercial facilities.

When the design team, which uses local culture as influence for designing showrooms, began planning the new Monogram Design Center, it needed the sparkle and shine of New York City flair in the four kitchen areas to make it familiar and inviting to visitors. Designers wanted the showroom's city theme to be evidenced by terrazzo flooring laid out in the pattern of the Manhattan street grid, a representation of Times Square and 59th Street Subway tile covering an area of the wall above one of the four kitchen areas. Within the reception area is a structural column that designers wanted to transform into a representation of Times Square. After discussing ideas of LED-based displays and a video wall of displays in portrait mode on the column, designers looked to Rethink Innovations for a feasible technology to create the environment they were looking to design.

After Christoffersen and designers considered various ideas to bring New York City indoors for its showroom, they chose NEC Display Solutions' 46” MultiSync LCD4620-AV based on its price point, thin bezel size and screen quality. While other displays' bezels tested as too thick for the Times Square column, the LCD4620 display fit perfectly, leading GE and Rethink to choose nine units for the new showroom. Six LCD4620 displays were mounted in two 3x1 video wall configurations onto the Times Square column. The working kitchen would boast a hideable unit in addition to one on the flip-down lift-both to be used for audi­ence demos. For uniformity, another display with speakers would be placed into a conference room for presentations and meetings.

The digital content for the Times Square column/video wall runs in a custom aspect ratio for portrait mode and all content is mastered at 1080 x 1920. With the LCD4620 displays each mounted in landscape orienta­tion and showing content in portrait mode over the entire video wall, this install captures visitors' attention and offers them a unique perspective.

Facts & Figures

Location

Times Square column/video wall