Kansas City Power & Light (KCP&L) has retrofitted its existing Barco video wall with a brand new LED engine. Using Barco's convenient LED upgrade kit, audio visual integrator AVI Systems Inc. cost-effectively upgraded the previous video walls while significantly enhancing picture quality.
The utility has relied on Barco technology since 2006 when it replaced its original front projection Transmission Control Center mapboard equipment with a two-high matrix of 24 edge-matched Barco OV-80-inch DLP SXGA+ cubes creating a canvas of 16,800 × 2,100 discrete pixels. KCP&L decided to remain with Barco for the next generation of its system because of its proven reliability, superior image resolution and maintenance-free operation. The utility also upgraded the Emergency Operations Center video wall, also installed in 2006. The Emergency Operations Center, which serves as the command center for restoring power during outages is comprised of 15 Barco 50-inch modules.
“When it comes to reproducing precise, uniformly pure color with respect to images and data, no one does it better than Barco,” commented Tom Madsen, Project Development AVI Systems. “Even single-pixel-height lines just pop out of the background and are perfectly aligned because of the wall's excellent black levels and consistent brightness.”
Stephen Diebold, KCP&L's Real Time Systems Manager, who presided over the initial Barco solution and is managing the new system today, concurs: “We're impressed with the clarity of the images and data on the Barco modules. The new LED technology enables our transmission system operators to read the same map-board displays at an even greater distance. This enhanced readability helps to significantly reduce the potential for errors.” Diebold also mentioned, “Barco and AVI Systems have been reliable partners from the beginning, and we've enjoyed the experience with the original and the enhanced Barco walls.”
Designed and optimized for use in 24/7 mission critical environments, Barco's rear-projection LED video walls have set an industry standard as a high-performance, yet energy-efficient projection module. With the LED upgrade kit, owners of its legacy video wall systems can easily and cost-effectively migrate to Barco's LED-lit projection system and enjoy all of the benefits of this technology: industry-leading brightness (20% higher than other video walls on the market); guaranteed color uniformity and consistent brightness over time and across the display; completely maintenance-free operation; and up to 80,000 hours of continuous operation.
For more information, visit www.kcpl.com or www.barco.com.
