Barco execs are saddling up for the long ride to InfoComm, sharing their insights on how we're helping our customers connect their worlds in and beyond the enterprise. Join us On the Road to InfoComm as we explore hot topics and provide a glimpse of what's to come at the show.

One of the fastest growing outdoor advertising trends in major metropolitan areas is 3D projection mapping. Some of the world's most iconic buildings have served as a canvas for large-scale branding campaigns, from the Intercontinental Hotel in Miami to the Battersea Power Station on London's River Thames. And it's no wonder: projection mapping offers retailers a colossal way to portray their brand and captivate consumers with a memorable, immersive experience. Even the hospitality industry is getting in on the act, creating multi-dimensional entertainment that portrays their venue in a new light, such as the Sheraton Waikiki Resort in Honolulu, Hawaii. One of our partners, Jack Hattingh, CEO of PointCloud Media believes that swimming pools are the next frontier, offering the hospitality industry an innovative way to differentiate offerings and attract potential guests.

Beating the time crunch
However, building these shows is no small feat, requiring a herculean investment in time and resources. As I speak with our rental partners and show producers about their challenges with regard to projection mapping, the unanimous consensus is that the number one priority is saving time. Production schedules are often compressed (a growing trend), leaving integrators two days to rig a show, where they used to have five. This time crunch is further exacerbated by the increased complexity of some projects, necessitating longer set-up, calibration and programming times.


As new technologies have been developed to power these larger-than-life visual spectaculars, Barco has been on the forefront of innovation, creating rugged, ultra-bright projectors and image processing solutions that deliver flawless presentations with minimal time investment. Our large venue projectors - many of which come with integrated rigging frames - offer a versatile, modular solution that can be quickly integrated into any show environment, providing excellent brightness to ensure high visibility even in areas of high ambient light. In fact, you'll see our new HDF-W30 FLEX large venue projector making its North America debut at InfoComm next week!

End-to-end workflow solution for total show automation
The really exciting news at Barco is surrounding our new media servers, which are purpose-built for these shows, with an emphasis on ease of use. Our new XHD series media server is a truly end-to-end visualization solution that makes event automation and preview simpler than ever, covering the entire video workflow from design to set up and operation.

Barco is not new to the media server space; you may recall the Axon Media Server developed by our lighting division, High End Systems. However, when we architected these new servers, we really wanted to design them from the video professional's point of view. What tools do they need to do the job speedily and spectacularly? The GUI, built-in design tools and content templates are really oriented to their way of working, offering a familiar environment in which they can work efficiently right from the start.
As a result, users can set up shows in hours, instead of days! Because the server provides an exact simulation, producers can test their entire show beforehand and sell ideas to customers before the show is actually built. Users navigate a 3D virtual environment, managing both pre-rendered and real-time content and deploying it in the physical space - all the time staying in a single software environment. This also speeds projector setup and execution. And, stay tuned: the XHD is just the first in a series of media servers designed to provide a turnkey approach to show automation for large-media environments.


Another bit of news is that our WB1920/WB2560 Warp and Blend boxes now include the auto alignment license so users can immediately benefit from this valuable capability by adding a camera. And if you're using our E2 4K screen management system, you'll find that its software also makes show set-up a breeze, thanks to the simple GUI that customers are raving about.

See us at InfoComm!
Please join us at Booth 2529 as we showcase all the ways Barco is helping you connect your worlds.

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