Llanelli, UK based AV integration specialists PAI recently completed the roll out of bespoke narrow bezel LCD panel technology for a series of the highest profile Reiss mens and womenswear retail stores in central London.
The locations - Barrett Street; Kings Road, Chelsea; Kent House, Oxford Circus and Selfridges in Oxford Street - are some of the busiest locations for the universally popular high street brand.
PAI was contacted by Reiss's design team who were seeking a technical solution to deliver their concept for a new in-store promotion system requiring an anamorphic screen measuring approximately 1.8M high and 0.6M wide.
PAI won the contract for offering design realisation at the right price and the ability to deliver a fully working end product within the client's demanding programme.
"We reviewed the brief and came up with a simple cost-effective approach" reports PAI's technical director Andy Bonehill, which utilised a pair of narrow bezel 46” NEC and Samsung LCD screens fitted above each other in custom steel frames supplied by the shopfitter.
The PAI team worked closely in advance with the shopfitters to ensure that the steel frames were perfectly designed and built, as the installation timeframe was so tight there were absolutely no error margins once the team was on site and engaged in the installation.
Content for the screens is sourced from a simple networked solid state high definition media player. Working with the client's chosen content provider, PAI supplied the recommended settings for the video projectors and encoders, resulting in the correct proportions being visible on the finished display.
Each installation also required careful coordination with the shopfitters and other trades whilst working on site. The 4 installations were carried out highly efficiently by PAI's two-person team working overnight for 2 consecutive nights, allowing the stores to open the next morning with a fully completed and operational display.
Andy Bonehill comments, “We actually chose a very straightforward and value engineered solution to create the required display, and once specified, the technology elements of the fit-out were relatively simple. The real key was having everything tested, and all the design integration with the shopfitters completed properly and well in advance, minimising time on site and enabling us to meet the deadlines."