Oct
Digital Outdoor Signage – Getting Ready For Winter
Many companies who have deployed digital outdoor signage solutions though the spring and summer need to now re-evaluate their solutions, because if their installation is not protected it will certainly fail in the depths of winter.
One of the main issues for a company who rolls out digital signage in outdoor locations is that they some times do not plan ahead, for example if they are deploying a wireless network in October they sometimes wonder why they have problems with the installation in spring, the fact is the survey was definitely done when all the leaves had fallen from the trees, then when spring comes the trees burst into bud and this natural thing stops the wireless signal. The same can be said for the digital outdoor signage hardware.
If it has been placed under an awning and covered from the elements, there has never been a need for protecting the signage hardware with an LCD monitor enclosure, however now winter is here there are some serious choices to make.
A typical example are restaurants, who what to make their customers dining experience the most enjoyable possible, this is why many have deployed outdoor TVs, so they can see what is on the digital menu, or a sports channel for the latest news and updates, so that the experience feels like a home from home experience without the children.
Now this was fine in the spring and summer but now as the weather turns for the worst, these restaurant owners have to thing about removing the outdoor screens and putting them into storage for the winter which in turn could upset some clients who enjoy this entertainment, or the other option is to put the TV into a winter proof enclosure, these units provide the correct heating level at a preset temperature, so for instance if you are in Canada and need to maintain a minimum of 5 degrees Celsius you would just set the internal thermostat and the heater comes on when the temperature drops below 5 and then knocks off when the temperature is met, only using energy as and when it is needed.
An LCD enclosure offer year round protection, so once installed they can be left in situ throughout the year without worry or concern if the hardware is going to be OK.
So the choice is do you want to protect your investment whilst maintaining your customers?