![]() |
![]() ![]() |
Home | Site Map | Buyer's Guide Search |
![]() |
Event Calendar | ![]() |
Article Archive | ![]() |
Message Boards | ![]() |
Classifieds | ![]() |
Product Showcases | ![]() |
News | ![]() |
Advertise | ![]() |
Search | ![]() |
Join Now | ![]() |
![]() |
![]()
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() Retrofitting Print Billboards with their LED Digital Counterparts
By Louis M. Brill
![]()
As the number one rule for real estate: location, location, location, so it is also true for a billboard (which is real estate as well) placement. The big issue with a billboard operator is, all the best placements are already taken by their existing print billboards, so where can they put their new digital billboards? Since most good billboard highway spots are taken, one possible solution at hand would be to create a "swap out" of taking an already premium or favored print billboard location and replacing with its digital counterpart.
Land displays "In bringing in our new digital billboards, the placement of each display is on a case by case basis, depending on the region and the marketplace. Sometimes it might replace an existing print board and sometimes it might be a new location. In some cases a billboard conversion is not without its own challenges of local sign code regulations of what can be and can't be installed in that area. Another issue is to consider the physical integrity of the sign structure and whether it's capable of physically supporting the new (and much heavier) digital billboard on the existing structure." "Within our print billboard inventory as each of our digital billboards are considered for placement on an existing print billboard structure, we had local billboard engineers look at each prospective billboard and determine what it would take to accept to swap out a print billboard and replace it with an LED display cabinet. The findings, once reported to us would stipulate what kind of, and how many changes would be required of the existing billboard structure by either re-engineering the billboard structure or completely rebuilding it. Of the seven digital displays within Land Display's billboard inventory, three were new structures and four were existing print billboard locations that we converted. We plan to convert two additional locations in 2010."
CBS Outdoors Already CBS Outdoors has 70 + digital billboards and anticipates that number to grow as their digital billboards become more in demand to their advertisers. As to where digital billboards are installed within CBS urban markets, Jodi Senese, Executive Vice President of Marketing stated that, "In our placement of digital billboards, we tend to focus our installations on what we call 'iconic locations' which are high-demand, high-profile positions along highways or tunnels. We like highway choke points which causes passing traffic to slow down creating a longer dwell time for viewing our billboards."
"As CBS Outdoors moves forwards with our digital billboard expansion," noted G. Todd Lathan, VP of the CBS Outdoors Digital Division, whose group assists in the deployment and installation of the newly acquired digital billboards, "more often than not, we'll find ourselves replacing our pre-existing print billboards with our digital counterparts. When necessary, we'll upgrade that existing billboard structure as required. In our review of these structures, sometimes they're OK; sometimes they need to be upgraded significantly."
"One of our considerations when we review a billboard structure is its age. Some of them go back as far as 50 years ago, at and that age, more likely there's going to be some work done on them." Once the structure has been refurbished, the digital billboard is ready to be assembled and installed. Our billboard displays are made up of individual LED modules which are tiled together into a final display. We begin with a pre-built box frame and then, insert all the LED modules in place. Once on site, the modules are assembled with rear service access catwalks, and are lifted onto the primary billboard support structure."
Billboard structures for the digital age
![]()
"If the local municipality is favorably disposed to the installation of an electronic billboard replacing its print counterpart," Lewis stated, "we look at the preferred billboard structure to determine how the billboard company can proceed. Sometimes when we see them, in the best of possible worlds, they're in good enough shape that a billboard conversion would be very straight forward with one type of sign face replacing the other. Sometimes, we see that a print billboard is still in usable shape, but it will take a degree of refurbishment to improve its physical support capabilities. Here we recommend reinforcing various parts of the billboard to make it capable of supporting a much heavier digital billboard. In other instances if the billboard structure is not capable of such a conversion, we will suggest the company consider another billboard site for such a conversion." "As we review a possible billboard structure for a digital billboard conversion, we examine the structure from bottom to top. We begin at the billboard sign's base and look at the structure's foundation. We take all kinds of measurements including using an ultrasonic thickness measuring device that allows us to measure the wall thickness of the torque tube. We also look for corrosion spots. If corrosion has reduced the original metal thickness by 15% - you have a problem. In some cases you can recondition a rusted spot - in other cases it is better to cut it out and replace it with new metal."
"Sometimes we find that the original billboard structure was designed for a lower wind pressure according to the building codes of decades ago. Now when you change from print to digital billboards, the new building codes need to be followed, because you're substantially changing the use of the structure and now have to design for both a higher wind pressure and also for a greater weight load of the LED cabinets."
"In one instance of a billboard structure review, we found a usable billboard structure with an undersized foundation. In this case it was a 30 - 40 year old frame assembled with vertical trusses and was a sign structure that pre-dated the concept of a single-size billboard structure. The existing billboard frame had plenty of reserve support capacity for the additional weight of a digital billboard, but its foundation was in question, because the soil was rather soft and the original support piles were old enough to have been made of timber."
Our solution was to design an expanded foundation for the base, which required the driving of additional piles as part of the new foundation set up. Because of the physical restrictions around the billboard, we were not able to get pile driving equipment into place because the billboard structure was to close to a railroad right away. Instead we had to use a mini-pile driver and drill the piles in place around the foundation. The only other issue on the front of the billboard sign was to bolt on some new support brackets to allow the proper attaching of the LED sign cabinets to the billboard structure."
"In another billboard infrastructure review, we examined a full flag, single pole sign with two sign faces displayed in a V-configuration. With the consideration of converting both billboards from print to LED displays, we realized that the horizontal member which was a 30-inch diameter torque tube was going to be overstressed and would not have enough capacity to support one LED display, let alone both of them. To give the sign structure extra strength, we designed a diagonal steel tube (known as a 'kicker') that supported the torque tube, keeping the LED display in place."
More digital billboard growth coming 1.) The cost of acquiring digital billboards continues to descend, making them more readily available for both outdoor advertising companies just getting started with digital billboards and for those who are expanding an already existing outdoor electronic media network. 2.) As media planners develop their clients marketing campaigns, so will they see digital billboards as an important part of their advertising buy into regional and national markets reinforcing outdoor advertising companies strategies of building and expanding their already existing digital billboard networks.
Putting billboards in a new light
|
![]() |
|
![]() |
|
![]() |
|
![]() | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
© Copyright 1999-2021, All Rights Reserved. |