When Toulouse-Blagnac Airport (ATB) extended its hall D, it turned to LCS and the integrator Abaques audiovisuel to deliver a software and hardware solution for video wall digital signage in addition to content management and formatting. With its 9.2 million passengers a year…READ MORE
Toulouse-Blagnac is France’s fourth biggest airport and third at regional level, but that’s not all: Toulouse – Paris Orly is Europe’s busiest air link with 2.3 million passengers every year. These impressive figures show just how fast the tourism/leisure industry is growing.
Because digital communication is everywhere and an essential feature of any airport environment today, Toulouse-Blagnac airport has embarked on a strategy to modernize its digital communication systems. After analyzing all the airport’ operating requirements, the project teams went on to determine everyone’s communication needs, namely, how to display any type of media on any type of device – easily and quickly!
The main issue soon grew into a true challenge for the project teams: how do you open up a closed IT system while complying with security, robustness and reliability imperatives?
To take up the challenge, Toulouse-Blagnac airport opted for the PADS4 display solution, which delivers an application mix that meets ATB’s criteria. The PADS4 solution opens up the airport’s IT system to a multitude of external data connectors, while guaranteeing an optimal security level. The data is then processed internally and formatted for controlled publication, notably by connecting the PADS4 players to the airport’s FIDS system.
The PADS4 Crystal CMS lets airport employees publish content simply and quickly on his/her authorized media/screens, thereby providing a local communications capability while maintaining control of global communication.
For this first project with Toulouse-Blagnac airport, CMS Crystal came out a length ahead of its competitors with its ability to manage all digital media technologies AND provide a common Web interface for managing the tools involved (digital signage, video walls, flight information, etc.) with true cross-functional compatibility. Coupled with PADS4 technology from the Dutch company NDS (Net Display Systems) and Userful, Crystal makes publishing content easy regardless of the device and media used, and lets you share publisher status with user rights and profiles management, schedule broadcasts, select screens or groups of screens, choose the configuration of video walls, and more.
The extension to the airport’s Hall D is now equipped with two information walls in the public area, a Breathing Space video wall, two walls in the Duty Free area, a decision space video wall, and LED panels in the shopping area to create an immersive atmosphere. Publishers can vary the information broadcast at will, mixing useful real-time flight information from the airport database with practical or security passenger messages in the form of videos, images, templates, etc.
Thanks to the new equipment specially configured and customized for Toulouse-Blagnac airport, managing and formatting content for passengers has never been so simple, intuitive and successful.
ATB’s project teams truly appreciated this combination of a robust, high-performance and open solution with a simple, more end-user-oriented publishing CMS. All stakeholders in the digital communication project are now benefitting from application mixes that meet everyone’s criteria.
Abaques Audiovisuel and LCS worked as a team to implement the solution. Thanks to its audiovisual solution integration expertise, Abaques identified the PADS4/Userful/Crystal combination offered by LCS as the best solution for the job. With its in-depth experience with these solutions, LCS audited the target business teams to adapt the technologies to the needs of the airport’s internal processes.
To help Toulouse-Blagnac airport’s communication teams to publish high quality content, Abaques audiovisuel helps them to create quality media and LCS helps them by recommending appropriate graphic templates.
“PADS4 meets our robustness and reliability criteria while allowing a more open connection to the outside world” – Laurent Verbiguié, Head of IT at Toulouse-Blagnac airport.
“Crystal CMS is a very easy-to-use publishing interface in that contributors no longer need to adapt to a complex software interface. This ease of use makes for more dynamic communication” – Kristelle Lassagne, IT Project Manager at Toulouse-Blagnac airport.
“The challenge was to find a solution that would meet all the needs of all the airport’s business teams as well fit into the airport’s ultra-secure closed systems.” Fréderic André, CEO Abaques Audiovisuel.
