Outdoor Advertising, Dubai

Retrofit of premium billboards in Dubai

BackLite Media, is a premium Out of Home advertising company with sites along the prestigious Sheikh Zayed Road.  With a reputation for the highest quality displays and a record of continuous investment in the UAE market, BackLite Media is an acknowledged industry leader.

The brief to Bright Green Technology was simple: maximise the sites already impressive prestige whilst improving sustainability and reducing costs.  The three principal objectives were:

Environment and sustainability:

A meaningful reduction in carbon generation.  Ultimately a 70% carbon reduction was achieved

Health and Safety

The elimination of risk associated with regular fluorescent tube changes – including working at height, traffic disruption and disposal of waste

Demand

The market is eager for continuous introduction of new innovation.  BackLite Media had already learned the benefits of applying new technology to maximise the stature and reputation of their sites.

Edison himself described the creation of the original functioning lightbulb not as 1,000 failed attempts but “an invention with 1,000 steps.” When pushing at the boundaries of what’s possible with illumination, every step teaches something valuable.  In this case the aim was to deliver a beautifully presented advertising display which was, at the same time, cheaper, more sustainable and safer to operate.

The challenges for this project were:

Environmental

The site locations are in full sun and operate up to 12 hours per day in typical UAE conditions.  The environment inside the lightbox is even more extreme, with operating temperatures reaching 60⁰C.  To cope with these conditions, Bright Green Matrix was selected.  This product includes a substantial heat sink to ensure LEDs are operating within acceptable temperature limits.  In addition, Bright Green Matrix is proven in the local conditions and also in this particular application.

Installation

BackLite Media sites are necessarily located right next to the major artery of Dubai – Sheikh Zayed Road.  Day time access is not possible and night time work is restricted.  Hence, the installation speed and the safety of operatives was critical.  Bright Green Technology developed an installation system that allowed fast, accurate work on site, keeping work time and disruption to a minimum.

Performance

BackLite Media uses a unique printing technique for large format posters.  Every poster is ‘double printed’ using much thicker ink than conventional methods.  This ensures premium quality and colour reproduction but is challenging from a lighting perspective.  Bright Green Technology developed a new, high intensity, product to deliver the brightness demanded by advertising customers.

This is not a high profile architectural project or a gleaming skyscraper but an example of a committed client investing in a sustainable future.  Dubai has targeted a 16% reduction in carbon emissions by 2021 and projects such as this are essential in meeting that goal.

It is a fantastic example of technology investment improving the commercial value of assets whilst increasing sustainability at the same time.  It is projects like this that will lead to meaningful results and a better environment.

According to Wikipedia “Bright green environmentalism aims to provide prosperity in an ecologically sustainable way through the use of new technologies and improved design.  This project is a perfect embodiment of such thinking.

James Bicknell, Managing Director of BackLite Media commented, “We had, for a number of years, been keen to reduce our carbon footprint, and improve the quality of service we offer to our clients.  After evaluating a number of local and international companies, we were convinced that Bright Green offered the right level of service and the high quality product we were searching for.  Since partnering with Bright Green we have been extremely happy with the quality of product they have provided as well as first rate customer service whenever we have needed it. We will continue to convert our signs to Bright Green’s technology over the coming years.”