Green Bay Packers Modernize In-Venue Show at Lambeau Field With New 4K HDR Videoboards

Green Bay Packers Modernize In-Venue Show at Lambeau Field With New 4K HDR Videoboards BeckTV, WJHW were major contributors to the project By Kristian Hern ndez, Senior Editor

Wednesday, October 18, 2023 - 7:00 am

Print This Story | Subscribe

Story Highlights

Fans of the Green Bay Packers are enjoying an entirely new game-day experience at Lambeau Field this season. During the offseason, Tundra Vision, the club's in-venue production department, worked hard to bring online four new LED displays - two 4K HDR-capable main displays measuring 48 ft. high by nearly 220 ft. wide and two 7-ft.-high by 74.5-ft.-wide auxiliary scoreboards - and a new SMPTE 2110 control room prior to the start of the new campaign.

There's an excitement about bringing new technology and more content to our fans, says Kregg Shilbauer, director, broadcast and game presentation, Green Bay Packers. We're all happy with how it's coming together and how [the videoboards are operating] from a game-presentation standpoint.

Retrofitting an Icon: The Project Balanced Modernity and Tradition For more than six decades, Lambeau Field has been a fixture in the city of Green Bay. Hosting some of the most memorable contests as well as some of the most iconic players in the history of professional football, the stadium has a reputation as a daunting place for opposing teams, particularly with its freezing temperatures in the winter months. Lambeau Field has become the physical embodiment of the game. Updating an icon revered by fans and the league required a delicate balance in maintaining its traditional integrity while integrating new technologies.

One of the two 4K HDR-capable main displays installed at Lambeau Field this offseason

The most interesting aspect of this project is working within this historic venue and bucket-list destination, says Shilbauer. There was this needle that we had to thread, so we did certain things intentionally to make them look like they belong to Lambeau Field. Although we're keeping up with technology, we wanted it to appear as if [these new LED displays] were here for years.

The project was spearheaded by President/CEO Mark Murphy. With guidance from VP, Marketing and Fan Engagement, Gabrielle Valdez Dow, Shilbauer worked with Manager, Game Day Productions, Matt Arvin on content and Director, Facility Operations, Mike Moynihan on structural needs. A handful of corporate partners were recruited: WJHW provided consulting and design for the various projects. BeckTV for systems integration of the video production system, Daktronics for the LEDs, and New Era Technology for audio. Day to day, Shilbauer and Arvin worked with Beck TV VP, Business Development/Senior Engineer Matt Weiss; WJHW Principal Charles Adkinson; Daktronics Project Manager Brock Wallen; and New Era Technology Project Manager Chris Gordon.

We leaned heavily on our partners to make [our infrastructure] better than when we got here but also not wanting to take away from what Lambeau Field is, says Shilbauer. Our mission statement from the beginning was to carry this vision out.

Putting the Puzzle Together: Supply Chain, Upgrade to 4K HDR Pose Significant Challenges Ross Video's Rocket Surgery helped develop new graphics for the videoboard.

With a clear vision in place, the team's next step was to navigate the numerous challenges. On the logistics side, because of the ongoing effects of pandemic-related supply-chain delays in late 2022, the crew was forced to acquire different hardware and software.

We had to make some changes to our core power structure where a lot of our equipment is, says Shilbauer. We were getting close to the end of the season and had to make the call of whether we could do this project or not. There were a lot of sleepless nights in October and November.

Luckily, the team's proactiveness helped it dodge potential issues. We foresaw some of these challenges on the tech side, says Arvin. Once we started and the core was well-established, we were able to continue with the technical gear and the new upgrades.

Two 7-ft. by 74.5-ft. auxiliary scoreboards also were installed at Lambeau Field.

The decision to implement two future-proof workflows - 4K HDR and SMPTE 2110 - added another challenge. Because the new videoboard is one of the few 4K displays in the NFL, the crew spent the offseason getting up to speed on its operation.

We had to work through a lot of the file-transferring that comes with going from SDR to HDR, Shilbauer explains. This building wasn't necessarily built to do 34-camera broadcasts on the national networks, along with a giant videoboard show, so we also added more camera capabilities. Finding camera positions can be a bit of a struggle, so we leaned on a lot of PTZ cameras and cameras that didn't require a body and could be mounted upside down on a beam to get the shot we're looking for.

Trusted Partner: Ross Video Powers Control-Room Workflows The control room houses a hefty number of Ross Video workflows. The company's involvement in the project stemmed from a relationship dating to the installation of Mosaic in August 2020. When Ross Video was brought onto the project, there was a constant line of communication.

The videoboard's national debut was on Thursday Night Football vs. the Detroit Lions on Sept. 28.

Says Andrew Lahey, manager, solution specialists, global sports and live events, Ross Video, It's always a great time because of how involved they were [with our side of the project]. There were weekly calls to make sure that what we were doing followed along with what they wanted.

The equipment complement includes XPression Studio for insert graphics and scorebug, Piero Live for the Down and Distance system, and Ross Tally. As for control of the 24,500-sq.-ft., 79.5 million-pixel LED disp

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2023/10/18/green-bay-packers-modernize-in-...
	See more stories from svg

Most recent headlines