Fitness-AV installation experts, State of the Art GmbH of Cologne, showcased a
large Elation Pixel Bar 40™ installation as a key element of their booth design at
FIBO 2017 as a real world example of the immersive experience the company can
create for fitness club customers.
“At FIBO, we wanted to show our customers an immersive experience but with
examples that are as close as possible to what we deliver in real installations,’ said
Andreas Knolle, Chief Technical Officer at State of the Art, the German market
leader for professional AV installations in fitness facilities. “For the fitness industry,
it’s important to engage their members. Fitness clubs are open 24 hours a day and
reliable AV systems are important for customer satisfaction.’
FIBO is Europe’s leading trade fair for fitness, wellness and health and ran from
April 6-9 in Cologne. Group fitness has grown over the years to be an important
part of the fitness industry with group spinning, aerobic and weight training all an
integral part of the fitness club regimen. If you then add an enhancing AV
experience on top, you generate an immersive fitness experience that makes the
fitness club the place to be, says Knolle. “To generate such an experience, we
searched for lighting fixtures that fit our demands – reliable operation over a long
period, affordable price and easy replacement. This is why we ended up with the
Pixel Bar product line-up.’
After a successful FIBO debut in 2016, SOTA decided to triple the size of their booth
in 2017. As a main element of the booth design, a large Pixel Bar 40 wall made up
of 62 one-meter-long Pixel Bar 40 fixtures was installed as an example of the type
of immersive environment that can be created for fitness clubs. It also proved to be
an eye-catching effect that attracted visitors to the booth.
The SOTA Pixel Bar wall at FIBO was 10 meters wide by 2 meters high with 25cm
gaps between fixtures (a typical real-world project would have 50-75cm gaps, says
Knolle). The pixel-controllable LED strip lights provided a dynamic linear backdrop
and were used as a pixel bar, decorative light and wash luminaire. Because the
fitness industry is a 24/7 business with staff that usually has no technical
understanding of the lighting system, even SOTA’s most complex lighting
installations can be operated by untrained fitness staff via easy-to-use software and
the click of a button. The Pixel Bar wall on the SOTA booth was controlled using
SOTA’s own Easy-Control solution.
Surrounding visitors in a shower of colour and energizing pixel-mapped effects, the
fixture’s 850 Nits of brightness is plenty bright enough to fill a room with colour-
changing light and the effect can be manipulated to create any mood or reflect the
action of the music. SOTA, which works with event technology supplier and Elation
partner sld mediatec to find the right lighting products for their needs, also
incorporates Elation SixPar 100™ LED Par lights on some fitness installations for
added colour enhancement.