Date Announced: 28 Mar 2007 -- Study Reveals 99.9 Percent Average Uptime Even in Extreme ConditionsDANVILLE, Ill. and INDIANAPOLIS – Watchfire Digital Outdoor (http://www.watchfiredigitaloutdoor.com), the digital billboard division of Time-O-Matic Inc., today announced the installation of its first 14’ x 48’ digital billboard, which is located in Danville, Ill. Watchfire Digital Outdoor designed and manufactured the 19mm color LED billboard, constructed of 611 modules measuring approximately 12”x12” and containing 469,248 red, green and blue LEDs. The Watchfire Digital Outdoor LED board is the standard bulletin size for outdoor advertising (14’ x 48’).In building this large format display, Watchfire Digital Outdoor is capitalizing on more than 70 years of manufacturing experience in the outdoor industry. Watchfire has produced thousands of time-tested, rugged, digital outdoor signs. The venerable sign manufacturer is now leveraging that know-how to produce digital billboards. Photos of the installation are available at http://www.watchfiredigitaloutdoor.com/gallery.Watchfire also announced the results of a service audit that shows Watchfire LED boards have an average uptime greater than 99.9 percent. This reliability record is critical for LED signs in the outdoor advertising market where downtime represents lost revenue and potential make-goods.“Watchfire’s exceptional uptime statistics are remarkable. Watchfire Digital Outdoor is the only manufacturer producing totally encapsulated LED modules,” said Darrin Friskney, director of Watchfire Digital Outdoor. After the LEDs and electronics have been have been assembled, the module is encapsulated in a thin layer of silicone gel. The silicone protects the components from the elements and provides superior reliability and performance. Watchfire LED boards have been tested extensively. Because of the exclusive encapsulation and engineering processes, the LED boards can operate in extreme conditions: 180 days completely submerged in water, 60 days in a salt-spray chamber, and temperatures ranging from -40° F to 120° F. Other quality features include solid welds in the cabinet construction, not "pop" rivets, and the use of stronger, heavy-walled aluminum extrusions with monocoque construction instead of cheaper sheet metal or fabricated cabinets. Watchfire also designs for high-inrush current and high-voltage protection. “Because of the advanced construction of Watchfire LED signs, we're able to offer a five-year warranty, the finest in the industry,” said Friskney. “We have a long history of engineering and manufacturing LED signs of extremely high-quality and our warranty reflects that.”Digital Billboard Installation DocumentaryWatchfire Digital Outdoor produced a documentary of the billboard installation as a guide for outdoor advertisers who want to learn more about digital billboards. A free DVD of the documentary is available at http://www.watchfiredigitaloutdoor.com/installation or by calling 866-949-9282.About Watchfire Digital OutdoorWatchfire Digital Outdoor engineers and manufactures the most durable and dependable digital billboards available anywhere. The company has thousands of outdoor LED signs in daily operation throughout North America. Watchfire digital billboards allow outdoor advertising companies to generate substantially more revenue per board by selling to multiple advertisers who can use the technology to create more effective outdoor advertising than ever before possible. Watchfire Digital Outdoor’s sales and marketing offices are located in Indianapolis; engineering and manufacturing are located at the Danville, Ill. headquarters. For more information, go to http://www.watchfiredigitaloutdoor.com.
Contact
Linda Muskin 837.432.7300 [email protected]
E-mail:[email protected]
Web Site:www.watchfiredigitaloutdoor.com/
