From its inception in the late 1960s, the Washington State Department of Transportation’s (WSDOT’s) Traffic Management Center, based in Seattle, has grown exponentially. By 2015, with an ever-growing system of cameras and detection devices, the WSDOT outgrew its previous space and began construction on a new building dedicated to traffic monitoring services.

The agency wanted an updated monitoring set-up for its video feeds in order to improve awareness of traffic conditions and allow for timely and efficient intervention when needed. With approximately 750 cameras to keep watch over, the capacity for a video wall was a crucial aspect of the building’s design. The agency also needed to operate within a specific budget and spatial constraints.

The video wall would be comprised of 90 monitors meeting the following requirements:

• The video wall needed to be made of three sections: left, center, and right. The left and right sections needed to be canted towards center 30 degrees.
• Each section required 30 monitors, for a total of 90.
• There were power and communications preinstalled at 79 monitor locations and 11 locations that lacked power and communications
  • Those 11 monitors needed to be connected to spare power outlets of the monitor below
• The monitors needed to be 46″ diagonally and include an OPS Video Processor
• The monitors needed to be mounted flush against the wall and the mounts should allow for easy removal of individual monitors

For an additional phase of the operation, the WSDOT needed a video wall in a 3×4 configuration, located in the center of the larger wall of 90 monitors. These additional monitors needed to allow for amplified viewing of selected monitors.

After selecting CompView as the integrator of the project and opting to use NEC displays, the WSDOT chose Peerless-AV for mounting all the displays. In total:

• Over 90 NEC displays were installed using our SmartMount® Full-Service Video Wall Mount (DS-VW765-LAND)
• 10 displays were installed on our SmartMount® Universal Flat Wall Mount (SF640S)
• 6 displays were installed on our SmartMount® Universal Flat Wall Mount (SF660S)

The department chose Peerless-AV for our solid reputation in the industry, the high quality of our products, and the ease of installation and maintenance for our mounts. Our line of SmartMount® video wall mounts can be adjusted simply, without the need for tools or equipment. The displays and mounts sit flush against the wall for a clean appearance and the mounts are equipped with a quick-release function that allows for easy access to displays in recessed applications. The mounts also provide the ultimate solution for video walls, allowing displays to converge with even edges and no gaps in between.

In 2015, the 90 46″ displays included in Phase 1 of the operation were integrated into the new Traffic Management Center. Phase 2 was completed in early 2016. In total, 106 of our SmartMount® Full-Service Video Wall Mounts (DS-VW765-LAND) were installed, in addition to 8 line matrix mounts, 4 swing out mounts, 3 flat mounts, and 3 tilt mounts.

WSDOT’s new Traffic Management Center has allowed for continuous, seamless views of traffic conditions and instant enlarged views of areas of interest. This capacity for quick, efficient decision-making has increased job efficiency markedly. That fact coupled with the easy installation, use, and maintenance of the Peerless-AV mounts has made the project a complete success.

To view the full case study, please visit: https://www.peerless-av.com/sites/default/files/washington-department-of-transportation-case-study-ci-award.pdf