Barco visualization solutions helped Dutch Railway Museum win the Themed Entertainment Association’s prestigious Thea Award

Kortrijk, Belgium, 10-2-2014 — /EuropaWire/ — Visualization leader Barco is proud to announce that one of its customers, the Dutch Railway Museum, will soon receive a prestigious Thea Award. Presented by the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA), this ‘Oscar for the entertainment industry’, as the award is sometimes called, recognizes compelling educational, historical and entertainment projects. TEA honored the Dutch Railway Museum for the Fire Test, an exciting new audiovisual storytelling experience. 18 Barco projectors help create the immersive visuals that are bound to wow young and old.

‘Warning! The Fire Test is appropriate for anyone with guts that feels at least 12 years old!’ With a tongue-in-cheek sense of humor, the Dutch Railway museum has already drawn mass attention to its new centerpiece. Yet the Fire Test is more than a visitor attraction. It is a truly immersive, audiovisual experience that takes young and old on a unique, storytelling trip. Visitors embark on an interactive adventure through two centuries of railway history, narrated by Dutch-born actor Rutger Hauer and interlaced with razor-sharp visuals.

Visualization solutions bring it to life 
Nine single-chip DLP® F22 WUXGA projectors from Barco’s projectiondesign range were installed to bring the Railway’s story to life and fully immerse the visitors in the journey. They are combined with WB1920 high-end warp and blend processors, which provide excellent blend and warp functionality, with virtually zero latency. “We needed a solution that would ensure the bright, crisp, high-contrast display of the images. It had to be reliable too, as the projectors operate six days a week, ten hours a day,” said Museum Director Paul van Vlijmen. “Moreover, the projectors had to be compact, as the space in the museum was limited. The current set-up meets all our expectations.”

International recognition 
The TEA Committee recognized the Fire Test in the category ‘4D Simulator Limited Budget’, on account of its outstanding design and detailed implementation. Museum Director Paul van Vlijmen is clearly delighted: “I feel an overwhelming sense of pride. This is an international recognition for attractions that seamlessly combine information and entertainment.”

Reinforcing the value of experience design 
The Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) is an international organization that unites the world’s leading creators, developers, designers and producers of entertainment. Its annual Thea Awards underline the value of ‘visitor experience’ design and themed entertainment approaches to engaging people worldwide. The award will be presented to the Dutch Barco customer in the oldest Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California (US), on 5 April next.

About Barco 
Global technology company Barco designs and develops visualization products for a variety of selected professional markets. Barco has its own facilities for sales and marketing, customer support, R&D, and manufacturing in Europe, North America, and Asia Pacific. Barco (NYSE Euronext Brussels: BAR) is active in more than 90 countries with about 3,900 employees worldwide. Barco posted sales of 1.156 billion euros in 2012.

© Copyright 2014 by Barco

For more information, please contact

Lynn Ryon
Press & PR contact EMEA & LATAM
Barco NV
Telephone +32 56 36 81 66
lynn.ryon@barco.com

Alison Maxson
Press & PR contact US
Barco NV
Telephone +1 678 475 81 83
alison.maxson@barco.com

Li Shen
Press & PR contact Greater China
Barco NV
Telephone +86 10 5650 2288
li.shen@barco.com

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