Maktabi Tech transformed a multi-story car park at Laysen Valley, Saudi Arabaia, into a dynamic visual feature, installing a large-format media façade on a multi-storey parking structure where conventional LED could not be deployed.
The installation incorporates architectural sensitivity with clever content design to deliver ewow factor in a space where conventional LED displays were unable to be deployed, featuring 40,000 custom-made LED pixel dots spanning a 26mx18m area.
Maktabi Tech specified pixel dots instead of a standard LED screen due to regulatory and structural restrictions, as Anas Ghanima, sales manager, Maktabi Tech, explains: “Civil defence regulations don’t allow anything to block the ventilation gaps or modify the building’s distinctive aluminium frame, so we couldn’t install a conventional screen.”
Maktabi Tech was brought into the project directly by the end user, with the team performing a site visit before identifying the issue and offering a workaround. Ghanima continues: “A normal screen couldn’t be installed because of the parking structure’s frame, and the client had no idea what to do.
“We showed them a sample of the LED dots, and once they saw the results, we quickly got the green light to proceed.”
The integrator specified black housings and lenses to blend discreetly with the existing aluminium louvres along the car park’s structure, a feature that was custom produced to remain completely hidden when the screen is turned off during the day.
The new system operates without compromising airflow or building codes, but required additional adjustments to avoid irregular vertical spacing between pixels. To achieve this, Maktabi Tech physically customised the LED structure and designed content which masks the irregularities.
Custom content was developed by Maktabi Tech’s in-house production arm, ARC Studios, tailoring the visuals to work with the irregular vertical spacing, accommodating where physical alterations could not be made.
20 sub-controller units distribute data across levels 3-7 of the structure via fibre, using Madrix software to program and synchronise content playback across the full installation.
With the installation complete, two additional columns will now be added to the reverse side of the parking structure, with the potential for 3D projection mapping onto the site’s mosque. The proposed design aims to use Barco projectors mounted on surrounding rooftops to highlight the architectural line of the building in a respectful and visually compelling way.
Ghanima closes: “Laysen Valley is a very high-end place, and this kind of media facade is now becoming a trend. It’s about creating something that integrates with the building rather than simply sticking a screen on a wall.”