Logo du Cern

The European Organization for Nuclear Research, commonly known by the acronym CERN, is the world’s largest particle physics research center. Founded after World War II to give European particle physics research an international dimension, CERN—based near Geneva—employs approximately 2,500 people from around the world and is home to the world’s most powerful particle accelerator.

Located on a sprawling site, structured around several interconnected buildings and traversed by significant flows of diverse visitors (researchers, international partners, and institutional guests), the challenge of signage at the Science Portal, CERN’s new visitor center, went far beyond a simple display system. The goal was to design a seamless, personalized welcome experience that lived up to the prestige of a leading scientific institution.

In this demanding context, the CERN teams were looking for a digital signage solution capable of organizing information in real time, highlighting events, and integrating seamlessly into a highly secure IT environment.

Discover how Gilles Gautheron, AV Technical Manager at CERN, and his team deployed Telelogos’ Media4Display solution to transform the visitor experience and optimize event management.

The Challenge: Welcoming and Guiding Massive Crowds Across a Vast Space… While Ensuring High IT Security

Welcoming thousands of visitors cannot be improvised. CERN faced three critical challenges:

  1. The complexity of visitor flows: Guiding visitors through a complex building layout, consisting of five separate buildings, from the reception area to the conference and dining areas.
  2. Event modularity: Managing the signage for an 800-seat auditorium capable of splitting into three independent lecture halls, requiring highly responsive signage for speakers and visitors.
  3. IT security: An infrastructure subject to strict IT security protocols, requiring an on-premise installation (internal server) and compliance with cybersecurity requirements.

Écrans d'affichage dynamique Media4Display au Portail de la science du CERN

Why choose Media4Display from Telelogos?

After evaluating several solutions on the market, the choice fell on Media4Display. Among the factors that influenced the decision: the solution’s rich feature set, the robustness of its secure infrastructure, and its user-friendly design tailored for the end user. Furthermore, its complete hardware independence (players and screens) was also a prerequisite.

Innovation for User Convenience: Floor Guidance

Guidage au sol par vidéoprojecteur piloté par Media4Display au CERN

Noting that visitors are often absorbed in their smartphones and therefore have their eyes fixed on the ground, CERN innovated by using video projectors controlled by Media4Display to project signage directly onto the floor.

« We project simple words and arrows onto the floor. It’s an effective ‘fun use’: visitors no longer need to look up to find their way—the guidance comes to them.»

Gilles Gautheron, AV Technical Manager, CERN

Technical flexibility and perfect synchronization

The CERN project involved significant architectural constraints: screens of various formats were installed, including "stretch" (elongated) screens, back-to-back displays, and videowalls. This equipment needed to be controllable independently, but certain screens placed side by side also had to be managed as a single, fully synchronized digital display to ensure a "wow" effect.  The “multi-screen synchronization” feature ensures the simultaneous start and perfectly synchronized without requiring additional hardware, guaranteeing smooth playback with no visual lag between two side-by-side screens.

Furthermore, the auditorium—a key space at CERN for scientific communication—can be used as a single room but can also be divided into up to three separate spaces. Signage and wayfinding to these spaces must therefore be flexible and customizable to adapt quickly. Media4Display thus allows for simple, real-time programming and customization of content to adapt to any situation.

 

 

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Quick and intuitive to use

Internal adoption was immediate. Thanks to an intuitive interface, the communications teams became self-sufficient after just two days of training. The creation of templates and the management of the screen fleet based on a layout established by the CERN teams now make it possible to easily update information in real time. Furthermore, advanced access rights management and a clear nomenclature facilitate internal organization and the daily work of administrators.

IT Security and Cyber Requirements

IT security is a key element in any structured IT project today, but it was all the more crucial at this strategic site for European fundamental research. The robustness of Media4Display’s infrastructure, its experience in highly secure environments, and more broadly Telelogos’s security-focused organization—particularly regarding SOC2 certification—reinforced CERN’s decision.

EDC - CERN - Une expérience visiteur fluidifiée et un ROI tangible

Results: A Streamlined Visitor Experience and Tangible ROI

The implementation of Telelogos’ solution generated immediate benefits for visitors and the organization:

  • Smooth visitor guidance and information: A noticeable reduction in the feeling of being lost. “If they aren’t lost, it means the system is working,” summarizes Gilles Gautheron.
  • Proven reliability: A robust solution “that doesn’t crash,” essential for an internationally renowned site that welcomes visitors around the clock.
  • Paperless: A successful ecological transition to a more aesthetically pleasing, flexible, and responsible digital communication system.

 

By combining flexibility, reliability, agility and scalability, Media4Display ensures that CERN’s visual communication remains consistently effective over the long term.

The Media4Display Digital Signage solution offers CERN

a visual communication system that is ready to support all its future ambitions.

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