The Call That Changed How I Think About Displays
Last September, I got a call that threw me for a loop. A production manager I'd worked with for years needed a ‘display ball’ for a tech launch event. It had to be seamless, 360 degrees, and visible from every angle. “Can Barco do it?” she asked.
In my role coordinating display rentals for large-scale events, I’ve handled dozens of rush orders — from last-minute projection swaps to urgent video wall repairs. But this was different. This wasn’t a standard projection or video wall. It was a custom spherical LED display. I told her I’d need to check. Honestly, I was worried. Missing that deadline would have meant a $40,000 penalty clause for the event production company.
Here’s the thing: Most buyers focus on per-unit pricing and completely miss the expertise required for non-standard displays. The question everyone asks is “how much per square foot?” The question they should ask is “who has actually built one of these before?”
The Process: From ‘We Don’t Do That’ to a Workable Solution
After internal calls, I had to admit something. For the standard products we excel at — laser projectors, medical-grade monitors, even large-scale LED video walls — Barco is a top-tier choice. But a ‘display ball’? That wasn’t our core strength. It fell outside our usual expertise boundary. For a moment, I second-guessed myself. Was I limiting the company?
But here’s the counterintuitive part: I told the client that. Not “we can’t” but “this isn’t our specialty, and here’s who does it better.”
We spent the next 48 hours working with a partner who specialized in custom LED shapes and flexible LED ceiling screens. The process was tricky: the original requirement for a perfectly round ball (12 feet in diameter) was impossible within the 10-day lead time. The alternative was a slightly flattened, geodesic-shaped LED structure that looked spherical from most angles. Not ideal, but workable. It saved the project.
“The vendor who said ‘this isn’t our strength—here’s who does it better’ earned my trust for everything else.”
The Detail Most People Miss: Control Systems and Content
Even after choosing the specialized partner, I kept second-guessing. What if the image quality wasn’t consistent? What if the control software couldn’t handle the spherical mapping? The three weeks until delivery were stressful. We had planned for our own image processing gear to handle the signal, but the partner’s player had a specific codec requirement that our equipment didn’t support. That oversight cost us an extra $2,400 in rental fees to bring in compatible hardware.
Looking back, I should have asked about content processing compatibility earlier. At the time, I assumed any major brand’s processor could handle it. It could not. But given what I knew then — the client’s specific content format — it was a reasonable oversight. I’ve since updated our rush-order checklist to include “ask about specific codec requirements for non-standard displays.”
The Result: A Successful Launch, But Bigger Lessons
The event was a success. The client was thrilled. They actually asked if we could rent them the ‘spherical ball’ again for a tour later this year. I’m currently looking into whether our new flexible LED screen partners can offer a more standardized rental package.
This experience cemented my view that I’d rather work with a specialist who knows their limits than a generalist who overpromises. The client’s alternative was a local company that claimed they could build a perfect ball in 7 days. They couldn’t. That would have been a disaster.
After 43 rush orders for custom displays in the last two years, I’ve learned that the cheapest option with the boldest promise is almost always the riskiest. The total cost of ownership for a project like this includes the base rental, the rush fees, the content preparation, and the potential rework costs if the display doesn’t work. The quoted price often isn’t the final price.
For our standard Barco products — like the laser projectors with their 8-second air filter cleaning feature, or our ClickShare wireless systems — we own the process from end to end. We can guarantee the timeline because we control the hardware and the support. For something like an LED display ball or a custom LED ceiling screen, the best service we can offer is honest guidance and a reliable partner.
That’s the difference between a vendor and a solution partner. Sometimes the best answer is “let me find you the right specialist.”
Have a project that needs a non-standard display? Contact our sales team — we’ll tell you if we can handle it, and if we can’t, we’ll tell you who can.
