MotorLand Aragón Relies on Barco Critical Controlroom Technology for a Seamless Race Experience

MotorLand Aragón, a renowned 5.344 km race track in Alcañiz, Spain, has significantly enhanced its race control room with a Barco UniSee LCD video wall and TransForm N networked visualization platform. This upgrade has greatly improved real-time monitoring and incident response, ensuring safety and uninterrupted race experiences for all events held at the track.

MotorLand Aragón hosts major motorsport events, including the MotoGP World Championship, FIM Superbike World Championship, and the FIM CEV Repsol. Given the high-risk nature of motorcycle racing, race organizers prioritize safety and rapid incident response. The central race control room is crucial in coordinating these safety activities. During races, operators monitor live feeds from track cameras to oversee every part of the race in real time. In case of an accident, control room staff can swiftly dispatch medical personnel, safety cars, or marshals.

Race control room upgrade

To stay ahead technologically, MotorLand Aragón decided to upgrade its visualization and monitoring systems. Alongside investing in new 4K cameras, the race control room was overhauled with advanced workflow and visualization solutions. 

“Until recently, our race control room was built on analog technology,” says Victor Escuin, IT manager at MotorLand Aragón. “Our video wall consisted of several monitors stacked in a matrix, with each monitor connected by one cable, and capable of displaying one single camera feed. This means that we were limited in how we could display and manipulate our camera images on the video wall. We were also limited in the way we could distribute and display our images outside of the control room.”

After extensive market research, Barco was chosen for the upgrade. The new setup features a Barco UniSee LCD video wall in a four-by-three matrix, combined with Barco’s TransForm N networked visualization platform.

Enhanced operator experience

Operators have praised the new video wall's image quality, with minimal gaps between panels and full image clarity. It displays live feeds from 53 cameras across the track, with incident-specific feeds examined on side panels while live feeds continue. The flexible configuration allows different layouts to be changed quickly, depending on the track's usage.

The Barco UniSee video wall also enhances comfort for operators who often monitor feeds for extended periods, even in low light. Features like automatic calibration for uniform brightness and colors, and manual adjustments for brightness and color temperature, help reduce eye fatigue.

Networked visuals for broad accessibility

A significant advantage of Barco’s system is the ability to distribute camera images beyond the race control room. The TransForm N platform enables display of sources on any network-connected screen, including those near the pit lane, at the arrival line, and in two separate breakout rooms for emergency response teams. Additionally, images are sent to a separate security operations control room for event management and public safety. Even mobile phones of incident response teams can receive live feeds, ensuring coordinated efforts with the control room operators.

Uninterrupted racing experience

Barco’s technology, tested in critical applications worldwide, is crucial for MotorLand Aragón, where continuous monitoring is mandatory. Any technical failure in the race control room could halt the race. 

“We need our video wall to be available at all times during the race,” says Victor Escuin. “That’s why the easy video wall maintenance is so critical for us. We have been using the Barco video wall for three years now with no issues, but should a UniSee LCD panel fail, the system is built in such a way that we can replace it in a few minutes and reduce downtime to an absolute minimum.”

MotorLand Aragón’s track hosts around 280 days of racing activities annually, including international, national, and regional events. On professional race days, tightly packed schedules leave no room for downtime. Delays due to unexpected video wall failures could be costly for customers, race promoters, and broadcasters, potentially damaging reputations.

“From a business perspective, delays caused by unexpected downtime of our control room and monitoring system could be very costly for our customers, the race promotors and broadcasters, and it could damage their reputation,” says Victor Escuin. “As a well-respected, international sports facility, MotorLand Aragón just cannot afford this to happen. That’s why we need to be able to always rely on our technology. The Barco control room solution ensures us we can offer our customers a seamless race experience.”