SITUATION

Carousel Digital Signage is in the process of transitioning a large municipality’s on-premise Carousel 7 digital signage network to Carousel Cloud. With the goal of streamlining internal operations while simultaneously delivering important messaging to citizens with more efficiency, the deployment is moving 73 end points to the cloud. These include a combination of interactive kiosks and traditional digital signage displays.

Comprised of almost one million residents, the City provides public services through a variety of different departments. It has long relied on the digital signage positioned throughout several government buildings to communicate up-to-date information associated with each. 

For example, the Community Engagement department provides updates on City initiatives, programs, and volunteer opportunities, while the Public Events department develops content for display inside the City’s main convention center as well as an entertainment, sports, and livestock complex. The County Courthouse uses digital signage to post schedules for upcoming cases to the public. The police department, on the other hand, leverages digital signage for internal use, enabling 911 operators and other emergency response personnel to view shift assignments and crucial information on public events that may result in a higher volume of calls.

SOLUTION

Because the City’s initial system was confined to City Hall, at the time an on-premise solution made sense since it involved minimal messaging and, therefore, users. However, as the City’s digital signage network expanded into multiple departments—each with their own specific content and messaging requirements—the IT department turned to Carousel Cloud for its ease-of-use, streamlined management capabilities, and scalability. 

Each department disseminates its specific messaging through a Carousel Cloud data feed. In addition to the digital signage displays that are dedicated to Community Engagement, Public Events, the County Courthouse, and the police, City Hall now has four interactive kiosks that allow citizens to consult meeting agendas across various municipal departments. These are driven by a web application (developed in-house) that resides on the Carousel network. The Fire Operations Division also provides interactive kiosks for wayfinding.

“People can walk up to these kiosks, click on a map location, and receive a path to their destination inside the building,” the City’s IT solutions manager explained. “It’s just another example of Carousel’s versatility for public engagement.” 

Inside the City’s community centers, visitors can benefit from the interactive QR codes embedded in the displays. Thanks to this, people may learn about upcoming events and activities and register for them on the spot through their mobile devices. 

BENEFITS

For this large municipality, the main benefit of its transition to Carousel Cloud is how much easier it is for content developers and managers across all departments to create and distribute messaging in a timely manner. Where in the past it was often necessary for these stakeholders to engage someone in IT for assistance with posting updates, now they can perform these tasks on their own. In an environment where things are constantly changing and the need to rapidly communicate new developments is mandatory, this is incredibly valuable.

“The Carousel Cloud platform gives us a really flexible, intuitive way of maintaining and communicating information,” the IT solutions manager said. “Being able to give that control to the individual departments expedites that communication process.” 

Because individual departments can oversee content management and delivery, the IT department, too, has noticed considerable improvements thanks to the cloud transition. “It makes our jobs easier because we have a stable platform that doesn’t require us to maintain the infrastructure. It frees up IT resources for other tasks, and we can focus more on administering the Carousel software in creative new ways.”

‍