Electrosonic was the systems integrator for the principal AV-based exhibits at the new National Cold War Exhibition which opened earlier this year at Cosford's Royal Air Force Museum.
The £12.3m/US$25m project was initiated to solve the practical problem of storing part of the RAF Museum’s inventory of historic aircraft. The realization that the aircraft concerned were all of the Cold War era led to the idea of an exhibition dedicated to the Cold War, and the exhibition includes aircraft and artefacts from both NATO and Warsaw Pact countries.
The aircraft exhibits are augmented by displays of land vehicles, missiles and other bits of cold war apparatus and their interpretation is done by exhibition 'islands' located throughout the space.
In addition to enhancing the experience of visitors to the museum, the supporting exhibits are designed to meet national curriculum objectives. In keeping with the Cold War theme, the exhibition islands are presented as 'Hotspots', and each recall some aspect of the Cold War and, in particular, its impact on the everyday life of the populations that lived under its threat.
In the main, each Hotspot is of cylindrical construction where the outside of the cylinder carries a series of graphic panels, and the inside forms a small show space where visitors see a mixed media show based on a combination of multi-channel video and lighting effects. The Hotspot subjects are:
MAD – Mutually Assured Destruction
Surveillance and the Cuban Missile Crisis
Berlin and the Berlin Airlift
The Far East and Global Conflict
Space.
Missiles – including an exhibit on submarines.
Other AV elements include a rear projection screen built into the belly of a Belfast Freighter, a 28in monitor built in to the bomb bay of a Vulcan Bomber and a 40in LCD monitor associated with a 'Melting of the Cold War' exhibit.
Throughout the museum there are touch screen interactive kiosk displays sited near all the main exhibits.
These are not exhibit specific though, so while visitors can use them to find out details of a nearby exhibit, it is also possible to reprise information from all the other exhibits.
The screen of each kiosk is surrounded by a brightly lit red border, so they can be easily located. The kiosk units themselves are of a standard design from Datasonic.
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