Afterpay Arena, Australia’s largest indoor entertainment and sporting venue, has completed a venue-wide transformation centred around one of the more technically demanding LED installations undertaken in an Australian venue.
Three transparent LED screens, each seven metres wide and spanning a combined 84 square metres, now hang above the Grand Foyer, complemented by new COB ribbon LED displays extending digital wayfinding through the venue’s busiest arrival spaces.
Outsource Resource was engaged to design, supply, install and commission both systems, working under Beyond Media, the venue’s signage rebrand consultant.
Rather than mounting to the building itself, the transparent LED screens are suspended from a purpose-designed aluminium truss, creating a digital feature while maintaining uninterrupted sightlines through the foyer into the arena beyond. The accompanying P1.5mm, 1000-nit COB ribbon LED network spans five locations across the Grand Foyer and Secondary Entry. Mounted directly to the venue’s existing balustrades, each display required custom framing to maintain precise alignment across the installation.
“This is a strong signal of where transparent LED is heading. It’s stopped being a screen and started being an architectural element in its own right,” said Wayne Randerson, Director of Innovation and Partnerships at Outsource Resource. The opportunity sits in spaces where organisations want a digital presence without sacrificing light or openness, including venue foyers, retail frontages, airports, transport hubs and corporate lobbies. Heritage buildings are another strong application, where preserving the character of the structure is just as important as visual impact.”
A key advantage is weight. At approximately six kilograms per square metre, transparent LED places significantly less load on a structure than conventional LED, opening opportunities in buildings where traditional displays may not be practical.
“Structural loading has traditionally ruled many buildings out of this type of installation,” Randerson said. “Reduce the weight and suddenly a much wider range of sites becomes viable.”
According to Michael Russo, Director of Sales and Operations at Outsource Resource, the lighter panels do not simplify the engineering.
“You still need structural sign-off early, particularly on suspended installations or when integrating with an existing building. What changes is how much becomes possible once the weight constraint is reduced.”
Installation and commissioning were carefully sequenced around the arena’s live events calendar, requiring work to be completed between scheduled events rather than within a vacant site.
The completed installation delivers both architectural impact and operational flexibility. The transparent LED screens create a striking visual feature while preserving openness throughout the foyer, while the ribbon LED network enables the venue to transition seamlessly between wayfinding, event messaging and sponsor content without replacing static signage.
