During the day, Regions Field in Birmingham, Alabama, is bursting with over 8,000 loud and cheering Birmingham Barons baseball fans. The atmosphere is energetic with fans bustling around the concourse looking for game day snacks or practicing their swing in the batting cages. The city of Birmingham wanted that same vibrant mood to extend into the evening.
To maintain the spirit of the game, the city commissioned a color-changing LED lighting solution from Color Kinetics. The canvas for the lights is a 6 m (20 ft) sign of the word, "BIRMINGHAM." This massive metal sign on the west façade of the baseball field is an important landmark in newly developed Parkside district of the city. During the day, the sign has a significant architectural impact in the downtown area. LED lights were a sustainable and low maintenance solution to keeping the sign’s impact that was lost in the night.
The metal letters of the sign are aligned across a mesh background on the side of the stadium where large fixtures would have been visible to the public. Due to the design of the sign, it was necessary to use a fixture with a low profile, and Color Kinetics luminaires fit that need. ColorGraze MX Powercore luminaires (now specified with
ColorGraze IntelliHue Powercore) lie hidden along the ledge in front of the sign. The owners of the stadium are excited to use the technology to produce a variety of light shows on their façade, especially to celebrate specific events, such as Independence Day and Breast Cancer Awareness month. An iColor Player controls the lighting giving the building owners the ability to customize light shows with ease.
The dynamic lighting display is not only an exciting addition to the field, but also to the surrounding area. Just as the city hoped, the visual interest of the lights has already brought economic development and activity to the area. The new vibrant atmosphere is crucial in promoting pre- and postgame activity for local businesses.
"The Birmingham sign is a centerpiece of an ongoing campaign to illuminate Birmingham with greener and more effective lighting," said Birmingham Mayor William A. Bell. "Color Kinetics designed just what we were looking for in lighting such an iconic sign for our city. Color Kinetics listened, worked with local contractor, Freeman Electric, and provided Birmingham with a product we can be proud of for years to come."
