Collaboration in Action at The O2 Belfast

The O2 Belfast is one of the UK and Ireland’s premier live entertainment and sports venues, hosting up to 11,200 guests across a diverse calendar of concerts, sporting events and major productions. As audience expectations evolved and the venue’s digital infrastructure aged, The Odyssey Trust invested in a complete transformation of the arena’s digital capabilities.

The project, delivered by IUF, involved the installation of more than 500sqm of high-brightness 3.9mm Yaham LED technology, including a 200-metre ribbon encircling the arena bowl and four large-format corner scoreboards, each measuring 10 metres by 5.5 metres. Together, these create an impressive connected digital canvas visible from every seat in the venue.

AJ Hurst played a key role in the project, designing and supplying the electrical control system responsible for managing the extensive LED display infrastructure. Working closely with our project partners, we developed a bespoke control solution to meet the technical demands of the installation, ensuring reliable operation, efficient power management and seamless integration across the arena's digital infrastructure.

At the heart of the overall display solution is a multi-sport scoreboard system integrated with the Navori CMS, giving The O2 Belfast the flexibility to combine live game data, dynamic content, fan engagement and partner activations across the ribbon and scoreboards. Whether hosting a Belfast Giants ice hockey game, a major concert or another live event, the upgraded infrastructure provides a flexible, high-impact digital experience for audiences throughout the arena.

From project requirement to technical solution

Williams & Shaw began by defining what the project needed to achieve, establishing the electrical requirements and performance expectations for the new installation.

As a Schneider Electric Alliance Partner, AJ Hurst's role went far beyond the supply of equipment. Working from the project requirements, our team brought its technical knowledge, design experience and understanding of the Schneider Electric portfolio to develop a solution specifically for The O2 Belfast.

This meant looking at the project as a complete system rather than simply selecting individual products — considering how the different elements could work together to meet the requirements of the venue.

Turning the design into reality

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Developing the technical solution was only one part of the process.

AJ Hurst worked closely with Axon Power & Control, a Schneider Electric System Integrator, who brought the build and integration capability required to turn the design into a fully engineered system.

By involving Axon as part of the collaborative process, practical considerations around manufacture, integration, installation and commissioning could be considered alongside the technical design.

Rather than operating as separate stages — consultant, supplier and systems integrator — the three companies were able to share knowledge and ideas throughout the project.

Bringing the right expertise together

One of the most important aspects of AJ Hurst's role as a Schneider Electric Alliance Partner is our ability to connect the right people and technical capabilities around a project.

At The O2 Belfast, Williams & Shaw brought their understanding of the project requirements, AJ Hurst provided the technical knowledge and design expertise to develop the Schneider Electric solution, while Axon provided the capability to build, integrate and bring it to life.

Bringing those different disciplines together at an early stage created an opportunity to challenge the conventional approach and develop something specifically around the needs of the project.

For AJ Hurst, this is where partnership adds real value.

Our relationship with Schneider Electric gives us access to an extensive range of technology and technical resources, while working alongside specialist partners such as Axon allows that technology to be transformed into complete, practical systems for our customers.

Collaboration delivers better outcomes

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The finished project at The O2 Belfast demonstrates what can be achieved when technical knowledge is shared rather than working in isolation.

It wasn't simply about supplying Schneider Electric products. It was about understanding the challenge, developing the technical approach and bringing together the people capable of delivering it.

Williams & Shaw, AJ Hurst and Axon each brought something different to the project, but it was the collaboration between those areas of expertise that made the overall solution possible.

Ultimately, The O2 Belfast project reinforces something we strongly believe at AJ Hurst:

The best customer outcomes are delivered through partnership.

Together, We Make It Possible...

Have a project that could benefit from a collaborative approach? Talk to AJ Hurst about how our technical expertise, Schneider Electric solutions and partner network can help turn your requirements into reality