Spectrum's New Videoboard Bears Utah State Fingerprints

Trans-Lux, an engineering company that has been in Cache Valley since 1920, designed and installed the new LED videoboard in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum at Utah State University. The videoboard was funded by a campus-wide sponsorship contract with Coca-Cola and Utah State last spring. Along with the videoboard, Trans-Lux installed new scoreboards in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, Chuck and Gloria Bell soccer field and LaRae and LeGrand Johnson softball field in September. Enhancements to the existing scoreboards and a new Bose sound system were also installed by Trans-Lux. The new equipment cost $1.4 million.


The 20-foot tall videoboard and ribbon ring, called the “RainbowWall,” weighs almost 12,000 pounds and hangs in the center of the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. The equipment shows highlights, statistics and advertisements during basketball and volleyball games as well as gymnastic meets but can function at any event held in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.

"Our greatest accomplishments are installing the new scoreboard and videoboard at the Utah State venues," said Bob Barson vice-president of engineering at Trans-Lux. "We are also proud of our large custom displays for the Cincinnati Reds, Houston Texans and Seattle Seahawks during the past few months."
Barson led the design team of engineers and programmers in designing the RainbowWall videoboard line. Barson said 90 percent of the technical employees at Trans-Lux are Utah State graduates.

"We hire Utah State graduates because of the high caliber people engineering graduates tend to be," said Chris Merrill, a Utah State graduate and vice-president of sales and marketing at Trans-Lux. "They are loyal employees and usually want to stay in the valley."

Trans-Lux is one of the more prestigious and high-tech places to work in Cache Valley, said Barson. The company works with engineering students as early as their sophomore year at Utah State to begin internship training. Many of the student interns become new employees upon graduation.

Barson and Merrill both agreed that working for Trans-Lux is a great experience because new employees have an immediate impact and a whole lot of success.

"Interns are creating and selling projects they have developed at Trans-Lux to show possible employers what they have learned," said Barson.

"Trans-Lux is a great place to work," said Aaron Beddes, Utah State computer engineering graduate. "When I was a student, Utah State helped place me in an internship with the company and when I graduated, I stayed. I love it."

"The best way to get a job at Trans-Lux is to start early as a part-time intern," said Barson. "That way we have a couple of years to train them.We always look for new Utah State engineering students to recruit."

Writer: Heidi Broadwater; 797-1350, hab@cc.usu.edu
Contact: Bob Barson; 787-8671, bob@ise-tlx.com