What one pole unit actually draws
Pole units are supplied at 2.94, 3.33 and 3.84 mm pitch as a finished portrait unit of 880 x 1,350 x 105 mm. The face area is about 1.19 square metres, so the power density on the specification sheet can be converted into a figure per unit.
The published densities are 300 W per square metre average and 1,000 W maximum at 2.94 and 3.84 mm, and 210 W average with 820 W maximum at 3.33 mm. Multiplied by the face area, one unit lands at roughly 250 to 360 W average and between roughly 970 W and 1.19 kW at maximum. Treat the unit figures as estimates taken from the outline dimension; the illuminated area is slightly smaller than the enclosure.
Sizing the supply for a run of poles
Design the supply around the maximum figure, not the average. Ten units on one circuit group sit near 2.5 to 3.6 kW while running typical content and close to 10 kW at maximum. Any diversity allowance applied to that number is a decision for the project's electrical designer, because it depends on the content, the brightness schedule and the local code.
Plan the distribution per unit, not per run. Each pole needs its own protection and isolator so that one fault does not darken a whole street, and the isolator has to be reachable by the person who will service the screen. Cable routes along a pole run are usually the item that surprises a programme, since they involve the same permits and reinstatement as any other street works.
Heat and sealing inside a 105 mm enclosure
The unit is 105 mm deep, and it sits outdoors in direct sun. An enclosure that keeps water out also keeps heat in, so thermal management is a design question, not a detail: ask where the heat is discharged and what happens to it on a still, hot afternoon.
Ingress protection follows the position. The IP code is defined by IEC 60529, and the rating for a pole installation is specified for the site during engineering review, not quoted as a single default. Give the location, the exposure and the climate, and the rating follows from them.
Access at height decides the maintenance cost
The maintenance question is not whether a module can be replaced, it is whether the person replacing it can stand somewhere safe. Pole screens are mounted above head height by definition, so a module swap can require a vehicle-mounted platform, a lane closure or a permit to work at height.
Ask three questions before the order: which side is serviced, what equipment does a swap need, and who owns that equipment for the life of the installation. A screen that needs a truck for every intervention is a screen where small faults wait until they become visible ones.
The pole and foundation are not part of the screen
Wind load, the condition of the existing column and the foundation sit outside the display specification, and they are usually the longest lead items in a pole project. A screen adds a continuous sail area to a structure that was designed for a sign or a light fitting.
That means a structural calculation on the actual column, not on a drawing of an ideal one. Where the existing poles cannot carry the load, replacement poles and new foundations enter the programme, and with them the consent of whoever owns the street. Book that review before the screens are manufactured, not after.
Consent, ownership and the street
Pole screens sit on public or semi-public land, so the installation needs the permission of the authority or landlord that owns it. The requirements vary by city and by country, and they cover appearance, brightness at night, and whether the pole may carry anything at all.
Decide early who owns the consent process. A supplier can provide the drawings, the load calculation and the electrical data, but the application itself belongs to whoever holds the relationship with the authority. Leaving that unassigned is the most common cause of a stalled rollout.
What to put in the enquiry
Give the pitch or the viewing distance, the number of units, the pole type and its condition, the available supply at each position, the mounting height, and the city. Those six items let a proposal be built on the real installation instead of a default.
Then ask for three things in the reply: the power figures stated as standby, typical and maximum, the access method for a module swap, and what the supplier needs from your structure before manufacture starts. Any extra function beyond the screen, such as sensors or a wireless access point, should be listed as a separate line and confirmed as in scope, since it is not part of the display.
Key takeaway
Plan a pole rollout as an electrical and access project that happens to include screens. Size the supply from the maximum figure, resolve who owns consent and access equipment, and get the column assessed before anything is manufactured.