More Than a Pit Stop: Engen Edenburg Gets a Digital Makeover
There are not many petrol stations that make you stop and look twice; Engen Edenburg Convenience Centre does. Located in Johannesburg, the site has recently had a major digital upgrade, and PDT was brought in to help make it happen. What started as an existing Engen site has been transformed with digital screens and LED displays across the forecourt and convenience centre. And it’s not just one big screen doing all the work. There are screens almost everywhere you look — each with its own purpose.
It starts before you even walk inside
The first thing that catches your attention is the outdoor LED. There are actually two large LED displays on the site. One faces the street, giving passing traffic a completely different view of the centre, while the other faces the parking and fuel pumps. Then there are the smaller digital screens positioned above the petrol pumps, showing Engen content and advertising while customers fill up. It’s a clever use of a space that people are already spending a few minutes in. Instead of looking at a static sign while you wait for your tank to fill, there’s something happening on screen.
And it doesn't stop at the pumps
Once you head inside, the digital experience continues. The Brazzmata Café and bakery now have digital menu boards, making it much easier to showcase what’s available and change up the content when needed. There are also smaller digital advertising screens built into the retail areas, including the product displays. This is one of the things we like about the project. The screens haven't just been added because there was somewhere to put a screen. They've been used in different parts of the site for different reasons — advertising outside, menus inside, product content in-store and Engen messaging around the forecourt.
A lot of screens. One project.
From the outside, the project looks impressive because of the scale of the LED displays. But walk through the site and you start noticing all the smaller details too. The large LED screens grab your attention. The screens at the pumps keep customers engaged while they refuel. The menu boards help bring the café and bakery offerings to life. The smaller retail displays give brands another way to communicate with customers. Together, they give the centre a completely different feel. It’s cleaner, more modern and, quite honestly, a lot more interesting to look at than your average petrol station.
PDT behind the scenes
For us, the project also goes beyond getting the screens installed and switched on. PDT supplied and installed the displays across the site, and we continue to look after the content management and maintenance of the network. That means keeping the screens running properly and making sure the right content gets where it needs to go. Because once you have this many digital touchpoints in one environment, keeping everything working smoothly becomes just as important as the installation itself.
So, what does a digital petrol station look like?
Engen Edenburg gives us a pretty good idea. It’s a place that still does everything you'd expect from a convenience centre and petrol station — you can fill up, grab something to eat, buy what you need and get back on the road. But the environment around those everyday things has changed. There’s more movement. More information. More opportunities for brands to communicate. And a much stronger visual presence from the road right through to the inside of the store.
For PDT, that's what makes projects like this exciting.
Technology doesn't have to feel complicated. Sometimes it's simply about putting it in the right place and making it useful.
And in this case, it has helped turn an ordinary stop along the way into something that gets your attention.
More than a pit stop.
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