Good wayfinding is based on common sense. It works when it's logical, visible and easy to follow. For events, it also has to keep crowds moving, not stopping to figure out a sign.

We plan wayfinding systems that are affordable, functional and flexible, and we use processes that give as much control as possible to the people who actually run the venues.

We also believe that wayfinding and dressing elements should support each other, so we plan signs as a key contributor to the communication and visual expression of a brand, and we make sure banners, gateways, towers and other dressing elements do double duty as landmarks to help visitors find their way around.

Featured projects

Rugby World Cup 2003
Sydney 2000 Olympic Games
Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games
Doha 2006 Asian Games

Rugby World Cup 2003

In 2003, the ARU engaged Grierson* to develop a wayfinding program for the Rugby World Cup tournament venues. With most of the venues operating in their normal mode for spectators, the main aim of the wayfinding system was to make sure that players, media and VIP guests were looked after.

We began the process by developing a rough budget and policies on the 'level of service' which was needed for all constituent groups. With the ARU's designers, Coast Design, we then created designs for a kit of sign types, choosing a distinctive lime green and blue colour scheme which helped the signs to stand out from the existing signs at the venues.

To plan the signs, we implemented a strategy which gave direct responsibility to the venue teams and functional areas to scope what they needed, while we coordinated and captured their requirements on location plans and in a central database.

In the production phase, we created the artwork for every sign, divided the different types into procurement packages and issued orders to suppliers. A simple inventory and labelling system allowed the signs to be shipped directly from the manufacturers to the venues, and to be moved between venues and re-used as the tournament schedule allowed. Using the detailed lists we supplied, the venue teams were able to check and install signs at the venues, keeping installation costs to a minimum.

Other projects for Rugby World Cup 2003:
- National Banner Program and Venue Dressing
- Kit of Parts

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Sydney 2000 Olympic Games

An Olympic Games can feel like it's turned everything on its head. To cope with the Olympic requirements and sheer number of visitors, vast new facilities have to be created from nothing. At existing venues, back doors can become front doors, primary thoroughfares can be blocked by television compounds, and pathways for various constituents have to be planned through a maze of accreditation zones. An enormous transport overlay has to be implemented linking the venues and city areas, private and public transport. And on top of that, a vast number of special procedures and processes have to take place - from security checking and vehicle inspections to doping control and accreditation.

All this means signs, in enormous quantities. For the venues for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, it meant 47,000 of them - in English and French.

As the SOCOG program manager with responsibility for wayfinding at the Games, Suzy Grierson led the team who first created the Games signage system and designs, scoped and quantified the requirements for all venues, then made sure that every message, every arrow, every pictogram was right, and finally located and laid out each sign so that it made sense.

Other projects for Sydney 2000 Olympic Games:
- Look of the Games
- Logo development and Kit of Parts

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Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games

Suzy Grierson and her team were also responsible for the design, planning and implementation of the wayfinding system for the 2000 Paralympic Games. From the earliest stage of development, the Paralympic requirements were integrated with the planning of the Olympic wayfinding program. Early decisions - to use the same pictograms and colour scheme, and to make the message panels on the large signs removable and replaceable - helped to make the planning as efficient as possible and minimised costs.

As for the Olympics, every sign for the Paralympic venues had to be planned in detail. With many venues needing to be adapted to host new sports, and large precincts like Sydney Olympic Park operating with different crowd flows, comprehensive sign plans for all Paralympic venues had to be completed. Contingency plans were also required to deal with possible damage to or theft of signs after the Olympics, and a tight timetable for the transition between the two events required thorough installation planning.

By the time the Paralympic Games ended on 29 October 2000, the signage system which Suzy and her team had designed and implemented had proved itself at not just one, but two major events, coping with record crowds and all the requirements of both the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Other projects for Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games:
- Look of the Games
- Logo development and Kit of Parts

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Doha 2006 Asian Games

In 2002, international professional services company GHD won the contract to plan and implement the next Asian Games, to be held in Doha, Qatar in 2006. Phase 1 of this project was preparation of a comprehensive Strategic Plan, and GHD commissioned Grierson* to write the Wayfinding section. Our plan included an outline of the program's objectives, scope of work, key statistics, relationships with key internal and external stakeholders, and identification of risks and opportunities, as well as a high-level budget, delivery timetable and staffing plan.

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