Südwestrundfunk Continues Tapeless Transition

Harmonic Inc. announced that German public broadcasting station Südwestrundfunk (SWR), or Southwestern Broadcasting, has expanded its Omneon infrastructure with a new HD Spectrum media server system that supports studio production at its facilities in Baden-Baden.

Supplied by BFE Studio und Medien Systeme GmbH – Mainz, the new Omneon system has allowed the broadcaster to gain the speed and efficiencies of a file-based workflow within the studio environment.

"The Omneon Spectrum server system provides the flexible architecture and bandwidth that we required in upgrading our studio production from a tape-based workflow to file-based operations," said Manfred Jung, Project Director of Systems Engineering and Project Planning at SWR. "The server’s support for XDCAM HD 422 media and its easy integration with our chosen control solution further automate and simplify our operations. Omneon solutions provide a reliable architecture, backed by reliable customer support."

The transition of its production studios to a file-based workflow is the latest step forward in SWR’s overall plan to implement tapeless operations. The elimination of studio tapes from the production process and the utilization of a common format from acquisition to playout increases flexibility and reliability in preparing programming for air, while also reducing both capital and operational costs.

The new HD Spectrum system at SWR supports recording and playback in two studios. ClipJOCKEY by Solutions for Media (S4M) manages and controls server operations during production and provides user-defined presets that enable dynamic allocation of centralized media server I/O, storage, and NLEs to different productions or studios according to SWR’s requirements. Takes can be fused together in place on the Spectrum system to create a complete clip or sent to a Final Cut Pro edit system for craft editing. SWR uses MXF4Mac software to enable native support for MXF files in QuickTime applications and, in turn, to introduce high interoperability and efficiency throughout – from on-set recording with the Spectrum server, through edit-in-place with Final Cut Pro, to playout via the Spectrum system. Faster-than-real-time edit fusing and play-to-air functionality help SWR’s production staff to maximize workflow efficiency and meet short deadlines.

The Omneon Spectrum media server offers broadcasters and video production facilities reliability, flexibility and efficiency in the deployment of file-based workflows. Architected as a modular system, Spectrum can be configured with just a few channels and entry-level storage or with many dozens of channels and storage for hundreds of hours of content.

"SWR is one of many broadcasters leveraging the versatility of an Omneon infrastructure to streamline their studio production workflows and reduce turnaround times," said Geoff Stedman, Senior Vice President of Omneon at Harmonic. "In adopting this tapeless studio production workflow, SWR and its staff have gained better control over shots and takes, faster access to recorded content for editing, and a higher level of automation that accelerates their production processes."