Latest Projects

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Systems Integration

NWE has a long-established history in the design and implementation of Broadcast TV Systems, Studios and TV OB vehicles . With more than 20 years of accumulated project expertise , we have been actively involved in the technology of Broadcast Television ever since the founding of the company in April 1982.

Outside Broadcast

Between 1988 and 2001, NWE has been commissioned to design and integrate 8 full sized expanding sided production OB vehicles for UK based facility companies , all built to a state of the art broadcast specification , along with a number of support vehicles and MVTR units.

NWE has also designed and built 2 expanding side trailers for a Middle East broadcaster.

For many years, NWE has provided operational services to the professional television Outside Broadcast environment and also support and training to key technical personnel. This hands-on approach ensures that current industry standards and practices as well as a knowledge of current state of the art techniques are always upheld and maintained across all aspects of system design.

Transmission, Studio and Post Production
Major past projects :
2001-2002
Contract to design , install and commission a new studio , post-production and multi-channel satellite transmission system for the London Operations Centre of a major US broadcaster. The RFP called for a state of the art file-based automated environment involving digital robotic archive storage, digital asset management systems and server-based automated transmission playout.

2002 - 2003
2 full-sized 6 camera broadcast TV studios and associated control rooms , 10 non-linear editing suites , 2 x 3D Graphics origination suites, 6 Transmission master control rooms and 4 multi-language audio dubbing suites, CAR and associated technical and IT infrastructure.

2003 - 2004
Corinthian Television (London Origination Centre) - expansion of existing transmission facilities for simultaneous multi-language origination. 2 multi-language audio dubbing facilities with 4 voice-over rooms 4 Avid non-linear suites.
Transmission Suite for ABC1 Freeview and addition of channel branding system.
Avid DS Suite and After-Effects graphics suite for Skaramoosh.

Sky Italia - design and installation of new digital intercom system using Voice-over-IP technology linking Sky's broadcast centres in Milan and Rome and replacing existing legacy system.

2004 - 2005
Thomson Broadcast - contract to provide installation facilities for new multi-language transmission facilites at the LOC - on air in January 2005.

Latest Projects

2005-2006

NWE was contracted by United Media Group – owners of leading UK OB facility CTV OB – to provide design and installation services for two key projects. The first was the complete refurbishment and HD conversion of an existing truck that had originally been built by NWE in 1998. The second was a brand new, state-of-the-art, 24-camera HD vehicle with full-length triple-expanding sides.

Each truck is based around a large multi-format HD router – Sirius Gold 512 x 512 HD/SD – and a large audio router – Sirius 256 equipped 192 x 192 AES. Aurora router control is being used in both vehicles with a range of control panels. The trucks were designed and integrated by NWE to a very high specification with entirely HD signal monitoring and Dolby 5.1 digital audio using Dolby E encoding. The multi-format Sirius routers allow both vehicles to operate in HD or SD with very rapid conversion.
The picture monitoring uses the latest in LCD flat-screen technology.

The first vehicle was completed in time to provide major coverage (including the opening and closing ceremonies) of the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin.
Simultaneously , the second vehicle was already under construction and was required to be completed and handed over in a very short timescale in time to provide live HD coverage of UK test and county cricket in June 2006.

In September 2006, this vehicle will also host the coverage (for the first time in HD) of the 2006 Ryder Cup Golf Tournament, which will be the largest ever staged fully HD Outside Broadcast , involving some 60 HD cameras.

Using experience gained on multi-format system design , NWE has more recently been involved in the complete re-design , rebuild and conversion to High-Definition operation of 2 existing 6 camera studios for a major UK broadcaster.
The first of these was completed and went into operation in August 2005 ,

the second which was undertaken to a very exacting timescale successfully

commenced operations in September 2006.

In the first quarter of 2007 we have been busy with a 6 camera HD Studio at the headquarters of the Dutch National Broadcaster . Although the studio is used primarily for sport presentation , it is fully integrated into the existing studio infra-structure with inter-changeability of cameras and other facilities. The studio has the capability of control from a central automation system (Omnibus) with respect to grahics, open-subtitling , vision mixer , and also the under-monitor display system.

The audio system is built as stereo embedded but has been designed for future expandability to 5.1 with Dolby E.

CAR Racks at NOS

Audio Control Room at NOS

Production Gallery at NOS

Between March and September 2007 we will be designing and integrating two high-specification 16 camera HD OB trailers for a major Middle East broadcaster.

These double-expanding side units feature LDK8000 HD cameras and LDK6200 high-speed HD cameras, EVS LSM disk recorders, HDCAM VTRs and an all-LCD Production monitor wall with integral HD quad splits from UK manufacturer Vutrix.

Each unit has its own support vehicle which in turn houses twin 100kVA generators and a UPS system.

2008 / 2009 Projects

We have just completed (April 2008) a 28 camera triple-expanding HD trailer to be used for live HD coverage of the European Tour PGA Golf on Sky Sports. This complex vehicle was designed specifically for the purpose , and features 2 independent production areas (Main and Sub-mix) , a graphics and scoring area, and vision control area for up to 8 engineers. The vehicle can accommodate up to 28 Sony HDC-1500 cameras and has facility for 6 HDW-2000 VTRs, 9 x 6 channel EVS HD XT2 servers and a large Pro-bel Cygnus routing system with 312 x 480 HD Video and 192 x 192 AES and analog audio. The vision mixer is a Sony MVS-8000 with 80 inputs and 48 outputs and the audio console is a Calrec Sigma featuring the ability to bring in large numbers of remote effects mics from out on the golf course via the Calrec Hydra fibre system. All the monitors are Vutrix LCDs with built in HD quad splits, and there is a fully integrated tally and UMD system with a custom-designed user interface. The vehicle has just completed its first succesful broadcast at the coverage of the Golf de Andaluz in Marbella, Spain . During early 2009 we have undertaken the complete refurbishment and conversion from SD to HD of OB4 for CTVOB. This major project involved a total strip down and re-build in only 4 weeks , including replacement of the A/C plant. An existing 8 year old OB originally built with an SDI and analog audio infrastructure , was fully refurbished and upgraded to HD1080 and 5.1 digital audio operation , with the view to future further upgrading to 1080p 3G operation. The upgrade was done in 2 phases to minimise the time that the truck was out of commission. Phase 1 involved installing the routers and carrying out the general refurbishment of the vehicle which included replacement of the air-conditioning plant. Phase 2 involved replacement of the existing analog audio mixing console with a digital 5.1 console from Calrec Audio and consequent upgrade of all the related signal paths and monitoring from analog to digital. A decision was made to adopt unbalanced coax cabling for the AES audio to simplify integration with Dolby encoders and decoders and improve reliability. It was a simple matter to specify an unbalanced backplane for the Sirius router. The cameras and CCU’s were replaced with Sony HDC-1500 from CTVs existing stock of cameras. The vision mixer had already been upgraded by ourselves 2 years previously to a Grass Valley Kalypso multi format unit and was therefore already HD capable. The IT upgrade included integration of HD video servers from EVS and editing from Apple Final Cut Pro software , along with shot logging and file management & archiving solution from EVS. During mid to late 2009 we have been contracted to Sony Professional Services and have designed and supervised the construction and installation of 4 large HD OB’s for VGTRK Moscow. This project is still on-going (November 2009)

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