Utah Scientific today announced that German public broadcaster Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF) has installed the UTAH-400 digital routing switcher at its new 24/7 news studio in Mainz. The routing system was sold and installed through Utah Scientific's German distributor and systems integrator SHM Broadcast, GMBH.
The router is combined with virtual studio technology to allow production crews to switch quickly between sets for ZDF's flagship news programmes, including 'Heute News', 'Heute-Journal', 'Mittagsmagazin', 'Wochenjournal', 'Logo', and 'Blickpunkt'. The majority of studio components, including cameras, mixers, chroma keyers, a linear keyer, and graphics and monitoring systems, are routed through the UTAH-400, which is configured with 400x576 crossover points, upgradeable to 576x576.
The system architecture avoids direct connections between equipment in the studio, enabling ZDF to switch quickly between setups for each news programme and to create new configurations as requirements arise. In the event of a failure of any studio component, production staff can quickly cross-mix- re-routing all the inputs to the video mixer, outputs to the graphics system, or connecting the equipment in one studio with another.
Juergen Helscher, managing director, SHM Broadcast commented: "It's essential that production crews can not only switch between operational setups quickly, but also be assured of trouble-free performance of the entire studio. By basing the studio architecture around the UTAH-400, ZDF has laid the foundation for an extremely flexible and versatile facility that can respond instantly to unexpected events."
