February 2013
TSG will be exhibiting at NAB again in 2013!
Las Vegas, NVTSG is excited to announce that they will be exhibiting at NAB 2013! Come by to visit us in booth N7119 to see what we’ve been working on and discover what we have coming up in the near future. In the mean time, feel free to visit our exhibitor profile for a sneak peek at what you can expect from The Systems Group at NAB 2013.
Use our VIP Code to register for a free exhibits only pass: LV4802
February 2013
12th Annual BE Excellence Awards: Voting Ends February 25!
Hoboken, NJEach year, Broadcast Engineering magazine acknowledges the best of the best of systems integration across several project categories as voted on the broadcasting community. TSG supported many projects that we are very proud of in 2012, and this year we have nominated 3 projects that exemplify innovation and teamwork. The articles were published in the Digital Reference Guide that comes along with the December 2012 issue of BE and you can also find them here:
KCET; Los Angeles, CA – New Studio or RF Technology
World Wrestling Entertainment; Stamford, CT – New Studio or Technology – HD
NBA Digital Broadcast Operations Center; Secaucus, NJ – Post & Network Production Facilities
To cast a vote, click here, or on the image on our homepage.
February 2013
TSG Gets To Work on Gardenvision Renovation and Upgrade
New York, NYUpon the completion of the HD broadcast facility integration of Madison Square Garden Network in 2012, MSG Media engaged TSG to design and integrate the HD control room for their Gardenvision operation. Gardenvision supplies the main arena scoreboard/display as well as the arena wide distributed monitoring system with HD programming for the audience attending each event.
Gardenvision includes expanding the audience experience through 2nd screen integration including statistics, information and the availability of alternate programming on mobile devices inside the arena.
February 2013
Fuse News Goes On Air In Their Brand New Studio, Thanks To TSG!
New York, NYUpon the completion of the Madison Square Garden Network HD Broadcast Operations Center, MSG Media engaged TSG to design and integrate the broadcast facilities expansion for their HD music network, Fuse. The latest expansion project involved the relocation of existing facilities as well as the design and integration of a bi-directional, high-definition signal workflow to support expanded programming and capabilities in routing, intercom, editing, ingest and play out.
Fuse News launched their new programming on February 6, 2013.
January 2013
TSG Returns to WJLA!
Arlington, VATSG and WJLA/Newschannel 8 in Arlington have forged a relationship over the past ten years, with WJLA relying on The Systems Group for their knowledge and expertise in broadcast systems integration and engineering. After a very successful “stage one” of HD upgrades to WJLA/NewsChannel 8 in 2012, The Systems Group was engaged to complete the next phase of HD upgrades to the facility to provide the capacity to broadcast all HD newscasts once these upgrades are complete.
January 2013
Univision-Fusion Broadcast Operations Center
Miami, FLUnivision network engaged TSG to support the planning and integration services to transform an industrial warehouse into the broadcast operations center for their new Fusion network. The 160,000 sq. ft. facility supports 24/7 HD programming, a staff of 400, and features 5 studios and control rooms, 25 edit rooms with an additional 75 edit workstations, ingest and feeds operations, a centralized graphics operation, and over 300 racks of HD and IT technology. Working closely with HLW International, TSG fast tracked the project to launch the network in less than 12 months.
January 2013
TSG Supports the Restoration of Hoboken
Hoboken, NJTSG is supporting the Restoration of Hoboken after the devastation of Superstorm Sandy. As we work to restore the damage to our own building, we are also well aware that we are not in this alone. TSG is a sponsor of Gala to Rebuild Hoboken, presented by Haven Savings Bank on Saturday, February 2, 2013. All funds from this event will go directly to the Rebuild Hoboken Relief Fund, and TSG is proud to be a sponsor, as well as an attendee of such a wonderful event.
January 2013
TSG Featured in Broadcast Engineering Magazine for their work on Katie Couric!
New York, NYIn addition to the facility being featured in TV Technology in October of 2012, TSG’s innovative broadcast systems integration work was recognized as a Facility Showcase in the February 2013 issue of Broadcast Engineering Magazine!
The Systems Group worked closely with Disney ABC’s BO&E team in the design and integration of the studio and multiple control rooms for the new daytime talk show “Katie” hosted by Katie Couric. TSG was hired to design, build and test the infrastructure of all broadcast systems in the upgrade of ABC’s TV-7 production control rooms and TV-1 Studio.
In addition to the multi-level production control room, the HD broadcast facility includes an audio control room, music mix, video shading, performance mix, media center, edit room and announce booth as well as fiber and coax ties to the existing ABC infrastructure.
Because of the size of the facility fiber optic tie lines were installed to handle the distance between the different facilities. The system also includes multiple levels of Evertz routing including HD video, digital audio, MADI and time code.
For the full Broadcast Engineering Facility Showcase, please click here!
January 2013
The Systems Group Turns Twenty!
Hoboken,NJThe Systems Group is proud to announce that 2013 celebrates our 20th year in business. Our commitment to innovation and cutting edge technology, along with the loyalty of our customers and a dedicated, tenured staff have kept us at the forefront of our business, and for that we are very thankful.
December 2012
TSG Moves Up In The Ranks of SCN's Top 50 Systems Integrators!
Hoboken,NJThe Systems Group was recognized as #21 in the Systems Contractor News Top 50 Integrators of 2012. TSG is proud that we’ve moved up four positions from #25 since 2011. It’s truly a reflection of the hard work put in during the year, designing and integrating some of the most progressive systems in the broadcast industry.
To view the full list – click here!
November 2012
TSG Brings Fighting Irish Digital Media to Life at the University of Notre Dame
South Bend, INThe Systems Group completed work with the University of Notre Dame on the consultation, design and systems integration of a new production control center to service the CIFA Ice Hockey Arena.
The state of the art production center will act as the game day hub for the arena’s seven live cameras as well as the two studio cameras located in the control center. The control center will produce the in-game experience that will be shown on the arenas main scoreboard video system. It will also allow for live studio shows, call-in and replay capabilities, and feature live editing and voice over functionality.
The Fighting Irish plan to expand services to include football, basketball and baseball broadcast needs in the future.
November 2012
Hurricane Sandy's Impact
Hoboken, NJHurricane Sandy’s Impact – Our best wishes and prayers go out to all of those effected by the devestation left in the wake Hurricane Sandy, especially our friends and neighbors in Hoboken, NJ. Special thanks to all of our clients and vendors who have expressed concern for the TSG staff and our families. Fortunately, we are all safe and TSG is fully functional via a temporary off-site operations center. While power is being restored in our region, our central number will ring to a main operator supporting incoming calls. All staff e-mail and cell phone services are fully operational.
October 2012
The Systems Group to Exhibit at CCW
New York, NYThe Systems Group is proud to announce that we are returning to Content and Communications World (CCW) hosted in the Jacob Javits Convention Center, New York, NY for our fourth consecutive year. CCW, which is inclusive of HD World, 3D World and SATCON, features all segments of the media technology and communication industries. Please visit our booth, # 1246 to learn more about our best in class consultation, project management and advanced systems integration services. We will be exhibiting November 14th – 15th and look forward to seeing you there!
October 2012
TSG Featured in TV Technology for their work on the set of Katie Couric's new show
New York, NYThe Systems Group worked closely with Disney ABC’s BO&E team in the design and integration of the studio and multiple control rooms for the new daytime talk show “Katie” hosted by Katie Couric. TSG was hired to design, build and test the infrastructure of all broadcast systems in the upgrade of ABC’s TV-7 production control rooms and TV-1 Studio.
In addition to the multi-level production control room the facility includes an audio control room, music mix, video shading, performance mix, media center, edit room and announce booth as well as fiber and coax ties to the existing ABC infrastructure.
Because of the size of the facility fiber optic tie lines were installed to handle the distance between the different facilities. The system also includes multiple levels of Evertz routing including HD video, digital audio, MADI and time code.
Find the full TV Technology Article here!
May 2012
TSG Brings WWE Distribution to a Whole New Level
Stamford, CTWhen WWE announced plans to expand their cable distribution, The Systems Group was engaged to work alongside WWE for the design, management and integration of their new HD operations center. Expansion included new surround sound audio production room, ten high-definition edit rooms, a state of the art HD Ingest, QC and Transmission suite, and a private fiber-optic ring that connects three separate WWE locations. WWE doubled its operations space and significantly increased production and post production capabilities, and is now prepared for whatever the future brings.
April 2012
TSG to Present Mobile Unit Webinar!
Hoboken, NJTSG’s very own, Mitch Simchowitz will be hosting an exclusive Broadcast Engineering Webcast entitled “Mobile Unit Design Considerations and Corollaries” this Thursday, May 3, 2012 at 2:00 PM.
Click Here to register and learn about:
• Space programming — defining required tasks/operations.
• KISS: Keep It Small Stuff. There’s only so much space and weight available, so it must be used carefully.
• Selecting solutions based on equipment interoperability and enabling efficient workflows.
• Reliability, which is the upmost requirement in any remote production vehicle and starts with design.
• Selecting equipment that supports low-cost integration.
• The importance of easy-to-use and goof-proof solutions. There are no do-overs with remote shots.
Best of Luck, Mitch!
March 2012
TSG wins 11th Annual BE Excellence Awards
Hoboken, NJThe Systems Group placed 1st in New studio or RF technology with WLVT PBS 39; placed 1st in New Studio Technology with WABC Studio77; placed 2nd in Station Automation with WLJA-DT & Newschannel 8; and placed 2nd in Network Automation with Disney/ABC Television Group (ABC DR). Congratulations to our client and project teams for the hard work and dedication that made these awards possible. Full results and articles on the 1st place projects can be found at http://broadcastengineering.com/awards/excellence-award-winners/
March 2012
TSG Engaged for MSG Fuse Upgrades
New York, NYAfter completing a very successful relocation for MSG Media, TSG has been engaged to continue work for the company doing extensive renovations for their MSG Fuse Operation. TSG will be renovating their studios to account for new programming elements, completing extensive upgrades to the facility backbone including servers, routers and the network. TSG will be installing 8 edit rooms with 6 open edits and 80 seats of iNews. The project is estimated to be complete in August 2012.
January, 2012
TSG to Launch the Univision Deportes Network
Miami, FLTSG has begun the aggressive design efforts to launch the Univision Deportes Channel, an all sports channel that will focus heavily on soccer, to be completed this April. The launch of Deportes reflects Univision’s commitment to bring an all sports network to the growing Hispanic demographic.
January 2012
Northwestern University Extends Contract with The Systems Group
Doha, QatarNorthwestern University has extended TSG’s design engagement to complete the detailed design and architectural support for the Northwestern, Education City Campus, Doha, Qatar. The 295,000 sq ft. facility will facilitate the creation, storage and transfer of content, applications and signal transmission throughout the college and out to other Education City buildings.
January 2012
TSG Helps ABC Bring Katie Couric to the New York Area
New York, NYTSG continues to support upgrades and expansion of the ABC New York facilities. After completion of the Columbus Circle Studio 77 Street Side location, TSG has been engaged to design and integrate TV-7 to support the much anticipated Katie Couric Show for the ABC News Division.
December 2011
TSG Ranks #25 in SCN 2011 Top 50 Integrators
Hoboken, NJThe Systems Group ranked #25 in Systems Contractor News’ annual list of the Top 50 Systems Integrators for 2011. The Top 50, which ranks firms from the U.S. and Canada, is determined by projected commercial systems integration revenue for 2011. Please follow the following link for the full story http://www.systemscontractor.com/uploadedFiles/Systems_Contractor_News/Articles/Industry_News/Todays_News/SCN_12_11_Top50.pdf
November 2011
TSG Engaged to Show Their Strength for a WWE Network Launch
Stamford, CTWWE has engaged TSG for design and integrations services to support the launch of their new WWE network in the Spring of 2012. The network launch facilities include expansion and upgrades to the existing production transmission and graphic systems currently located in Stamford, CT. The Operations Center is set to include new ingest, transmission and release control rooms as well as content viewing and approval facilities and workflows. The TOC facility will also be seamlessly integrated with the existing WWE production core. In addition, a full studio operation and links to a new origination center are being implemented.
October 2011
TSG to Exhibit at Content & Communications World
New York, NYThe Systems Group is proud to announce that we are returning to Content and Communications World (CCW) hosted in the Jacob Javits Convention Center, New York, NY for our third consecutive year. CCW, which is inclusive of HD World, 3D World and SATCON, features all segments of the media technology and communication industries. Please visit our booth, # 1246 to learn more about our best in class consultation, project management and advanced systems integration services. We will be exhibiting October 12th – 13th and look forward to seeing you there!
October 2011
ABC ready to weather the storm with its new West Coast Disaster Recovery Facility
Los Angeles, CATSG has completed the expansion of ABC Network Disaster Recovery Operations on the Prospect Lot. Previous to this expansion, the disaster recovery facility was only shadowing the east coast network during prime time airings. The new facility will now be backing up the ABC Network, and will have full programming and playlist capabilities. In the event that anything should happen in the New York facility that would effect their on air capabilities, the West Coast DR will be able to jump in for a seamless transition in the eyes of the viewers. Each of the ABC Network affiliates will be able to access the DR uplinks for their full programming needs.
10 September 2011
Press Release - Pebble Beach Systems celebrates contract to supply Marina automation to KCET, Burbank with The Systems Group
Stand 8.B58. IBC - AmsterdamPebble Beach Systems, a leading provider of automation, channel-in-a-box and content management solutions to broadcasters worldwide, today announced that it has been awarded a major contract to supply its next generation Marina automation solution to California’s KCET via leading US systems integrator, The Systems Group.
KCET is an independent non-commercial public television station licensed to Los Angeles, California, and is currently based on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. The outfit plans to relocate to Burbank for a projected on air date of April 2012, and has engaged New York’s The Systems Group as the systems integrator for the technical installation. On awarding the contract, Gordon Bell, Senior Vice President of Engineering & Operations at KCET said, “Moving away from our legacy automation system was a big decision for us, but we have had an entirely positive experience with Pebble Beach Systems since we first engaged with them earlier this year as we researched our options. Marina was the stand-out solution for our operators.”
Scott Griffin, VP of Engineering and Technology at The Systems Group confirms “KCET is moving the entire ingest, playout and post-production operation across to this new greenfield site over the next few months, and the new automation system will sit at the heart of this significant new installation. Pebble Beach Systems’ Marina solution proved extremely popular with the KCET’s operational staff and was selected following a detailed competitive evaluation.”
Marina will ultimately control 7 channels, including KCET HD, KFAM, BBC and Future, providing fully redundant database and control, and will interface to the ProTrack traffic system from Myers Information Systems. The two-way interface will allow accurate clip duration and segmentation information to be exchanged, saving duplicated effort and avoiding the need to refix schedules each time the same clip is scheduled. Marina will also interface to the latest generation of Seachange servers and Evertz mixer/graphic devices, and includes a layer of content management between the Seachange main and backup storage systems.
Shaking hands with Scott Griffin to celebrate the contract announcement at IBC, Pebble Beach Systems’ Sales Director Tom Gittins explains:
“We’re delighted to have secured this contract and look forward to working together with The Systems Group. The system at KCET will be the first West Coast deployment of Marina, and the first project undertaken with The Systems Group. Marina is creating a huge amount of interest internationally as broadcasters seek to replace their legacy systems with the latest automation technology.”
Pebble Beach Systems’ Marina is a powerful enterprise level automation solution which is highly configurable to address the changing operational and business requirements of today’s broadcaster. With the facility to offer a very high density of channels, and a powerful playlist engine which allows for exceptionally short clip playback, operators are able to handle very high volumes of complex media and metadata.
About Pebble Beach Systems
Pebble Beach Systems is a world leader in automation, content management and integrated channel technology, with scalable products designed for multichannel transmission, news, sports and interactive television as well as content management, workflow and direct archive control. Installed in more than 45 countries and with proven systems ranging from single up to over 100 channels in operation, Pebble Beach Systems offers open, flexible systems which encompass ingest automation, workflow automation, archive automation and complex file-based workflows.
For further information, please contact:
Tom Gittins
Director of Sales
.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Tel: +44 1932 333790
About The Systems Group
The Systems Group (TSG) is a leading, North American, independent broadcast systems consulting and project management firm providing mission critical services, strategic, technical, and operational, to global broadcasters and rich media related industries for 20 years. TSG provides consulting, design, engineering, integration, and deployment of hardware and software solutions as well as coordinated physical facilities infrastructure planning.
For more information, please visit: www.tsg-hoboken.com
or contact Chris Mehos at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), 201.795.4672
September 2011
KCET engages TSG for new mission as an independent station
Los Angeles, CAUpon completion of a lengthy design process, KCET, Los Angeles has engaged The Systems Group to support the integration efforts for their station relocation project. The new KCET facility will be custom built for its new mission as an independent station. KCET is scheduled to be completed in April 2012 and will include full HD/SDI systems implementation from ingest to transmission.
September 2011
TSG Assists MLB Network with significant Graphics Upgrades
Secaucus, NJThe Systems Group was retained by the MLB Network Headquarters in Secaucus, NJ to significantly expand their graphics department for the network. Planning is in full swing at the moment so that all work can be fully completed during the off-season prior to the 2012 season.
The expansion includes the addition of nine VizRT channels, live graphics production suite with two production graphics consoles and the addition of several artist stations as well as the reconfiguration of the graphics equipment core.
September 2011
WABC Street-Front Studio - Now On-Air!
New York, NYLast week WABC’s new street-front studio went live from their new location at 147 Columbus Ave in Manhattan. The new studio is the first local network news studio to be located at street-level in NYC and represents quite an “upgrade” for WABC’s news operations. It features advanced display systems, including over 75 on-camera and talent-facing LCD displays distributed throughout the studio space, all operating under a unified control system. Two monitor walls and the monitor-clad front of the anchor desk are driven by a high-resolution display processor that creates compelling visuals, tying the entire set together. The space is anchored by a ceiling-mounted track camera, providing a dynamic birds-eye view of operations in the new studio. Seven other robotic cameras provide for a very flexible production arrangement, supporting an anchor desk, interview set, weather center, green screen, Perceptive Pixel “interactive area”, and a standup position surrounded by the glassed-off view of the street.
The new studio was built in the building adjacent to WABC’s existing operations, so extensive fiber infrastructure was incorporated to facilitate interconnection of the new studio back to the existing equipment rooms. In addition to the more standard video fiber transport equipment, a DSP-based audio system was incorporated for all microphone processing and audio transport using CobraNet over Ethernet.
September 2011
WLVT Launches their new facility at the Historic SteelStacks with speedy support from TSG
Bethlehem, PATSG completed the design and integration of PBS39 WLVT into the much acclaimed SteelStacks Arts and Cultural Campus in Bethlehem, PA. The new 29,228 square foot facility makes use of an efficient, all digital HD/SDI workflow supporting both PSB39 operations, providing the community with an expanded variety of production services.
July 2011
TSG Featured in July’s BE Magazine Facility Showcase
Hoboken, NJTSG’s innovative design on the 53’ Double Expando mobile unit for Univision Miami was featured in this months’ BE Magazine. Click Here to see the full article entitled Creative PACKAGING.
August 2011
UofM engages TSG to meet a strict, tight deadline
Ann Arbor, MIWhen the University of Michigan needed to complete three studios, two control rooms and one central equipment room in under eight weeks, they turned to The Systems Group to implement their Fast Track Integration Schedule. TSG built this brand new facility from the ground up in this strict timeline which included deploying seven Panasonic AGHPX-500 HD Color cameras, Canon lenses, Vinten Pedestals, Ross Vision 2 Switchers and the lighting for all three studios.
July 2011
TSG West Coast Project Office Retained for Workflow Analysis
Greater Los Angeles AreaTSG engineering consultants have been retained by an undisclosed client to provide workflow analysis, networking architecture and multisite support planning services.
June 2011
ABC Network Selects TSG for Critical Disaster Recovery Facility
Hollywood, CATSG was recently selected by ABC Network to integrate their new disaster recovery facilities in California. The new facility will back up the East, Central, and West Coast broadcast feeds. The facility will also contain media prep and announcer facilities at the ABC Prospect television lot. The system will be operational in December of 2011.
June 2011
NeuLion Brings in TSG’s Expertise for Consultation and Execution of a Number of Enhancement Projects
Long Island, NYTSG is providing technology consultation and integration services to NeuLion as they undertake a number of infrastructure and operations enhancement projects. These projects are preparing NeuLion for broadcast quality game feed production and highlights work allowing them to deploy new services to nearly all of the US sports leagues’ online subscription services. This is in addition to streamlining their international services into a more robust monitoring & control environment to support substantial growth and flexible turnaround as new services and clients are added.
May 2011
In Memoriam
Hoboken, NJTSG would like to express our sincerest condolences to the family of Andy Washnik of Corpricom Photography. Andy was not only TSG’s official facility photographer, but a great man and a great friend to many of the people on our staff. His passing is truly tragic and he will be greatly missed by the many people whose lives he touched. We are grateful to have had him as part of our TSG family and for his artistic presence and enthusiasm for both his and our work. It seems appropriate that his final shoot for us was chosen to be featured in the July issue of BE magazine. We are honored to have his fantastic photographs laced throughout our website and as a representation of our company’s work.
April 2011
WJLA Returns to TSG for HD Upgrades
Washington, DCTSG is working with WJLA on the third and final phase of their HD upgrade plan. Having integrated WJLA NewsChannel 8 in 2002, TSG was the natural choice for this critical phase.
TSG is tasked with upgrading the facility multi-viewers using Evertz MVP, installing a new Ross Video Vision production switcher, building a new in-house QAM cable headend centered around Contemporary Research’s QMOD-SDI modulators, and upgrading plant signal processing, master control switching and transmission with a range of products from Harris Corp. The team expects another series of strategically planned cut-ins this summer deploying new technology without interruptions to the station’s operations.
April 2011
TSG to Design a New Home for KCET
Hollywood, CATSG has been retained by KCET Television to oversee all technical consulting, planning and integration efforts, as well as contribute to all broadcast architectural development for the new television station and production facility currently planned at The Point in Hollywood. The facility design will support optimized workflow and expanded facility networking. KCET plans to be on air from their new facility in March of 2012.
April 2011
C-SPAN brings in TSG to deploy their Master Plan
Washington, DCThe Systems Group has been appointed by C-SPAN Networks to oversee all technical planning and integration efforts for the rebuild of Production Control Room One.
The current project includes the complete rebuild of the PCR with new consoles and equipment including four SK-HD 1000 Hitachi cameras with Fujinon lenses, a new LCD monitor wall and a Wheatstone DK 32-32 audio console.
TSG’s Project Planning team was brought on by C-SPAN at a very early stage in the process, effectively translating their Network Master Plan vision into a robust and expandable core facility design inclusive of all Production Control Rooms, four Master Control Channels and the complete renovation of their new central equipment center.
April 2011
ABC Looks to TSG for News Automation
Houston, TXTSG recently completed the KTRK news automation system installation in Houston, Texas. This critical system expansion provides KTRK with future growth capacity and improved news operations workflow.
April 2011
TSG to Exhibit at NAB
Las Vegas, NVThe Systems Group will once again be exhibiting at their booth at the National Association of Broadcasters Convention at the Las Vegas Convention Center April 9 - 14.. NAB is not only one of the largest trade shows of our industry, but one of the largest in Las Vegas. We invite you to visit our booth, #N808, and ask us about our new service offerings in consultation services, ongoing project support, mobile unit design and implementation, advanced facilities planning and how the implementation TSG AXIS helps us to be a world wide entity.
If you don’t already have a pass, please feel free to use our VIP code to get your FREE* exhibits only pass: LV0939
*Note: a $20 processing fee may apply to all submissions after April 7, 2011
We look forward to seeing you there!
April 2011
Xinhua News Agency Up and Running
New York, NYThe Systems Group has completed the broadcast and A/V systems design and integration of Xinhua’s new NYC News Bureau Facility located at 1540 Broadway, in the Times Square area of New York City.
March 2011
Two BE Excellence Awards for TSG!
Hoboken, NJTSG Scores two 1st place 2011 Annual Broadcast Engineering Excellence Awards!
The Systems Group has been voted best in class in the 2011 BE Excellence Awards for their engineering innovation and project management in the categories of:
• Post & Network Production Facilities: Madison Square Garden Network
• New Studio Technology – HD: ABC’s Central Switching Center
March 2011
TSG Completes State of the Art Mobile Unit for Univision
Miami, FLThe Systems Group has completed the design and build of a new 1080i 29.9fps and 1080p 24fps production ready, HD Mobile Production Unit for Univision Network. TSG implemented some innovative resources and ideas to give that has lead the description of this mobile unit to be “spacious” - a word that is not typically associated with a Mobile Production Unit.
March 2011
The System Group & Siemens IT Solutions and Services are… The Converged Technologists
Hoboken, NJ
At the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) conference in Las Vegas from April 10-14, visitors can see the consolidation and transition of a major broadcast operation into a single, integrated facility. Siemens IT Solutions and Services, North America and The Systems Group, New Jersey (TSG) are jointly presenting a model project delivered to bridge the gap between traditional broadcast consulting and IT systems solutions at Corus Entertainment, one of Canada’s most successful integrated media and entertainment companies. Siemens IT Solutions and Services implemented the overall media management and workflow solution in the Corus facility and The Systems Group utilized their vast experience in large scale project management, design and implementation. The project involved consolidating more than 10 physically separate sites in the Toronto area and more than 1,100 Corus employees into Corus Quay, a technologically and architecturally advanced broadcast and production facility located on the shores of Lake Ontario.
Thanks to this innovative approach, Corus remains at the forefront of technology to meet dynamic consumer tastes and to be as “green” as possible in its environmental impact. They now have a reliable, available, and scalable IT infrastructure that meets its sophisticated IT and broadcast needs both now and well into the future.
“We built our facility to support not just what we do today, but also what we might do tomorrow. Our IP infrastructure provides plenty of headroom for growth in an IP-driven world”, says Scott Dyer, Executive Vice President, Shared Services and Chief Technology Officer, Corus Entertainment Inc. Chris Mehos, President The System Group adds, “The Success of the Corus implementation is an example of embracing the power of traditional IT infrastructure to enable additional business value for the management & delivery of content. Siemens IT Solutions and Services brings a depth of services complementary to our own, allowing us to offer North American broadcasters a total system solution inclusive of post project managed services.”
Siemens IT Solutions and Services, Inc., North America and TSG have signed a teaming agreement to leverage their combined expertise toward bridging the gap between traditional broadcast consulting and IT systems solutions. They will combine best of breed broadcast and IT engineering resources to help clients optimize their content management and distribution systems for high quality consumer delivery anytime, anywhere. Broadcast and publishing providers throughout North America are looking for new ways to streamline workflow, leverage rapidly advancing commodity software and hardware tools, and in many cases are considering the type of outsourced services that have been commonplace in corporate IT for years.
“In this rapidly changing integrated media environment, clients need innovative thought leadership regarding broadcast architecture to improve internal workflows, speed content integration and allow efficient, content distribution whenever and wherever there is consumer demand,” Marcos Gonzalez-Flower, Head Global Media Consulting at Siemens IT Solutions and Services, “The Systems Group has designed and built some of the most advanced facilities in North America bringing deep knowledge over a wide range of applications regarding the implementation of functional workflow models. Working together, we can provide not only the implementation of advanced solutions, but a host of managed services post project”.
Please visit The Systems Group and Siemens IT Solutions and Services at booth N808 in the North Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB).
Corus Entertainment Inc. is a Canadian-based media and entertainment company. Corus is a market leader in specialty television and radio with additional assets in pay television, television broadcasting, children’s book publishing and children’s animation. The Company’s multimedia entertainment brands include YTV, Treehouse, Nickelodeon (Canada), W Network, OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network (Canada), CosmoTV, Sundance Channel (Canada), Movie Central, HBO Canada, Nelvana, Kids Can Press and radio stations including CKNW AM 980, 99.3 The FOX, Country 105, 630 CHED, Q107 and 102.1 the Edge. Corus creates engaging branded entertainment experiences for its audiences across multiple platforms. A publicly traded company, Corus is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (CJR.B). Experience Corus on the web at http://www.corusent.com
Siemens IT Solutions and Services is a European based premium player providing state-of-the-art IT solutions and delivering outsourcing services with global reach. Within the IT service chain, the portfolio of Siemens IT Solutions and Services ranges from consulting, software deployment and system integration to the comprehensive management of IT infrastructures. Through profound industry know-how and beneficial innovations, the business technologists at Siemens IT Solutions and Services enable customers to transform their business processes on an ongoing basis. With a workforce of more than 32,000 employees Siemens IT Solutions and Services achieved revenues of some 4.2 billion euro in fiscal 2010, which ended on September 30, – over 75 percent of these revenues came from outside of Siemens. http://www.usa.siemens.com/it-solutions.
For more information, please visit: http://www.usa.siemens.com/it-solutions.
or contact.
Shelley Hansen, VP, Marketing & Communications
.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Tel.: (508) 878-7310
Astrid Heinz, Global Communications
.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Tel.: +49 (89) 636-52749
About The Systems Group
The Systems Group (TSG) is a leading, North American, independent broadcast systems consulting and project management firm providing mission critical services, strategic, technical, and operational, to global broadcasters and rich media related industries for 20 years. TSG provides consulting, design, engineering, integration, and deployment of hardware and software solutions as well as coordinated physical facilities infrastructure planning.
For more information, please visit: http://www.tsg-hoboken.com
or contact Chris Mehos at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), 201.795.4672
February 2011
TSG Selected for NBA Integration
Secaucus, NJNBA has engaged TSG to integrate their new Network Operations Center scheduled for September 2011 completion. The new facility will include a 3G infrastructure deployment, implementation of advanced content monitoring, ingest logging and archiving. Four new coordination rooms for rebranding of live and archived events internationally are planned.
February 2011
The Systems Group Completes Madison Square Garden Media Project
New York, NYThe Systems Group has completed the HD design and implementation of Madison Square Garden’s first-class, high-definition, state-of-the-art network transformation; moving and upgrading their television facilities from Madison Square Garden arena to 11 Pennsylvania Plaza.
December 2010
Cleveland Indians Retain TSG for Long Term Project
Cleveland, OHIn the Winter of 2010, The Systems Group was retained by the Cleveland Indians to provide Master Planning Services for all media systems in the ballpark. System Upgrades for the coaching system, CATV/IPTV/Digital Signage, Broadcast Interconnect and scoreboard control room facilities are under way with a two year plan for implementation completion.
October, 2010
TSG Exhibits at CCW
New York CityThe Systems Group is proud to announce our booth at Content & Communications World (CCW) hosted in the Jacob Javits Convention Center, New York, NY. CCW a.k.a. HD World, 3D World or SATCON features all segments of the media technology and communication industries. We invite you to visit our booth, # 947, and ask us about our new service offerings in experiential media technologies, ongoing project support as well as documentation hosting. We will be exhibiting October 13th – 14th and look forward to seeing you there!
July 2010
TSG Signs Northwestern University in Qatar Consultancy
Doha, QatarThe Systems Group (TSG) of Hoboken New Jersey has been retained by the Qatar Foundation and Qatar Petroleum to oversee all technical planning and integration efforts, as well as all broadcast architectural development for the new Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q) educational production facility which is being built to support classes by winter of 2010/2011 in Doha, Qatar. NU-Q is providing curriculae in journalism, media production, and mass communications as part of Qatar Foundation’s Education City campus in Doha and this facility will allow the university to fulfill it’s pledge to advanced learning in the region with world class teaching facilities and media tools. The new facility will house television and film studios (featuring Red camera technology), an electronic journalism core (featuring Gallery Sienna newsroom automation), and a multi-room post production facility (featuring Apple X-SAN and FinalCutServer technologies) tailored to NU-Q educational efforts, and TSG’s Project Planning group has been involved since early on in the effort to translate the NU-Q vision into a robust and expandable core facility.
May 2010
The TSG Consulting Group to Coach the NBA to Successful Technology Systems Relocation and Upgrade
Secaucus, NJTSG’s Consulting Group has been retained by the National Basketball Association (NBA) to guide them in technology decision making, system visualization, and budget definition necessary to enable TSG to produce build-to documentation and a solid implementation plan for their upcoming facility relocation and upgrade project.
The TSG team will also serve as a technical translator and infrastructure requirements analyst for the project architect, HLW, and NBA design team in designing the building infrastructure that will be needed to support the NBA’s technical operations well into the future. Key design challenges are the need for current facilities to remain operational during the course of the migration, the migration of years (aka. petabytes) of NBA historic archive media, and the integration of NBA engineering’s custom developed software throughout the new facility to maintain the high level of media access, automated workflows, and system monitoring and control that NBA engineering and operations personnel are accustomed to.
TSG plans to address these challenges by working closely with NBA Engineering and Operations to assess current work processes and analyze available emerging technologies. Once this process is complete, the team will establish and illustrate the workflows that are to be designed for in the new facility. Throughout the course of design, architectural requirements and design targets will be communicated directly to the architectural design team. Concurrently, TSG will be working with the NBA team to develop a palatable budget for all broadcast system technology and integration costs that maximizes re-use from the existing technical plant while addressing future expansion plans.
Ultimately, TSG will produce and submit to the NBA a comprehensive set of broadcast industry standard system documents that will define the systems and implementation requirements for a smooth and successful relocation to their new home.
April 2010
Scott G. Griffin’s Broadcast Engineering Webinar: “Managing Video Workflows in an IT-Based Environment” Available On-Demand
Hoboken, NJBroadcast Engineering reached out to Scott G. Griffin, Principal and VP, Engineering and Technology to conduct a webinar entitled “Managing Video Workflows in an IT-based Environment” which was sponsored by Telestream and was TSG’s first experience conducting a live webinars.
Scott said “TSG’s Engineering and Planning groups have been on the front lines of IT-based integration design for ten years. The opportunity to share some of our experience with industry players who are planning their own facility upgrades and expansion projects in an interactive forum was as much of a learning experience for our group as the attendees. We were able to hear firsthand about the current concerns and experiences our peers are dealing with and, although my presentation was generic, I think it served as a solid foundation for the more poignant questions by the forum.”
In the webinar, Scott discusses that, from the smallest post house to the largest network origination center, the core operations of any modern media facility are becoming more and more dependent upon IT architectures. The 99.999 percent uptime of a broadcast environment is still mission critical, and the omnipresence of IT topologies in the control subsystems, media file movement and, ultimately, in fully automated file-based operations require thoughtful consideration as to applicability, cost and support infrastructure. The webinar addresses these considerations, and supports your project planning efforts for the modern media operations environment
The webinar is currently available on demand at: BE Webinar On -Demand
March 2010
Preview TSG's Feature in SVG's Spring Technology Journal
Hoboken, New JerseyIt’s all about the game for The Systems Group – yesterday’s, today’s, and tomorrow’s.
From last minute’s instant replay to the grainy footage of the first televised sporting event in 1939, capturing and holding onto the moment is critical. TSG is well versed in the power and flexibility of modern storage systems, taking advantage of features such as file based workflows and the harnessing of metadata. Our design team ensures that incoming content, as well as archival material ingested as digital files, is easily accessed, intuitively organized, and preserved for future viewing generations.
Today’s viewers are looking for broadcasters to not only provide them with nuanced close-ups and viewpoints not possible from the seats but with a constant stream of companion information that brings added value to the sports broadcast. Production and editing teams need to make sure that massive quantities of real-time and archived video, audio, and data files can be quickly turned around by a collaborative workflow into quality content that engages the viewer. TSG has real-world insight into the strengths and limitations of today’s systems. Our teams have faced the challenges of designing and integrating some of the most complex sports broadcasting facilities in the industry and are ready to use that experience to your advantage.
Planning for tomorrow’s game is an integral part of TSG’s systems design and we consider scalability and modularity to be the key to accommodating future growth as well as targeting the use and risks associated with evolving technologies. Broadcasters will be tasked with delivering local content with a global reach while facing challenges such as competition for broadband QoS, polluting of white space, maintenance of reliable IP network infrastructure, astronomically increased storage demands, as well as decisions about how to best utilize emerging technologies such as 3G qualified infrastructure, personal video monitoring, 3D technologies including 3D HD mobile trucks, digital signage and narrowcast networks, digital wireless cameras transmitting HD on license-free spectrum, and IPTV and on-demand internet broadcasting. All this with a watchful eye out for some form of ROI strategy.
February 2010
TSG's West Coast Office Supports Canada’s Corus Entertainment with Virtualized Project Collaboration Tools
Toronto, Ontario, CanadaTSG was awarded the design and build of Corus Entertainment (Corus)’s broadcast facilities located in their new headquarters on the waterfront of Toronto. In spring 2010, Corus - one of Canada’s most successful integrated media and entertainment companies - will be consolidating its 15 physical locations in Toronto into a single, purpose-built facility that will house all of Corus’ Toronto operations, including production and origination of more than 30 broadcast signals. This move affords Corus the opportunity to examine its current operations and construct a new broadcast operation with an eye to the changing digital media landscape.
TSG shares Corus’ core values of knowledge, innovation, initiative, teamwork, and accountability. This compatibility of corporate cultures made the Corus project team the perfect choice to pilot TSG’s AXIS. TSG AXIS is being developed and implemented internally by TSG Engineering/IT specifically for the demands of SI work. It enables the centralization of project drawings, punch lists, project timelines, and multiple areas of project reporting in a secure virtual project environment that encourages collaboration among team members and efficiency in project processes.
Frank Geraty, Executive Project Manager on the Corus project said, “The Corus project exemplifies the challenges of maximizing project resources. Engineering resources managed out of TSG’s west coast office; asset management and integration resources located on-site in Canada; and fabrication and project operations out of the Hoboken, NJ headquarters all seamlessly interact in real-time through AXIS.”
The Systems Group is committed to the highly collaborative, mobile, and virtualized work style required to meet the needs of our international and domestic systems integration project environments. Virtualizing critical project data enables our clients, partners, and staff to quickly access and analyze critical project information and documents without being limited by geographic location or time-of-day.
The Systems Group’s innovative project environment coupled with our technical expertise will enable TSG to quickly deliver to Corus Entertainment a consistent, integrated solution with the flexibility and scalability needed to take full advantage of their anticipated future growth.
Jan 2010
MLB Network’s HDTV Integration Relied Heavily on TSG’s Advanced Equipment Schedule Management
Secaucus, NJWhen The Systems Group began working on MLB’s HDTV facility, the network was planning on making its permanent home in New York City, and had announced plans to work with Vornado Realty Trust to create a $435 million, 21-story headquarters in Harlem by mid-2010, with Secaucus as a temporary solution. When the Vornado project lost its funding, MLBN decided that its temporary solution had become its long-term solution and that its entire system would be housed in the former home of MSNBC, in Secaucus, N.J. – a facility designed and built by TSG in 1996.
TSG responded quickly to this development with an intensive equipment schedule management and value engineering effort. The original plan, initiated two years ago, was to create a hybrid SD/HD plant with live games shot in the 16:9 aspect ratio. That plan morphed into a 720p HD infrastructure managed by an NVISION 576 x 1040 router, Miran¬da Kaleido-X multiviewer, a Grass Valley storage area network (SAN), Evertz modular equipment, an Omneon Spectrum server and a Pro-Bel Morpheus automation system. A multilayered, file-based infrastructure was designed that built on the facility’s circa 1996 state-of-the-art digital pro¬duction environment.
As a result, Belinda Binkley, Director of TSG’s Project Operations and Project Manager for the MLB project, was faced with controlling a massive amount of equipment schedule modifications resulting in over 350 change orders representing design changes ranging from redesign and value engineering efforts to maximizing the integration of customer-furnished equipment into the facility.
Belinda turned to TSG’s internally-developed Tracker© software which provided rigorous control of project capital through asset management. Tracker© enabled TSG to minimize the impact of revisions to the project timeline and budgets through its dynamic engineering interface and direct integration with TSG’s procurement system. Using this tool, TSG was able to go beyond just making changes to the base equipment schedule and forecast the impact of potential changes on existing project budgets; develop multiple change order scenarios simultaneously; move items between unapproved change orders; track change and edit histories for each equipment line; see real-time purchasing status for all equipment lines; and, critical on such a fast-track project, directly interface with TSG’s project and accounting system, MS Dynamics SL for up-to-the-minute procurement management.
At the time of launch, the MLBN equipment schedule represented the over 13,000 pieces of equipment installed in the facility. The new direction, coupled with emerging technologies, scope expansion, installation location changes, and model number revisions required thousands of edits to the base equipment schedule to ensure engineering and vendor updates were quickly communicated to and acted upon by the project team. TSG’s extensive experience and sophisticated equipment management tools ensured that MLBN’s new home was a homerun.