German Public Broadcaster SWR runs several studio locations in the Southwest of Germany. At SWR's Stuttgart location, a process of harmonisation has been underway for some time now.
This effort aims to harmonise the technology in the radio studios to simplify production processes and to optimise the use of the control and studio rooms.
Following the renewal of radio play control room 2 a couple of years ago, the complete renewal of the technology in radio play studio 5 is the second project of these measures. As an overall system integration partner, SWR trusted in the services of Broadcast Solutions.
The harmonisation of the technology in the SWR control and studio rooms of radio play studio 5 concerns both software and hardware installations. The standardisation allowed the new studio to be set up almost identically to the radio play control room 2, which also minimised the planning effort.
The control room is 5.1-capable and includes an AVID S6 console system, ProTools and Sequoia as DAW systems, as well as several source feed and effect devices. Three studios were equipped with mobile terminal boxes, which offer numerous connection options even for larger setups. The furniture's overall design supports flexible working methods. Besides the director's table, which is custom made for the S6 console, there are two additional mobile working tables for editing and production. The mobile tables can be moved and thus arranged according to the requirements of the respective production.
Thanks to its renewal and the new technology, the studio can house more productions than before, even with 1-person operation. The new ProTools system offers several advantages with regard to connecting to other studios and locations and the exchange of files.
Using a uniform studio infrastructure has several positive effects in daily operation. For engineers and technicians, it is much easier to find their way around all studios quickly. This, in turn, shortens training periods and the setup of workflows in daily production operation. Furthermore, more flexible deployment of personnel is possible, and employees can develop internally more easily.
The renewal of the technology in radio play studio 5 is also motivated by a strategic decision to maintain and strengthen the production capabilities in the feature and radio play department. SWR expects a consistently high level of capacity utilisation in the coming years. SWR's Stuttgart location now has two studios with the same and up-to-date technical equipment to be well-positioned for the future.
