Turkmenistan TV is close to completing a landmark project to modernise its services, including a new broadcast centre and three outside broadcast trucks. Harris is serving as key technology supplier to a project whose total overall value, including construction, stands at US$450m.
Harris says that its orders constitute the largest project of its kind awarded to a single manufacturer in the broadcast arena in recent years. Total technology spend including all suppliers will be US$200m.
The Harris products – which are being shipped now ahead of the station’s on-air launch on 1 October – will furnish Turkmenistan’s new Tv-Tower facility in Ashgabat, including the master control rooms, production studios, OB vehicles, and playouts and new centres. Harris technology will also be used to launch Turkmenistan TV’s first IPTV offering.
Istanbul-based Polimeks, the largest construction company in Turkey, and its subsidiary company and system integrator, Policom Technology and Foreign Trade Company, secured this project in Ashgabat and worked in collaboration with Harris Broadcast Communications. Harris and Bilgi Park, the Harris dealer in Turkey, worked closely to finalise the product requirements for this project.
Emre Dagdeviren, general manager at Policom, commented: “The Tv-Tower project is a massive television complex that combines broadcasting, production, acquisition, post-production and a variety of links facilities needed for transmitting a range of HD programmes. When complete, this will be one of the best examples of modern broadcast technology in a state-of-the-art television facility. We chose Harris as our technology partner on this complex project because the company has a long history in the design and manufacture of reliable and robust broadcast products and we know we can depend on them to deliver the promised solutions.
“The Harris IPTV systems will distribute both the off air signal for our executives and crew to view around the new facility but it will also be used to transmit our signal over the air. We believe that this IPTV solution is the best way to transmit so many channels of HD programming across different platforms. Harris is collaborating with our engineers to provide the best implementation of their integrated solutions — even as the dust continues to cover the construction site.”
“This is one of the largest broadcast projects that has been awarded anywhere in the world in recent years,” said Harris Morris, president, Harris Broadcast Communications. “The win at Turkmenistan TV represents another key success for the Harris integrated solutions approach that has been so successful at many broadcast installations around the world.
Our expanded regional presence has enabled us to work closely with all the engineering teams involved with the Turkmenistan TV project to bring this facility to life in time for its launch next month. The scale of the project has demanded accurate timing and precision processing, and the backing of all teams has been unfailing throughout this process.”
Stand: 7G20