ARD (German Broadcasting Union) technical staff have relied on Lawo equipment throughout EURO 2012 broadcasts. ARD expanded its existing pool of Lawo equipment: in total, two crystal consoles (pictured), one mc²56 console, and one Nova29 were rented from Lawo’s rental partner Audio Broadcast Services (ABS). The self-produced signals, including voice recordings and commentary with self-recorded sound bites, are edited, saved, and transferred to Germany using one extensive, mobile production network. The WDR (West German Broadcasting) has taken on the responsibility for planning, preparing, and implementing the coverage of the UEFA EURO 2012. Within the ARD, WDR acts as the host broadcaster when dealing with the UEFA as well as ZDF (Second German Television). For connecting commentator booths in the stadiums to ARD’s master control room in the International Broadcast Center (IBC) in Warsaw, WDR makes use of exclusively reserved ISDN and Ethernet ports. Audio over IP connections are also available beside conventional ISDN technology. Both technologies can be selected and used with a latest generation Audiocodec (AETA Scoopy+). “The Lawo equipment provides the basis for the many in-house developments from the ARD-facilities involved. These complement our portfolio and bring us a long way towards creating a perfect user-oriented workflow. The openly designed interfaces provide the ideal condition for this,” explained Manfred Brass, technical director with ARD. “Above all, the free and flexible configurability of the crystal consoles, carried out by trained staff, allows for quick adjustments and stands out as one of the most important features of the Lawo system aside from the clarity of the console surface and the overall ease-of-use.” The entire setup will be put to use at the Summer Olympics due to the extremely small time window between packing up ARD’s production facilities in Warsaw and Danzig, transporting the equipment, and setting up in London. “In this situation, the strengths of the Lawo system really shine,” concluded Brass. www.lawo.de
