German manufacturer Guntermann & Drunck was recently selected to provide BSkyB’s much-vaunted new West London broadcast facility, Sky Studios (formerly Harlequin One), with KVM extension and switching solutions.
G&D’s British partner, Omnio Technology, supervised the project, which included KVM installations for several hundred servers and desktop computers.
Harlequin One was developed with a focus on sustainability. G&D says its KVM solutions offer a multitude of benefits in this regard, with multi-platform content production studios able to be heat- and noise-free as computers are stored access-protected in cooled data rooms. The KVM technology also facilitates ‘seamless’ computer interoperability and an efficient workflow environment.
Specific G&D solutions implemented by Omnio include the CATCenter NEO line KVM matrix switcher (pictured), and the DVIVision and DL-Vision KVM extenders.
Paul Norton, managing director of Omnio Technologies, commented: “The need for efficient, reliable technology to reduce the overall energy consumption of BSkyB’s technical facilities made us plan with G&D’s hardware. The ease of use of their products, the fact that they are extremely reliable, intuitive and backed by the best technical and after-sales support Omnio had experienced gave us no hesitation in recommending that BSkyB implement G&D solutions as the KVM infrastructure within Harlequin One. Confidence in our partners is crucial and that’s why we trust in G&D.”
