O21 has unveiled its new Unit 8 truck, its purpose built, state of the art High Definition Outside Broadcast production truck built by renowned OB truck specialists Smiths of Great Bentley.
The build took place over twenty weeks and, in October, Gearhouse Broadcast took delivery of the truck to carry out the systems integration.
O21 Television’s Managing Director Rob Hollier said: “We believe Unit 8 is one of the best production trucks in Europe. The attention to detail throughout the design of the truck and the selection of the latest most fit for purpose technology, will deliver a facility to rival anything in the industry.”
Unit 8 comprises: 24 HD cameras; 12 VTRs; 4 EVS; Calrec Alpha audio mixer with blue fin technology fully capable of Dolby 5.1; a 4ME 80 input Sony vision mixer; and a three tier production gallery with a large 84 source TFT monitor gallery. The production truck will use large Pro-Bel routers with all sources and destinations available on the router allowing maximum flexibility. The production gallery has been carefully designed to create a welcoming and spacious working environment, which includes high quality professionally designed interior lighting, seating and finishes.
Unit 8’s premier performance is on ITV’s second series of Dancing On Ice, based at Elstree Film & TV Studios starting on 20th January 2007. For the first series of this successful show, O21 produced thirty two hours of live transmission, providing outside broadcast facilities for the main show on ITV1, the ITV1 daily magazine show and ITV2’s follow-up programme, Defrosted.
