The Neutrik opticamSWITCH was the solution of choice at Swiss Television for coverage of the 2011 Swiss National Council elections, connecting cameras and control rooms, writes Fergal Ringrose.
Swiss Television carefully considered how best to deploy its existing HD and 3D equipment within an expansion of its studio infrastructure. tpc ag (technology and production center, Switzerland ag) – an independent subsidiary of SRG SSR – considered various new ideas and opted for a future-proof concept.
Neutrik’s opticamSWITCH flexibly connects tpc ag’s existing cameras and control rooms to one other. Furthermore, as they come online, two planned new control rooms and studios will be easily integrated into the system.
For election night there were eight Sony HDC 1400R cameras for SRF (Swiss Radio and Television) in use, which all ran over the new Neutrik opticamSWITCH; for TSR (Télévision Suisse Romande) and RSI (Radiotelevisione Svizzera) another three pieces each, but those went directly into the OB.
From tpc alone there were 120 technicians working in the studio in Zurich. Then there was the SRF programme. In the whole of Switzerland there were about 870 radio and TV people working for the elections 2011, which involved 12 hours of live coverage.
Studio 1, with an area of 1,000 m2, was converted into the election studio. 10 tons of material were used for that. In the smaller Studio 2, all of the radio stations were quartered. Several other rooms were available for the print media. 26 remote outposts were coordinated for control room 2. The election in 2011 was produced from the main control room 2 with support from control room 3.
