CNN upgrades Manhattan infrastructure with air-blown fiber
Nov 23, 2004 8:00 AM, News Technology Update e-newsletter
 During the fiber installation at CNN's Manhattan headquarters, two workers blow fiber from the technical gear room on the seventh floor to a location on the first floor in 17 minutes. |
CNN has enhanced its broadcast IT infrastructure at its Manhattan headquarters in the Time Warner Center with the installation of air-blown fiber. The installation will support production of CNN’s American Morning show and its prime time lineup operations in the 250,000sq ft facility.
The fiber optic backbone will enable CNN to respond to changing, emerging high-bandwidth digital broadcasting technologies, such as high-definition television, Fibre Channel communications and standard-definition video.
With the installation of Sumitomo Electric Lightwave's FutureFLEX air-blown fiber infrastructure, CNN can keep pace with emerging technology through easy upgrades and reconfigurations.
The enhancement to its infrastructure gives the news network fiber-on-demand, ensuring sufficient bandwidth. This facilitates continuously efficient operations for critical editing, data, control, live video, and a host of other broadcasting applications.
Blowing fiber from CNN’s technical gear room on the 7th floor to the retail camera panels on the first floor took two installers only 17 minutes. Had a conventional cabling infrastructure been in place, it would have taken the equivalent of six installers pulling cable for three days to complete the job.
Currently, the FutureFLEX infrastructure supports CNN’s key digital applications via fiber, including centralizing video content, eliminating the need for videotapes, expanding simultaneous signals from affiliate stations, allowing more live coverage and enabling users to share the load between Atlanta and New York City with real-time digital feed.
A.F. Associates in Northvale, NJ, was responsible for the CNN installation.
For more information, visit www.sumitomoelectric.com, www.futureflex.com and www.afassoc.com.
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