WTWB-TV/Channel 20 — Pappas Telecasting’ WB affiliate in Greensboro, N.C. — has won Snell & Wilcox’s NAB “digital makeover” contest.
The station was picked in a drawing at NAB2004 and has won $100,000 worth of Snell & Wilcox IQ Modular infrastructure equipment and RollCall control and monitoring software. Snell & Wilcox said it sponsored the contest to draw attention to how an intelligent infrastructure can help broadcasters transition to new technologies in a cost-effective and non-disruptive way.
WTWB Chief Engineer Don Moore said the current station infrastructure consists of mostly older analog technology and the “prize comes exactly at the right time in the development of our digital facilities.”
As the winner, WTWB-TV is entitled to choose components from Snell & Wilcox’s IQ Modular, RollCall, RollMap and RollSNMP product lines. The station’s engineering staff can select from nearly 300 unique “self aware” modules, which include dozens of conversion, distribution, routing, video, MPEG processing, monitoring, audio and test generator functions. Once configured through a PC on the network, each module establishes its relationship with other modules in the system.
Infrastructure products from Snell & Wilcox are designed to be re-configurable “bridges“ between analog, digital and file-based “islands.” Modular components provide legacy compatibility with analog and SD standards as well as with HD standards and metadata-rich IT-based infrastructures — creating a single flexible infrastructure system that can be easily reconfigured as needs change.
For more information, visit: www.snellwilcox.com.