SALT LAKE CITY — March 11, 2010 — Utah Scientific today announced that PGA TOUR™ Entertainment, the multiplatform in-house production arm of the PGA TOUR, has installed a UTAH-400 V-144 frame digital routing switcher at the core of its HD production and broadcast operation in St. Augustine, Fla. In addition, the facility is relying on a UTAH-400 A-288 frame AES switcher, a UTAH-300 analog audio router for cost-effective timecode routing, and a UTAH-400 data router for RS422 switching.
Among PGA TOUR Entertainment's responsibilities is producing the world feed for all PGA TOUR golf tournaments, which entails taking backhaul feeds from other sources, adding its own content, and uplinking the result to some 160 countries. The primary UTAH-400 will support expansion of the facility, including implementation of a media asset management system (MAM) to make it easier for editors and producers to store and access footage.
"Utah Scientific manufactures products considered to be bulletproof in the industry and backs them with tremendous customer service," said Tim Derstine, PGA TOUR Entertainment chief engineer. "Our experience with Utah products has proven that they are reliable and offer state-of-the-art technology. In addition, their unparalleled customer service gives us access to people who intimately know their products and can provide the best support. Another Utah Scientific advantage is the design of the router panels, which are configurable on the fly and extremely intuitive to use."
The UTAH-400 V-144 replaces a smaller digital router, also from Utah Scientific. With its new workflow, slated to go online mid 2010, PGA TOUR Entertainment will rely on the UTAH-400 to input SD and HD-sourced signal feeds coming from digital tape machines, edit suites, live satellite feeds, and live studio productions, and output them into the MAM environment for eventual storage on LTO tape drives. On the playout side, the router will facilitate real-time server-based playout of digital media. Backhaul content and live studio production will also move through the router into the MAM system, enabling it to be digitized in real time.
"Putting the UTAH-400 routing system at the core of its new MAM workflow will enable PGA TOUR Entertainment to achieve significant efficiencies in comparison with its old tape-based system," said Tom Harmon, president and CEO of Utah Scientific. "The flexibility of the UTAH-400 makes it adaptable to a variety of innovative broadcast and production uses."
The UTAH-400/144 is housed in a compact 9-RU frame and includes dual power supplies and controller cards. Like all UTAH-400 digital routers, it is based on an innovative matrix architecture that enables modular expansion besides saving space, reducing power consumption, and minimizing generation of heat.
# # #
About PGA TOUR™ Entertainment
PGA TOUR™ Entertainment is a subsidiary of PGA TOUR Inc., a nonprofit that operates events on the PGA TOUR, Champions TOUR, and Nationwide TOUR.
About Utah Scientific, Inc.
Utah Scientific is the world's leading specialist in analog, digital, and HDTV routing switchers, master control switchers, and related control software. For more than 30 years, the company has provided industry-leading products and best-in-class service and support as recognized, again in 2009, by Frost & Sullivan with its Customer Service Leadership Award and demonstrated by the industry's first no-fee 10-year warranty. Additional information about the company can be found at www.utahscientific.com.
ENDS
