Space was available in Boomerang’s new headquarters, which were under construction at the time, but there was no design, equipment, or even proper provision for power & services in the designated part of the building. And Boomerang needed the studio to be designed, built & operational within a few months of winning the contract.

Boomerang’s original brief, which they put out to tender, was for a server-based studio with an entirely file-based workflow, but after consulting the MHz team, they agreed that the available budget was insufficient to do this concept justice. MHz drafted a more cost-effective alternative design for the production studio, employing three Sony cameras (one manned, two remotely operated) & maintaining some of the file-based operation of the original concept by using an affordable tapeless Grass Valley Turbo disk-based video recorder as well as more traditional Sony Betacam VTRs. AVID video & 360 Systems Shortcut audio editing systems were included to allow the preparation of pre-recorded segments for use in the middle of live transmissions, & the completed facility was connected to S4C’s transmission centre by means of a dark-fibre link.

From the moment they were awarded the contract from the half-a-dozen companies that tendered for the new Boomerang studio, MHz managed the entire project, not only designing the system, procuring the equipment and constructing the custom furniture required to house it, but also liaising with and coordinating Boomerang’s architects, heating and electrical contractors during the construction phase of the project. According to Richard Moss, who oversaw the studio installation for the Boomerang+ group, MHz won this contract partly on the strength of this ability, and partly because the quote for realising the entire project, from design through to installation and staff training, was very competitive. The studio was completed on time and budget, leaving time for full staff training before production of Planed Plant switched to Boomerang.

MHz’s design experts can often suggest cost-effective alternatives.

Time is money, and MHz’s in-house engineers and craftsmen save you both. We don’t have to use expensive sub-contractors, and can deliver complex broadcast systems to tight deadlines.

MHz can oversee all aspects of project implementation, including design, build, installation and training, and providing a single responsible point of contact.