Custom Consoles to furnish Channel 4 Presentation Suite

Channel 4 Television has ordered a Custom Consoles control room desk and a monitor wall surround for its re-equipped Channel 4 Presentation Suite.
The contract follows the completion, last autumn, of a Custom Consoles desk for the channel's master control room. Five metres in width, the new desk is designed to allow operation of the suite to be adapted as requirements change over time. Touch-screen-based routing and device control are provided, reducing the need for dedicated hardware panels. This enables most of the maintenance to be accomplished without disturbing staff in the suite.
Robert Luggar, Technology Projects Manager at Channel 4 said: “Custom Consoles provide a very professional service package, including good drawing and visualisation. Maintenance is a major issue in a suite such as this, which is in continual use. The desk is designed to give very fast technical access when required. It has four front access panels and easy rear access. Mains connectors can be reached just below desktop level, which is more efficient than working at floor level. Power and signal cables are ducted from the computer floor in separate groups through hollow support platforms. The desk design works well in the MCR and is working well here.”
In addition to the touchscreen panel, the Custom Consoles desk in the new Channel 4 Presentation Suite accommodates (from right) dual
CRT monitors, character generator, talkback, audio and presentation mixers, a voice-over playout unit and automation monitor screens.
The desk is finished in Channel 4's standard combination of maple veneer with light grey Marmoleum work surface inlay.
The suite also incorporates an ultra-modern multi-screen display wall with a Custom Consoles surround and dark grey surface finish. The display is driven by two high-power LCD light modulators filling dual
67 inch 5:4 aspect-ratio rear-projection screens.
Located in Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire, Custom Consoles manufactures custom and standard furniture and has many major broadcasters among its clients.
Custom Consoles, www.customconsoles.co.uk
(KmcA)