Channel 4 choose Pharos Pilot broadcast control

Channel 4 Television have adopted the Pharos Pilot distributed control system, reducing the need for device-specific hard-wired panels.
Four Pilot touchscreens have been installed as the primary operational interface in a brand new master control room at Channel 4's Westminster playout centre. The MCR is in round-the-clock use monitoring and routing incoming and outgoing circuits for the Channel 4, E4, and the Filmfour services. Channel 4 Television's Engineering Projects Manager Robert Luggar said: "Traditional hardware-type button control, with one panel for each piece of kit, consumes a large amount of desk space. We decided to go for an integrated control system that would provide a common user interface regardless of the kit hiding behind it.
"One of the key advantages we were looking for was the ability to be able to reconfigure the user interface to match Channel Four's evolving requirements. Pharos Pilot's controls have essentially the same look and feel whether an operator is controlling a satellite receiver, audio shuffler or whatever. Pilot saves the cost and construction-time needed for hardware-based panels and makes the MCR area much cleaner.
"Four 15 inch LCD touch-screen workstations are installed in the MCR, all with identical panel displays. The system is nominally divided into two sets of two for two-man operation though in fact everything can be done by one person. We have also equipped an extra suite with a touchscreen workstation. Pilot is quite intuitive. It makes the task of running an MCR a lot easier and increases our capacity to handle multiple channels."
(GB)