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MEB’S NEW MOBILE HD PRODUCTION FACILITY
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by Rawan Manna
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Nigel Spratling is president and CEO at Echolab, Inc., a Massachusetts-based provider of video production equipment.
 A member of the broadcast industry for more than 30 years, he
has directed product planning, strategic marketing, and corporate development for a number of leading broadcast manufacturers. Mr. Spratling started his career as an engineer with Philips Technology in England and the Netherlands before coming to the United States
to work as the vice president of marketing at AVS Electronics. He also has held senior positions at Snell & Wilcox, NVISION, ADC Telecommunications, and Sigma Electronics, where he was president and CEO. Spratling was responsible for creating the NAB HD and the MEB HD pavilions, has served as chair of the NAB exhibitor’s board, and currently acts as a marketing and technology consultant for both associations. He serves on the technical committee of SMPTE and has authored two books about broadcast engineering in the digital age.
Is constructing an HD production facility considered a significant task?
Actually, it’s not! That is the very reason for building it. The goal is to demonstrate that anyone building or upgrading a TV station today should look very seriously at HD as it is not difficult anymore – and now carries a low cost penalty. Even if the delivered output is SD for the near future, producing everything in HD still makes sense, as it provides additional protection for the investment in equipment and infrastructure over time, while ensuring the highest quality output.
Which is a better investment these days: SD or HD? Anyone making the investment in an SD system today may well be faced with an expensive upgrade to HD, just to remain competitive. It is hard to predict return on investment in the dynamic business we are in, but building an HD system provides the most longevity for the technical facility at an incremental cost. [As in all things, you’re faced with a comfortable step into the past – or a slightly painful step into the future – Editor]
 What generated the idea of a mobile MEB HD production facility?
After MEB HD in 2005, MEB’s founder Ahmad Al Maaz and I met to discuss future projects and this was one of them. He was, as usual, excited to launch it and I promised to be part of it. There are simply not enough proper studios and equipment at Arab universities, nor are there enough trained insstructors to operate them. MEB’s mobile broadcasting training center will reach the maximum number of students by traveling from one university to another – all over the region. When Dale Matthews joined us last year, he said “I have this plan I’d love to work on.” Amazingly, it was the exact same idea. Through the educational arm of the association, the MEB Institute, Dale is in charge of a full program to train students in all phases of production and post-production, as well as the live transmission of the program to distribute the benefits throughout the region. What was so important about MEB HD 2005? MEB HD was the first HD station to broadcast live from the Middle East. It was designed to provide conference visitors with a working model of what a local HDTV station could achieve and how it could be equipped. Although the entire system was high definition, the programming was output as standard definition – emulating a typical local broadcast. We depended almost entirely on over 300 students to run the station, giving them the opportunity to produce different types of program content, such as children programs, news, and entertainment programs. The main goal of the MEB Institute is to increase the frequency of such training and make it available to students all over the Middle East. MEB’s 2005 HD experience laid the foundation for the MEB Institute’s mobile HD training center. The early success paved the road for this project. For example, in gathering equipment for the 2005 High Definition Station, MEB proved its credibility by introducing HD to the region. This reputation helps immensely in acquiring equipment today. MEB is a proven entity, a reputable association, and it has a well-known track record. When MEB says it’s going to accomplish something, people listen.
 How will MEB acquire the needed equipment to run this project?
Looking back at 2005, a total of 30 companies provided us with equipment and services. Over just four days, we were able to construct two studio sets, a program production system, three edit bays, and a full multi-format master control system with automation. The mobile HD training center will secure its equipment through MEB’s collaborations with some of the best manufacturers in the industry. In fact, several companies have already chipped in. They’re bottom-line oriented, after all. And they see this as a powerful indirect marketing campaign in a vital market. That was our experience in a recent show where we were able to generate
lots of interest in the MEB HD truck.
So, what’s the main benefit of the MEB HD mobile production facility?
There are several benefits, actually. Industry professionals in the Middle East have broadcasting experience, but not much with high definition equipment and what we call “best practices.” We’ll help provide experience in those vital areas. At the university level, MEB Institute programs will help enrich the curricula – and provide both students and professors with hands-on experience. These are our “future broadcasters” and we intend to empower them through this program.
Is there a message that you would like to relay?
Yes, I would like to extend an invitation to all media ministries, universities, TV stations, as well as broadcasting equipment and service providers to join MEB in this campaign. The results of this noble project will make everyone involved proud. I have realized through my experience, training, and working with many Arab students that they are more than willing to learn. In fact, they insist on excellence.
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