Tom Dunlea, head of engineering, is instrumental to our streamlined hybrid working operation and continues to push the possibilities of what can be achieved with remote teams.
Hybrid is here to stay says Tom, but we can’t simply meet the needs of the here and now, we also need to have a view on future modes of working and build the infrastructure that can adapt to even broader expectations.
Flexibility is key, to ensure real-time collaboration and the highest quality standards are always achievable no matter where people are located. Plus, in an industry so driven by precision, creativity and deadlines, there should be no limitations on the software that can be used and minimal downtime and delay.
It was this range of considerations that informed Tom’s design and build of our Manchester facility, which has thin clients and NDI decoders installed in the editing suites, while our Avid estate is centralised offsite in a datacentre.
This means, our clients no longer need to book an edit suite for the entirety of a booking – though they can if they’d like to – they can simply book the Avid machine. They can also mix it up, booking the onsite edit suite for in-person collaboration and review, with exactly the same Avid available to the team as they’ve been using remotely.
The hybrid opportunities provided by our Manchester studio were so successful we’ve rolled them out to our London facility as well, even turning our online finishing rooms into hybrid suites using routed SDI instead of NDI video.
More developments are oncoming as Tom and the tech teams discuss the workflows and innovations involved in post production, now and in the future, and how technology can support them, no matter where you are.
