CAT Telecom is the state enterprise responsible for Thailand's international telecommunications infrastructure. Their Bangkok Network Operations Center, NOC, recently underwent an AV upgrade that included replacement of a ten-year-old video wall system with a system built around Extron's Quantum Elite video wall processor. CAT recognized that its legacy, non-HDMI video wall hampered productivity because detailed graphics and network maps critical to operator decisions were dimly displayed in low resolution.
System integrator Siam Alliance Co. Ltd., Bangkok, designed and installed a new video wall system using video processing and control systems from Extron. The new video wall is an 8x7 array of 55in. LCD flat panel displays driven by the Quantum Elite using HDMI, DVI, or VGA sources. Quantum Elite's dedicated video/graphics bus provides the processing bandwidth required to deliver high performance video scaling that preserves image quality at full frame rates, producing the detail essential to efficient NOC workflow. Quantum Elite supports the NOC's 24/7 reliability requirements with redundant hot swappable power supplies, fans, and solid-state storage. Preconfigured window layouts, called up using selectable presets, ensure visual data is consistently displayed at the correct locations on the video wall. Operators know exactly where to look for the information they need.
"The high-resolution images provided by the new video wall system allow operators to clearly display detailed information, such as network maps, that were nearly unreadable with the old system," said Chukiat Marutharalerd, Project Sales at Siam Alliance, Co. Ltd. "The much-improved readability resulted in a noticeable boost to NOC operator productivity."
Siam Alliance used Extron's free GUI designer software to create graphical user interfaces tailored to CAT's specifications that allowed the video wall system to be controlled using Extron TouchLink touch panels or Wi-Fi connected iPad tablets. Extron XTP signal transmission products connect video signals from content sources to the Quantum Elite video wall processor and from the processor to the video wall flat panel displays over twisted pair cable runs that can extend up to 330 feet (100 meters). The new video wall system is a vital tool that helps the CAT Network Operations Center ensure that Thailand's telecommunications traffic keeps flowing smoothly around the clock.
