BeckTV has partnered with enterprise asset management technology provider Beam Dynamics, giving BeckTV clients access to Beam's Asset Intelligence Platform. The platform is a self-service portal where users can track, manage, update, and troubleshoot every product they've purchased from BeckTV until the asset is due for an upgrade.
The Asset Intelligence Platform solves the problem of having to manage critical technical infrastructure using spreadsheets, which is compounded by the lack of readily available, engineering-level data and inconsistent formats across thousands of vendors. The platform gives engineers a comprehensive overview of the technology used across studios, control rooms, electronic news gatherings, and information technology infrastructures so they can instantly see their entire production inventory across departments and regions. Engineers have access to detailed asset history, critical security patches, firmware updates, documentation, and contact information from over 5,000 vendors and more than 500,000 products in the film and broadcast industry, all through a single, web-based user interface.
"BeckTV is the first integrator to come on board with Beam, which demonstrates the company's concern for what happens after they leave the client site," said David Kaszycki, CEO of Beam Dynamics. "Instead of just handing over a spreadsheet like everyone else, BeckTV is handing over an intelligent tool that dynamically updates and has all the information clients could need. This helps engineers manage technology assets and keep critical production infrastructure up to date to reduce downtime and extend equipment life cycles."
When a project is complete, BeckTV will upload the client's asset list into the Beam platform to migrate the inventory data, where it will match to vendor data. The client can also add any assets not purchased through BeckTV via a simple upload process. The client will have free trial access to the Beam platform for 60 days from the on-air date, after which the client may proceed with a Beam subscription or continue managing inventory with a standard equipment list from BeckTV. This scenario applies to any new BeckTV customer and any company that has completed a project with BeckTV in the past two years.
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Among the first joint clients to take advantage of the portal is KPRC-TV in Houston, an NBC affiliate owned by Graham Media Group. BeckTV provided systems design and final integration for KPRC's new building and technical facilities, including two large studios, two automated production control rooms, and a building wired for fiber and copper connectivity throughout. Upon completion, BeckTV supplied KPRC with a detailed inventory list that got uploaded to Beam's Asset Intelligence Platform.
"We completed a major facility upgrade with BeckTV in 2017. At the time, BeckTV provided great documentation for us—which a few years later made the onboarding incredibly easy with Beam, and that gave us access to dynamic information about our deployed technology assets," said Edgar Zavala, director of technology, KPRC. "A partnership between Beam and BeckTV is a great idea. It allows them to come together and deliver a comprehensive, end-to-end asset management solution for anyone doing an extensive or greenfield buildout."
