BROADCAST / SHARE
Deliver executive updates to televisions across the enterprise

INFORM / EMPOWER
Inform a global organization with real-time video announcements

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HB Communications
Communications Design Associates

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Challenge
Streamline video communications while maintaining broadcast quality.

"Digital video started with the General Assemblies and is now expanding as an information vehicle for all employees. The VBrick system has made this a great communications tool here at Putnam."
MaryAnn Smeglin, Vice President of System Integration
Putnam Investments

Once a quarter, Putnam Investments held a company wide meeting known as a General Assembly which connected all three of Putnam’s office locations in Massachusetts via live video. These meetings were extremely expensive to execute, time consuming to set up, and stressful for the people behind the scenes due to the complex video satellite distribution.

Between 15-20 Putnam staff and freelancers collectively spent 16 hours supporting each meeting’s audio/video satellite transmission requirements. Putnam had to rent three satellite trucks and a production truck for each meeting with costs approaching $25,000.

Putnam management challenged the Corporate Communications department to identity and implement a more economical and flexible solution that would retain the broadcast quality standard they had already established for their General Assemblies.

Solution
Eliminate satellite transmissions costs and complexities by digitizing and transmitting the meeting video across its existing IP network.

VBrick Systems, working with system integrator HB Communications and consultants form Communications Design Associates, designed a portable rack which replaces the need for a production truck.

The rack, called a flypack, travels to any Putnam office and plugs into its existing network. Using the flypack, Putnam employees are now ready to record and distribute the meetings in minutes rather than hours. The flypack includes three VBrick encoder/decoder appliances for each of the three cameras they bring on location.

Benefit
With the help of VBrick, Putnam was able to save $75,000 annually, and increase the frequency and spontaneity of their executive communications.

"Distributing information to our employees quickly and clearly is very important. Using VBrick, Putnam TV is becoming a central part of our employee communications."
Mark McKenna, Director of Corporate Communications
Putnam Investments

Using VBrick, Putnam saves nearly $20,000 per meeting on production and transmission costs by leveraging its existing television studio and network infrastructure to broadcast all of its company-wide communications. The VBrick-enabled IP video distribution capabilities also reduced staffing requirements for each General Assembly by 12, requiring only a quarter of the previous staff.

Moving forward, Putnam is implementing an internal television channel, which they dubbed "Putnam TV," to broadcast timely programming to all three buildings.