
(04/03/2014) As an internationally acclaimed producer and distributor of noncommercial news, talk, and entertainment programming, NPR creates multimedia content that reaches 26 million listeners weekly and tens of millions more online and on mobile. In an effort to increase its operating efficiencies, the news organization moved its headquarters to a restored building in Washington's NoMa neighborhood, and upgraded to the latest digital technology much of it coming from the catalog of Rastatt, Germany-based Lawo.
Shawn Fox is the Senior Director of Engineering at NPR. As the project manager and lead coordinator for all operational aspects of the broadcast facility in NPR's new building (which opened in April 2013), Fox had a pivotal role in the selection and implementation of the equipment deployed there. The list of Lawo equipment is extensive and includes three sapphire radio consoles, ten 8-channel crystal consoles, ten 4-channel crystal consoles, a large format mc 66 MKII production console, two redundant Nova73 HD routers, a whopping seventy Nova17 routers, and another seven Nova29 routers. Fox discussed the new facility project and the factors that led to the selection of the Lawo equipment.
NPR needed to upgrade its broadcast and content production facilities in order to properly fulfill the transition from analog to digital technology, Fox explains. Our previous building was almost 20 years old and based on analog technology. Most of the equipment was still in service, but was outdated and constantly needed repair. NPR's content production had also evolved to incorporate new and exciting platforms beyond traditional broadcasting. The new 1111 North Capitol Building Project was more than just a facility wide system upgrade newer technologies were required in order to be more flexible, and to meet the ever-changing needs of a 24/7 news operation.
Lawo and NPR previously worked together on smaller technology projects. The relationship started with facility upgrades at our 635 Headquarters in the summer of 2009, Fox reports. These were small scale projects in preparation for the 1111 New Building project. The 1111 project and its relationship with Lawo started in earnest late in the summer of 2011. Our new facility went operational on April 13th, and the entire project was completed in July 2013.
Fox offers insight as to why the organization chose Lawo equipment. The products all run seamlessly on NPR's redundant corporate network, which is protected by multiple firewalls and runs on separated VLANS.
Another important consideration for any broadcast operation is the quality of customer and technical support services provided by the equipment vendors. Lawo has met project deadlines and incorporated multiple changes throughout out the project, says Fox. Their ability to conceptually grasp what we were looking to implement, propose solutions, and come up with the right equipment to make these visions a functional reality requires an in-depth understanding of the market and the technologies required to make everything come together as a cohesive whole.
Before shifting his focus back to the business of the day, Fox offers these following thoughts on the new facility project and Lawo's involvement, The timeline on this project was extremely tight. In some cases, systems came online only weeks before the first broadcast. Lawo representatives were constantly onsite and they met the requirements of the Engineering Client base expediently and with minimal negative impact to our stations and listeners.
About NPR
A thriving media organization at the forefront of digital innovation, NPR creates and distributes award-winning news, information, and music programming to a network of 975 independent stations. Through them, NPR programming reaches 26 million listeners every week.
About Lawo
Lawo designs and manufactures pioneering audio and video technology for TV and radio broadcast production, post-production, as well as live performance and theatrical applications. Products include digital audio mixing consoles, routers, video processing tools, as well as IP-based video and audio transport solutions. Lawo products are developed and manufactured according to highest quality standards at the company's headquarters in the Rhine valley town of Rastatt, Germany. Founded in 1970, the company now employs more than 180 people at 8 locations in Europe, Asia, Australia and North America.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
60 years of audio innovation, driven by the people who use it...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Colombia's Icesi University and WSDG are proud to announce Ronald David Reyes as the recipient of the 2025 WSDG Excellence Scholarship, awarded to an outsta...
20/03/2026
Avid today celebrated the filmmakers, editors and sound teams that worked with Avid Media Composer and Pro Tools to create the vast majority of this year'...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Real-time 9:16 AI-Generated Autocropping; Software-Defined Station in a Box; and Software Switcher with Unlimited Layering Are Among Show Highlights
For the fi...
20/03/2026
Signiant Showcases New Content Innovations Driving Visibility, Access, and Actio...
20/03/2026
Caffeine Relies on DaVinci Resolve Studio for End to End Post Workflow
Brie Clayton March 19, 2026
0 Comments
Blackmagic Cloud helps Mexican post faci...
20/03/2026
It's time to play The Money List! Baz Ashmawy is back at the helm as the qui...
19/03/2026
Live sports production increases complexity, with dynamic audio levels and an overall philosophy that encourages transient volume spikes
Fourteen years ago, Am...
19/03/2026
Advanced Systems Group, a technology and services provider for media creatives and content owners, announced the appointment of Peter Thordarson to the newly cr...
19/03/2026
For this senior from the Bay Area, the speed and pressure of live sports production play right into her strengths
In the live-sports-video industry, the future...
19/03/2026
Grass Valley has expanded its long-term partnership with University of Pittsburg...
19/03/2026
Audio-Technica has released the ATV-SG1 and ATV-SG1LE On-Camera Shotgun Microphones, designed for use with DSLR, mirrorless SLR, and other cameras.
The ATV-SG1...
19/03/2026
Harmonic (booth W2831) announces updates to its XOS Advanced Media Processor aim...
19/03/2026
DAZN and Top Rank have announced a multi-year partnership that will bring Top Ra...
19/03/2026
IHSE, a provider of KVM systems, has announced a partnership with Cyviz AS, a provider of technology solutions for collaboration and mission-critical operations...
19/03/2026
Net Insight has appointed Larissa G rner-Meeus as Chief Product Officer. She joins the company's executive management team.
G rner-Meeus holds a Dipl-Ing. ...
19/03/2026
Leader Electronics of Europe has appointed Rob Stanley as Regional Sales Manager for the UK and Northern Europe. In the role, he will manage key accounts and ha...
19/03/2026
FIFA has announced that YouTube will be a Preferred Platform for the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Under the agreement, FIFA's Media Partners will be able to publis...
19/03/2026
New features across mobile, connected devices, and automotive platforms undersco...
19/03/2026
PSSI Global Services has appointed Ben Bradshaw as Director of Product and Netwo...
19/03/2026
Cobalt Digital has announced its NAB 2026 product lineup, which includes additio...
19/03/2026
Sportradar has released a new report, Innovation in Sports Media: The Next Era of Sports Viewing, examining how the sports viewing experience in the U.S. is evo...
19/03/2026
Matrox Video has been awarded a three-year framework agreement to supply its Con...
19/03/2026
CBS Sports' Jason Cohen and TNT Sports' Chris Brown lead the charge on n...
19/03/2026
A1 Dave Grundtvig and his team deploy plenty of mics to capture the sounds and energy from the stands as well the court
March Madness is a tournament in which ...
19/03/2026
In 2021, we launched EQUAL, a program designed to address an industry reality that persists: Women artists, songwriters, and producers too often face fewer oppo...
19/03/2026
Latest EZKeys 2 expansion arrives
Toontrack's staggering collection of EZKeys 2 expansions has grown once again, and the latest instalment delivers a on...
19/03/2026
New generative AI plug-in due in May 2026
Roland have announced the upcoming launch of a new generative AI tool created in collaboration with Sony Computer ...
19/03/2026
Nick Williams updates users on insolvency process
Nick Williams, the CEO of Native Instruments, has released the following official statement regarding thei...
19/03/2026
Iconic Swedish mic manufacturer back in action
Legendary Swedish microphone manufacturer Milab have announced that production is now fully underway, and mic...
19/03/2026
Acclaimed saturation unit goes virtual
Freqport's Freqtube FT1 (reviewed here in SOS February 2023) offers a convenient way to integrate real valve-base...
19/03/2026
The discontinuation of loss-making business activities as part of the restructur...
19/03/2026
Silicon Valley satire The Audacity premieres 15 April on SBS and SBS On Demand
19 March, 2026
Media releases
From one of the writer/producers of Succession...
19/03/2026
SBS brings communities together at Bondi Pavilion for Harmony Week multilingual ...
19/03/2026
Clarification from SBS regarding Western Sydney expansion
19 March, 2026
Media releases
From an SBS spokesperson:
SBS wishes to clarify some media coverag...
19/03/2026
Test & measurement innovator, Leader Electronics of Europe, is pleased to announce the appointment of Rob Stanley as Regional Sales Manager - UK & Northern Euro...