Journal of the Society of Motion Picture Engineers (1930-1949)

Throughout all this preliminary work, special emphasis was placed on complete cooperation between program and engineering since it is our conviction that only through such cooperation is it possible to achieve the best results. This teamwork is quite necessary even during the design of the stations since the design engineers must be kept informed regarding program plans in order to be in a position to provide the most suitable equipment. On the other hand program plans must be developed with a consciousness of the cost of technical facilities which may be required by the programs envisaged. The two stations which are now in operation in Montreal and Toronto are the result of this type of cooperative effort and we believe the result will justify the amount of planning and thought that has gone into their development. Actually, we had hoped to be in operation several months earlier, but shortages of steel for towers, delayed deliveries of electronic components and other incidents of a completely nontechnical nature have hindered our progress. Technical Facilities: The faci'ities supplied in the two stations are, in general, the same, although there are certain minor differences which were brought about by local conditions. Basically, each station consists of two studios, film recording and reproducing facilities, a mobile unit, a 5-kw picture transmitter, and a 3-kw sound transmitter. In Toronto this equipment and office space for technical and production personnel are housed in a five-story building located in the center of the city. The antenna, a 6-bay turnstile, is mounted at the top of a 500-ft self-supporting tower which is adjacent to the main building. The transmitter operates on channel 9 (186 to 192 me) with an effective radiated power of 26 kw. In Montreal, the transmitter and studios are separated. The television studios are located in a new five-story annex to the Radio-Canada Building, a twelve-story structure which houses our engineering offices and all our sound studios and operations personnel for the Montreal area. The transmitter and antenna are located on top of Mount Royal, which is situated in the center of the city. The tower height of 283 ft (a limit imposed by aviation restrictions) plus the height of the mountain results in an overall antenna height of about 936 ft above average terrain. The transmitter operates on channel 2 (54 to 60 me) and with a 3-bay turnstile antenna provides an effective radiated power of 1 6 kw for the picture carrier. Because of the delay in obtaining the towers, it was found necessary to erect 70-ft temporary masts on top of the transmitter buildings in both cities. Singlebay antennas were erected at the top of these temporary masts in order to permit operation of the stations prior to completion of the main towers. This rather brief description gives a fairly general picture of the two television installations. A more detailed description of the Montreal station will serve to show the extent of the facilities being provided. The five-story studio building is 67 X 90 X 46 ft high. It has a cube of 455,000 cu ft, and is of fireproof construction. This building houses two production studios, a film recording and reproducing room, and control rooms, but does not include office space for the technical and production staff of the station. In the basement there are scenery shops, with woodworking and painting sections, storage space, a room for refrigeration equipment, and dressing rooms. The scenery shops are equipped with power tools, hand tools, and painting facilities necessary for the production of scenery. Paint-spray equipment, a heavy-duty sewing machine, and other necessary tools, are supplied for the production of flats and backdrops. J. £. Hayes: CBC Television Facilities 399