Inter BEE: Facilis Partners With Itochu Cable Systems

At Inter BEE 2018, Facilis Technology, Inc. will partner with its authorized reseller ITOCHU Cable Systems Corporation (ICS) to demonstrate 8K and UHD workflows with post-production equipment from brands including Avid, Blackmagic Design, Cambridge Research Systems and Venera Technologies.

The stand will feature a new Version 7.1 Facilis Hub Stack with 32Gb FC interconnect and connection to client workstations through 16Gb, 32Gb FC and 10GbE. The workflow will include online 8K and UHD editing with Avid and Blackmagic Design systems, as well as real-time playback of 8K QC from Cambridge Research Systems Harding FPA, ingest from Cinegy Capture PRO and a Lasergraphics ScanStation 5K DPX film scanner.

“The simplicity and elegance of the Facilis system and Web Console management tools deliver a satisfying user experience along with industry-leading performance,” says James McKenna, VP sales and marketing, Facilis. “Itochu’s customers are concerned with reliability, ease of use and speed, and the Facilis Shared File System fits the requirement.“

Unlike traditional NAS systems, Facilis utilizes an optimized shared file system and avoids the workflow issues inherent in NAS when used in a cross-platform creative environment. With simple project-based volume management and user access control, administrators can manage FC and Ethernet clients with the same multi-user write access. Facilis shared storage systems have additional improvements on NAS, including local-attached volume appearance, cross-connectivity failover, and one-touch remote volume mounting.

Version 7.1 adds extra features that help with the administration of large and small environments alike. They include real-time and historical bandwidth monitoring of volumes and workstations; RAID-50 and RAID-51 management through admin console; Preferred connection address for multi-path networks; Automatic load balancing of clients across server IPs; Remote client deployment for ease of upgrades in multi-client facilities.

FastTracker 2.5 is designed for cataloging, searching, and accessing media on any attached storage. Using the Adobe Panel for Premiere Pro and After Effects, all indexed data is available directly within the Adobe interface. Users can preview local storage assets as well as LTFS and network-based assets for locating of media well beyond what an OS or application-level search can provide.

The Facilis Hub Server optimizes drive groups and increases the bandwidth available from standard Facilis shared storage systems. It gives new customers a way to scale bandwidth through dynamic aggregation, and current customers a way to extend the usable life of older systems. With speeds over 4GB/s available from a single virtual project-based volume, hub server systems offer industry capability.