The NAB Show’s Broadcast Engineering Conference will feature an opening keynote by Gary Arlen, president of Arlen Communications, as well as the presentation of the prestigious NAB Engineering Achievement Awards. This year’s Award winners are Sterling Davis, vice president of engineering for Cox Broadcasting, and Jack Sellmeyer of Sellmeyer Engineering. The Awards will be presented during the NAB Show Technology Luncheon.
For nearly 30 years, Arlen (a columnist with RBR/TVBR) has analyzed the emergence of new media. As president of the research and consulting firm Arlen Communications, Arlen studies and analyzes the convergence of media, telecommunications, technology and interactive content. His opening keynote, titled "2020: Why I Can’t Wait," will draw from this experience to discuss the changes and opportunities brought about by the development of breakthrough technologies. TV and radio engineers will also learn new tactics that will help them spot trends and validate effective technologies.
Television Engineering Achievement Award winner Davis has been involved with every step of TV engineering from production to distribution during his 40-year career, and has been a prime force in helping to move the television and radio industry into the digital age. In addition to his daily responsibilities at Cox, Sterling holds the leadership role of key decision maker in advancing the group towards file-based newsgathering and automated news production.
Sterling has been chairing the technical activities group of the Open Mobile Video Coalition (OMVC) since its formation in 2007, and is currently the chair of the Association For Maximum Service Television’s (MSTV) Engineering Committee. He is also a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), the Audio Engineering Society (AES), the Radio-Television News Directors Association (RTNDA) and the Society of Broadcast Engineers (SBE).
Sellmeyer, the 2009 recipient of the Radio Engineering Achievement Award, has devoted 50 years to the development of radio engineering. As principal engineer, he handles all aspects of radio engineering from FCC applications to transmitter plant design and construction supervision. Prior to establishing Sellmeyer Engineering in 1980, he worked for the Collins Radio Division of Rockwell International. During his tenure here Sellmeyer helped Collins receive three patents, and was listed as co-inventor on the patent covering automatic modulation sensitivity control.
In addition to publishing numerous articles, Sellmeyer has helped organize NAB technical seminars and workshops dealing with AM directional antennas. He is a member of a number of industry professional societies, including the Association of Federal Communications Consulting Engineers (AFCCE), the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE), the Society of Broadcast Engineers (SBE) and the Texas Society of Professional Engineers (TSPE).
The Broadcast Engineering Conference will hold its opening keynote at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, April 19. The Technology Luncheon will be held on Wednesday, April 23.
