DBS – Top honour for region’s leading broadcast engineer

One of the region’s foremost broadcasting engineers has been honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2013 ABU Digital Broadcasting Symposium in Malaysia.

Erina Tobing is Director of Engineering at Televisi Republik Indonesia (TVRI), where she has worked for more than 30 years.

Receiving the award in Kuala Lumpur, Ms Tobing said she felt “honoured, blessed and thankful to be granted such a prestigious award.

“I never dreamed of [it] in my life,” she said.

In presenting the award, ABU’s Director of Technology Sharad Sadhu said Ms Tobing was responsible for the operation and maintenance of TVRI’s entire network, including its IT development. She supervised more than 1,500 technicians and engineers in a production chain of 24 regional stations and a transmission network with 376 transmitters, with microwave and satellite facilities for distribution.

“She had been closely involved in the migration to digital TV in the Asia-Pacific region and was active in national and international professional organisations including the ABU, where she served three consecutive terms on the Technical Bureau”, Mr Sharad said.

“The broadcasting industry in the region has benefitted greatly from her contributions,” he added.

Ms Tobing said her knowledge and experience in the broadcasting industry were further enriched when she was assigned to participate in the ABU more than two decades ago.

She said the Lifetime Achievement Award means a lot to her, “not only as a recognition of my lifetime contribution, but also as encouragement to continue working hard in broadcasting for a smooth migration to digital in the Asia-Pacific region, especially in Indonesia.