Starting with raw images stored in a library on a Thunderbolt connected RAID array and ending up with the post-processed final images also stored on that array, would using a second Thunderbolt RAID array (set up as RAID 0 for speed) as an intermediate "holding pen" for the high resolution (50mp and up) images while they are being being post-processed, significantly enough speed up the workflow to justify the cost of that second (much smaller capacity) array?
Accounting for the much higher reliability of today's SSDs and even Hard Drives, I would say a 2nd RAID array would not be beneficial from a cost/speed perspective.
Assuming you have already created a backup of the original images offline, I recommend a mirror setup for the intermediaries. I lost a junk of work back when to a HD failure and always use a mirror setup for intermediaries because that is where a great chunk of time and effort exists. As much as loosing originals is tragic, loosing all that intermediary work is depressing.
As to seconds or minutes gained, some operations will be measured in seconds, but cumulative operations might be minutes. SSDs crush hard drives for random reads. Bottomline, sometimes even seconds feel like minutes and can be the difference between getting done before your attention moves to something else and it waiting till you can get back to it. For that reason, I always consider the an SSD as the better alternative for working data.
