Tait MPT 1327 system meets utility’s needs.

Photos courtesy: Rappahannock Electric Cooperative

Faced with frequency squeeze, a federal agency deadline and communications kit from the 80s, Rappahannock Electric Cooperative (REC) formed a co-operative with four other Virginia state rural utilities to find an end-to-end solution for their narrow banding issues.

The answer: a Tait 220 MHz MPT 1327 radio system with IP backhaul.

REC now serves about 157,000 members with more than 16,000 miles of line in more than 22 counties and, in the aftermath of winter snow storm ‘Saturn’, managed over 40,000 radio calls during six days.

Read more to find out how. Continue Reading

By Paul Daigneault, Chief Executive Officer, MiMOMax.

A common misconception among radio professionals is that a large bandwidth is needed when linking analog and digital PMR base-station sites. However, this isn’t necessarily the case.

With the development and adoption of more spectrally-efficient radio technologies, it can be argued that there’s no overall shortage of radio spectrum. However, the unique propagation properties particularly associated with radio waves in UHF bands make this the most sought-after and crowded band in the usable spectrum. As a... Continue Reading

Three critical steps for elected officials to take when choosing a radio system.

The useful life of a two-way radio system is around 10-12 years, so it’s no surprise that elected officials may serve several terms without having the opportunity to make decisions regarding a new system for their community.

When the decision does arrive, being prepared to ask a series of key questions about the proposed system will go a long way to making sure the community’s needs are met and investment protected.

Step 1: Understand the role of the radio system in your community Continue Reading

When choosing a new radio technology, the decision making process needs to incorporate multiple considerations; spectral efficiency, coverage theory, encryption, even interoperability.  There is a lot to think about.

One major consideration before you select the technology platform and migration program that will deliver the results you need, is to choose either a conventional or trunked system. Both options have distinct benefits but making the right choice can be difficult.

Trunking is a system option for larger networks and essentially makes it... Continue Reading

In the desirable radio frequencies occupied by Public Safety and Utilities organizations, there is only so much radio spectrum to share between everyone who wants to use it.

Traditionally, analog radio modulation methods such as AM and FM limited the amount of information conveyed within a given channel, and each channel could only host a single conversation at any one time -a pair of users, one transmitting and one receiving.

Analog modulation (AM) places a very finite limit on the number of users that can occupy the radio spectrum, and does not cater well... Continue Reading

8 things to consider
1. Do your current channels meet pending government regulations?

Government regulators are implementing mandates to improve radio spectrum efficiency, requiring network operators to “narrowband” – migrate from wideband 25 kHz operation to 12.5 kHz (or 6.25 kHz) equivalent operation.

While meeting compliance may seem daunting, it presents an opportunity to shift from analog operation to digital, open standards-based technologies such as P25 Phase 2 and DMR. Choosing P25 or DMR may allow you to use your existing... Continue Reading