Any new info on the new emergency radio system?
Nothing at all. I really don't understand the basic concept of the system itself. If this is coined as a new Missouri emergency radio system then why is the focus on replacing all of the MSHP equipment? Yes, our HP badly needs a totally new radio system but that is *not* a state emergency radio system! That would be a Missouri State Highway Patrol Radio system.
One other thing which is going on and could be the reason why nothing has moved forward (regardless of what purpose the radio system is actually going to serve) is because the (outrageous) Tyco Electronics, one of the bidders on this system, has protested Motorola being chosen as the winning bidder! Now Tyco, a company with, IMHO, a lousy track record on design and implementation of government radio systems, has said that Motorola's bid was higher but Blunt still passed them over before leaving office and awarded the contract to Motorola.
Tyco's bid very well might have been lower than Moto's. Tyco has done some things in the past which I, along with others, consider to be pretty scary!... But before getting to that, an item which bears serious consideration (and something I've been trying to point out here) is the following:
A 2007 analysis by L. Robert Kimball and Associates, an Ebensburg, Pa.-based architectural and engineering firm, estimated it would cost Missouri between $165 million and $226 million to install up to 150 transmission towers around the state, buy 2,000 patrol radios and 54 dispatch consoles, and make sure the network is connected.
Knowing what I do about statewide radio systems, this is exactly the point I've been trying to make. And this estimate was from TWO YEARS AGO! This was an honest, straightforward estimate - quite rare these days.
Back to Tyco - Pennsylvania's experience with Tyco: Pennsylvania accepted Tyco's bid of a $179 million dollar radio system. It grew to nearly $300 million. It was supposed to be fully deployed in 2001 - thats yet to happen. Tyco is using a transmission format that is patented. This means replcement radios and equipment cannot go out on bid. It also means equipment must be purchased from Tyco or it won't work! The format is called "Open Sky". Hmmm (Yes, Motorola systems use Motorla radios but you can buy Moto radios from hundreds, if not thousands, of different sources! And once your radio system is installed, your own people can be taught to made adjustments or an outside vendor can also. You are not required to have Motorola do the work!)
There are those who claim the Tyco system works just fine. That Pennsylvania is happy with the system. Personally, I've heard many more people who hate it, detest the proprietary nature of the equipment, the structure and the system itself.
I also know Motorola systems extremely well. I'm familiar with the longevity of the equipment and the systems themselves. It's NOT a closed architecture...it has if not THE longest, certainly one of the top two or three track records in the industry. Finally, when both the buyer and Motorola work together to build the system, the longevity and integrity of the system is top grade!
Being the "low bidder" isn't always (and more often than not shouldn't be) the single determining factor in the bidding process! There are several very important considerations which have to be part of the bid as well. This, I believe, is also (and I certainly hope IS) what is slowing down the process here! Missouri doesn't have the monies needed to build the emergency radio system it truly needs. But hopefully Motorola can give them something much better than what they're working with right now.
Sorry - I didn't mean to ramble! But I'd just remembered about the stink Tyco had raised, etc. and thought that some of it could possibly be slowing down the process. Regardless, the proposed budget now on the table cannot possibly build a viable emergency radio system for Missouri - it will take 2-3 times that much, a minimum.