New Putnam County 700Mhz - Hoosier SAFE-T or Stand Alone ?

[19-685]

Last week's FCC license grants indicate a new P-25 system (or possibly a new SAFE-T two-site simulcast sub system) for Putnam County.

ULS License - Trunked Public Safety 700 MHz License - WSJA913 - PUTNAM, COUNTY OF

Two sites: Bainbridge and Cloverdale

WSJA913

769.85625
770.51875
771.74375
772.28125
772.95625
774.49375

Anyone have additional details on this newly licensed system?

I'm guessing this may be a new site for Hoosier SAFE-T.

Thanks
19-685

 

[INDY72]

Yep, it's simulcast, but if it was SAFE-T, seems like they would just upgrade the multiple existing sites to an simulcast, and it would be a SAFE-T license. So very well could be they are putting up their own system. Anyone seen any RFP etc from Putnam for vendors etc?

 

[AK9R]

Putnam County Commissioners meeting minutes for January 8, 2025:
The Commissioners president announced that 911 Director Dave Costin has resigned. The position was to be advertised.

February 3 minutes:


February 17 minutes:
28 applications for 911 Director submitted, narrowed to 6, background checks and interviews to be conducted.

March 3 minutes:

March 17 minutes:

Here's the kicker...Dave Costin appears in the June 16 minutes and is identified as "911 Director". There are some executive session minutes that contain nothing useful. Personnel matters are usually handled in executive session.

 

[INDY72]

Design Services – Pyramid Consulting These guys. No mention of who they roll with. So no clue if this will be an EFJ, Motorola, or L3 Harris. They have offices right across from the City-County building downtown at Washington Street here in Indy. Also bizarre that radios were to be online by (March/April), but just now even a license, and currently all Putnam is still full SAFE-T.

 

[markanderson]

Is that phase 2 or it is phase 1

 

[AK9R]

Is that phase 2 or it is phase 1

The license was only recently issued and wouldn't contain that information anyway. But, the system does not appear to be online yet. Until the system is online and people monitor it, we won't know the details.

 

[GTR8000]

Actually, the license contains some clues if you know what to look for. Specifically for WSJA913, the emission designator of 9K80F1E on the repeater frequencies indicates L3Harris MASTR V H-DQPSK TDMA (Phase II).

 

[N9KLF]

 

[AK9R]

Seems like this will be standalone system since the license shows Bainbridge and Cloverdale. There's already a SAFE-T site in the Bainbridge area (the other is at ISP Post 53 near Putnamville). The northwestern part of Putnam County has some hills and hollers. I wonder if two towers will provide enough coverage.

 

[cubn]

What's the advantage to going to a standalone system vs SAFE-T? Long term cost savings?

 

[GTR8000]

What's the advantage to going to a standalone system vs SAFE-T? Long term cost savings?

The #1 advantage is complete autonomy; don't have to answer to anyone when you want to add another site or another 1000 subscribers to the system, don't have to follow arbitrary rules and whims of the state, etc. Depending on how much the state charges (or doesn't charge) in infrastructure maintenance and/or subscriber fees for SAFE-T, there may be long term savings involved, although it's not cheap to build/operate/maintain your own system either. All of that burden shifts from the statewide machine and tax base to the relatively small county. I'm sure they've done the calculations, although they may only be interested in doing their own thing above all else including short/long term costs.

Also, covering a 500 sq mi county with just these two subsites on 700 MHz? Uh, no, not even with 300W ERP unless they care only about mobile coverage (which will be spotty at best in some areas). Even VHF would struggle to provide that coverage from those same subsites.

 

[capital]

What does this mean for their mutual aid partners? Complete reprogramming??

 

[AK9R]

Assuming it's a standalone system, Putnam County will probably program their radios with channels/talkgroups of surrounding counties as well as the SAFE-T mutual aid channels. They may also set up their console(s) with the ability to patch their channels/talkgroups with others.

 

[INDY72]

Most of the program would be done by the state anyway. IPSC does almost all radio templates for everyone. Be a lot like ours, main zone would be theirs, with mutual aid zones etc... The surrounding areas would need to add a new zone for PC, or they would just use the current set up to interop on. Marion, Hamilton, Madison counties all have Zone 1 being local, and then other 3 zones of the MESA family, rest of Zones are SAFE-T, and conventional.

 

[INDY72]

Also a side note, still some XTS radios on SAFE-T, they are working on getting them all phased out.