Shippensburg Pa radio situation
Having watched this go on for a number of years now I have to
ask just who the fire depeartment memebrs are afraid of. As
with most volunteer fire departments, they don't like change.
They are not alone. This same infighting goes on all around
the country.
The closest to Franklin County is York County, PA. The same
hard nose stand is being done there by all the volunteer
departments in York County. Money will always be a problem
for the smaller departments. Let's not loose the focus on
who will take the worst of this if all parties don't sit
down and try to work it out. It will be the private person
that is calling for help.
One other point that has not come up in all the bickering is
what are you going to do about all the VHF and UHF radios that
are currently being used when come 2013 gets here. What do I mean
by this? Well in 20013, all channels, repeaters and radios will
have to be migrated over to narrow band operation. This has been
mandated by the FCC. Don't blame this lack of information
on anyone except those that have focused on the wrong issue
here.
With this narrow banding coming up, I am sure that there are
a number of volunteer fire departments that either haven't heard
about this migration to narrow band or are looking for someone
else to pay for the radios. What ever the case is, you had
better start planning on how to fund the replacement equipment.
It has been pushed back once already. Don't expect this to
happen again. The FCC will enforce the move to narrow band
in the VHF and UHF channels.
Those departments that have accepted new radio systems around
the country have their funding in the works. Those that are
being stubborn will find funding will be a major issue.
Franklin County has seen the problems of too many radios in
vehicles and have started planning for the future. The
transition to new radio channels or to a new radio system
is never easy to small under funded agencies.
There are ways to make the transition smoother. Many forms of
(here it comes) Interoperability are available. Some agencies
have chose to do this via a patch in a console. I don't like
that approach as it takes away from being as flexible. You
loose part of the console operation while the patch is being
active.
Another way is to install a cross band repeater system. This
has the draw back in that you need additional radios that are
dedicated just to this application. You need to do this to each
and every channel that will be used. Kind of an expensive way
to solve the problem.
A third solution option would be to install a gateway system
that uses the existing radios. This gateway system can link
in a cross band manner the different radio channels as needed.
What I am saying is that the existing radio channels can be
used to make a connection between say 800 and VHF or 800 and UHF
or all 3 at the same time. If you had low band channels, they
too could be brought into the mix as needed. If this gateway
was available to the dispatchers, this could be done in real
time on an as needed bassis. The gateway is a much lower cost
solution to the radio problems.
The gateway system that comes to mind right now is the system
from Sytech Corp. They have the ability to interconnect multiple
gateway units over an IP connection. You also have the ability
to use most any computer and install a client software on it
to control the gateways from just about any location. You can
even have multiple clients operating at the same time. You can
even take a radio connected to one gateway and then use another
radio channel from another gateway and make a common radio
network between them. You can have multiple networks operating
at the same time.
This is not magic. This is not something untested. It is up
and working with many agencies around the country. SEPTA in
Philadelphia is using it as part of their dispatching system.
They have 3 gateways with about 40 radios connected to them.
You don't have to have local control connections on the radios.
The system will work over leased lines or microwave circuits.
The National Guard have fielded some 27 of these systems around
the country. Their original use was to be able to have an
interface with the Public Safety radio sysetms where ever they
were deployed to. Their package has a 1.2 meter satelite dish
to provide the IP connection where ever they go.
Let's put down all this infighting and try to work together to
find a solution to the better of all. Start talking with each
other. Start working towards a solution. No matter what, the
clock is ticking on the 2013 radio transition deadline. Find a
solution to the problem, just don't complain about it.
Jim
