Iowa Statewide Interoperability Communication System (ISICS)

timkilbride

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Looking at the attached file. I believe that the IDOT Cedar Rapids TG is mislabelled as the Newhall Garage is responsible for parts of the Cedar Rapids area along with Marion and Coralville.

Newhall covers all of highway 30 in Benton county, a couple miles into Linn county, and highway 218 up to Vinton. The one solid color in the map you attached indications the area supervisors territory, not the individual garage themselves. Hope this clears up and confusion.

Tim
 

timkilbride

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Have a question about some RIDs I have been seeing. according to the information on the Wiki page. DNR units stop at 16599 But I have been seeing RIDs above that and they are accessing DNR TGs and locally I see them on Law 3D & 4D. Could they be DNR State Park personnel at Lake MacBride, Coralville Reservoir or other state park areas?

I wouldn't trust the Wiki. I have a few "C" cars logged with RIDs higher than 16599.

Tim
 

mws72

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After the storms came through the area today. unknown talkgroups 7200 & 7201 came alive I still can't hear audio. so don't know who is on them. But the RIDs are in with the DOT RIDs.
 

KE0DRS

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I've recently started monitoring Sioux City/Woodbury county with a TRX-1. I don't seem to pick much up on the system. At the top of the screen with the signal meter I'm getting full bars but not holding a steady "T" symbol like it is reading talkgroups. Instead I'm usually seeing an "S". Anyone familiar with the TRX-1 and have any recommendations or ideas what the issue may be?
 

KE0DRS

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There is a bit of encrypted traffic but I should still be able to pick it up. I will receive some traffic here or there but was hoping to pick up talkgroups like Sioux City paging. I am almost constantly at full signal but not receiving hardly any traffic even encrypted talkgroups.
 

maus92

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Lots of Woodbury traffic is in the clear. However the Woodbury site is a simulcast cell, and the TRX-1 does poorly with simulcast systems even if your radio shows good signal.
 

patmcc24

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Seems to me, that ISICS already has very good coverage for mobiles in Clinton County (4 sites). Yes, the issue remains coverage for handhelds in a downtown area like Clinton, being below the bluffs. But for the most part, Clinton Co. only has to pay for RACOM (road department) at the moment.

If they go to SARA/RACOM for all their services, the monthly cost would be much higher for all departments, of course in addition to purchasing radios.

With ISICS, the only cost would be for radios, and perhaps converting a current VHF tower to an ISICS platform (for the downtown/below the bluffs area portable coverage). There is no monthly cost for ISICS.
Clinton City Fire and PD will be switching to ISICS withing next 30 days according to a source on the 911 board .... after the storm it forced their hand from building their own Digital VHF System to urgent need to get all services and systems running.... sadly the cost for radios almost doubled even with the discount.... also a solution for downtown coverage has been or will be put in place very shortly.
 

MCWKen

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If indeed Clinton will move to ISICS so soon, don't you think we would have heard some testing prior? That was my experience in Mason City. At least two months before the cut-over, their talkgroups were showing up in tests.

Or is this going to be a baptism by fire? Of course, I have yet to set up OP25 down here, so it is hard to really tell if they are testing. I might have to at least look for new towers in Windows.

Thanks for the heads up.
 

maus92

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Coverage testing has likely already been done, unless local RF infrastructure enhancements were added. One would think other dispatch equipment would take some time to install however, and installation of mobiles. Portable subscribers can be distributed fairly fast, but training takes a bit of time.
 

MCWKen

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Coverage testing has likely already been done, unless local RF infrastructure enhancements were added. One would think other dispatch equipment would take some time to install however, and installation of mobiles. Portable subscribers can be distributed fairly fast, but training takes a bit of time.
They have already had some capability at Dispatch since I have heard them from time to time using R6Call61. Not to say the rest of the system needed is in place.
 

maus92

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They have already had some capability at Dispatch since I have heard them from time to time using R6Call61. Not to say the rest of the system needed is in place.
ISICS deployed consolettes for jurisdictions to have a basic capability to operate on the system. Not sure what the needs of Clinton City agencies will be.
 

patmcc24

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They have already had some capability at Dispatch since I have heard them from time to time using R6Call61. Not to say the rest of the system needed is in place.
Clinton was going to convert existing systems to Digital.... The storm forced their hand with the Radio Tower coming down... ISICS has 2 mobile sites in town now one is on 13th Ave.... When I was told by a reliable source (911 Board Member) they were switching to it i raised concern with Portable coverage I was told a plan was in place for that as well with Future Com Mobile Repeaters ..... Equipment has been slow to arrive for this and appears may take longer than first anticipated.
 

maus92

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Clinton was going to convert existing systems to Digital.... The storm forced their hand with the Radio Tower coming down... ISICS has 2 mobile sites in town now one is on 13th Ave.... When I was told by a reliable source (911 Board Member) they were switching to it i raised concern with Portable coverage I was told a plan was in place for that as well with Future Com Mobile Repeaters ..... Equipment has been slow to arrive for this and appears may take longer than first anticipated.
Futurecom DVRS are used in the Maryland statewide system in the mountainous western part of the state. The mobile repeaters can be activated either by the control head inside the vehicle or remotely by the portable subscriber. It will be interesting to see any engineering for a local enhancement for Clinton.
 
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