On the Same Wave Length – Part One

This is part one of a two-part article written by Sean Fitzgerald,Motorola Solutions, for World Cement’s August issue and abridged for the website. Subscribers can read the full issue by signing in, and can alsocatch up on-the-go via our new app for Apple and Android. Non-subscribers can access a preview of the August 2015 issue here.

Hope Construction Materials is a leading independent supplier of cement, concrete, aggregates and asphalt. Its cement business is based at the UK’s largest cement plant at Hope, Derbyshire, producing up to 1.5 million tpy of cement products.

Mark Bramley, Electrical Engineer, Hope Construction Materials, explained: “Our site is a demanding place for radio technology: we’re in the middle of a very rural and hilly part of Derbyshire – the surroundings can impede RF performance and background equipment noise is ever present.”

Hope Cement was experiencing problems with its previous fleet of analogue two-way radios. The system did not have enough channels to support the desired number of talk groups. The radios were also ageing and, as they are used outside in all weathers, they were subject to a high degree of failure.

Enhanced communications delivers greater safety for Hope Cement’s team.

A smooth transition to digital

Working with specialist DCRS, Hope Cement selected a Mototrbo digital two-way radio system. The decision was based on the combination of Mototrbo’s audio performance, greater capacity, reliability and integrated safety features.

“Working with DCRS, we looked at the options to replace our old analogue radios and Mototrbo stood out as the best solution. The radios are tough and rugged to ensure continuous operation, the audio quality is excellent and we’re guaranteed coverage across the site with the capability to support a large number of talk groups. We also have the option to expand the system at busy times by hiring in additional complementary radio equipment from DCRS,” commented Mark.

Mototrbo DP3400 and ATEX certified DP4800 two-way digital radios.

DCRS conducted a detailed site survey to locate the best position for the antenna system and ensure site-wide coverage. It has installed three DR 3000 repeaters, running the intelligent Capacity Plus software. Capacity Plus is a single-site digital trunking solution that extends the performance of Mototrbo to support up to 1200 users – more than required by Hope Cement. It also offers greater coverage and three times the capacity of Hope Cement’s analogue network. DCRS has set up eight talk groups to support discrete teams who can now communicate clearly as a result of Mototrbo’s advanced noise cancellation technology.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/europe-cis/04082015/on-the-same-wave-length-261/