Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Jeffco AL., Approves digital radio contract

From: NEXTEL-1
Date: Fri, 02 Jul 2004 20:45:09 -0400

Jeffco approves digital radio contract
Friday, July 02, 2004
ERIC VELASCO
News staff writer

Jefferson County commissioners
unanimously agreed Thursday to
replace its radios with digital
models that will allow contact
with other jurisdictions.

The commission had a special
session Thursday to approve
the $13.8 million contract with
Motorola.

The called meeting was needed
for the county to qualify for a $3.4
million discount on a
seven-year lease agreement.
It also will receive about
$100,000 worth of
additional radios free, said
Commission President Larry
Langford.

The yearly payments of
approximately $2 million will
start July 1, 2005, said Billy
Morace, the county's
director of building services.

"We have a bunch of aging equipment," he said. "This will allow us to
transition to new digital technology, but keep the analog to allow other
municipalities to use their current radios until they transition to
digital."

The new system will allow law enforcement, firefighters and other
emergency personnel to communicate with each other, even in remote
locations, Morace said. The system could be expanded to make Jefferson
County's radios compatible with those in other counties and cities.

Birmingham is completing installation and training for a $12
million-plus digital Motorola system approved in May 2003.
Meanwhile, the county is considering an early warning system that would
allow it to directly contact households and businesses that could be
affected by a pending disaster such as a tornado or chemical spill.

Commissioners made no commitment Thursday after hearing a presentation
from Wide Area Rapid Notification, a Tennessee-based company that
manages the WARN system.

The system - which can be triggered via a wide variety of devices such
as computers, handheld wireless systems and telephones - would
simultaneously call up to 6,000 homes and businesses per minute to warn
of the pending disaster.
"You can even auto-launch this system from rain gauges," said Don
Griffis, a company representative. "When the rain gauge hits the red
level, it will send out the notification. That could give people two,
three, four, five hours of warning."
The system also would be used to notify emergency personnel, he said.
The system can provide countywide notification without requiring a
separate system from municipalities and fire districts.

Griffis estimated the system would cost the county about $370,000 over
five years. The cost would be shared by the participating agencies,
commissioners said.

http://www.al.com/news/birminghamnews/index.ssf?/base/news/1088759919144590.xml

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