Technologies in Next Generation Patrol Vehicles

Motorola Solutions has done more than 5 years of focused research, with hundreds of ride-a-longs, focus groups, simulations and usability studies to help understand the need for police cruisers to bring critical information together in an automatic and intuitive way. Research shows users want vehicle controls that are integrated and easy to use so that actions flow quickly and intuitively when responding to an incident.

Spotlight on the Technicians; Experience Behind ChiComm

     Chris has been interested in electronics ever since he was a toddler. After he learned how to say mom and dad, the next word he learned to say was 'electricity'. At age 11 he was already heavily into CB (citizen’s band) radios and by the time he was in high school he got into building car stereos and installing equipment into cars. So I guess it shouldn't come as a surprise that as an adult Chris was able to successfully build a 100% battery run electric vehicle, in his free time!   This project took 3 years for Chris and his dad to complete from start to finish, all within his garage. The truck (pictured below) has a 50 mile range depending on driving speed and conditions, takes 4-5 hours to gain complete charge and can reach a top speed of 75mph. Like other vehicles of its kind, it can be charged anywhere with an electrical outlet. The truck is used for short trips and errands around town and the 2,000 mile mark was recently crossed without having yet run into any major problems.

Pointers from the Principals: Another new year...Another plan put in place.

     It’s hard to believe that another year has wrapped.  It’s true what they say, “The older you get the faster the years fly by.”  Just when you feel like you’ve successfully wrapped up a year, established plans, and begun gaining momentum in the plans that have been set for that year, the end of the year is upon you and the cycle starts all over again.  Where did the time go?

Top 3 Trends of Radio in 2013

With 2013 finally upon us, it is time to move forward with regard to radio. Last year lead to one of the largest years radio dealers have seen in 20 years, mainly due to the Federal Communications Commission's mandate for Narrowbanding all radio channels below 512 MHz. Narrowbanding created scheduling conflicts and made things hectic for those involved, but overall, it allowed us to revisit with all of our customers. Some abided by the mandate, took the proper steps and have completed narrowbanding. Some have not.  In addition to that, changes occurred with the D Block legislation that left the 470 MHz users on a freeze and rumors of a private LTE network for public safety left many questions unanswered as well. Looking ahead though, the future of two way radio remains to look bright, and here are 3 trends you’re sure to see this year.

ChiComm Introduces Customer Care Expert, Millie Watt

    You may remember when we introduced ChiComm’s FREQ (pronounced "Freek") Squad. Their purpose is to give you helpful hints and tell you about the latest happenings for all things in wireless communications, from the latest model of a portable radio to assisting in customer care. Each FREQ Squad member has their own specialization, and so far we’ve heard from Barry Broadband about wireless broadband, Ann Tenna about in-building coverage and Tommy Two Way about digital radio. But possibly the most important part of all these topics is the service and care behind each of those topics. That’s where our new customer advocate, Mille Watt, comes in. Millie is full of bright ideas! She takes special care of customers, so count on her for generating intelligent guidance wherever protection and preventive maintenance topics are present. She’s your go-to expert for any concerns you may have related to warranty, contracts, and protection programs.

As always, we are grateful for each and every one of our customers and employees. We are thankful for all of the opportunities we received this year to partner on many significant projects. We encountered some big challenges but all the people at ChiComm stepped up in a short time frame and addressed these challenges head on. It's thanks to our employees that we are able to continually accommodate our customer's needs and meet their expectations.

Lester started at ChiComm in October of 1983, and upon his retirement next week, he'll have put in just over 29 years here. He has primarily been a mobile installer for ChiComm but he’s done a little bit of everything throughout his years here (base installs, microphone repairs, squad builds, responding to service calls). When he started the cellular business was booming in full swing so he jumped into learning how to install mobile cellular units in cars. Besides the skills he learned from some electronic courses, he learned everything he knew on the job.   His job description includes: installing a wide range of equipment in vehicles and repairing equipment when necessary, whether in the shop or on location at a customer site. Most of the jobs he's worked on have been for government agencies, including dozens and dozens of squad cars and undercover vehicles. He has been working on vehicle solutions for as many years as he can remember.      

ET Phone Home: Smartphones and Crime prevention (Guest Author)

One of the downsides of any form of new technology is that it is inevitably expensive and attractive to thieves. Over the years, burglars have focused on Video Recorders, DVD players, and, now, Flatscreen TVs. Car thieves have moved from car radios via CD players onto SatNavs, although even those are no longer of sufficient value to interest most opportunists.

In the same way, the advent of mobile phones has been responsible for a sharp increase in the number of muggings, mainly with young people as both perpetrators and victims. This particular crime wave has been revitalized over the last couple of years by the launch of expensive smartphones such as the iPhone, Samsung Galaxy, etc. These, along with Tablet computers, retain very high re-sale value and are therefore very robber-friendly.

The Allerton Hotel has been around since 1924, boasting many impressive credentials including its classification as a historic landmark of Chicago and its unique Northern Italian Renaissance architecture. It has a rich history of being one of the city’s most exciting social hot spots, and was originally operated as a club hotel for men. The 26 story historic building consists of 12,000 square feet of meeting and event space in addition to its 443 guest rooms, all of which is made operational by the hotels' 225 employees.

    At any given time there’s about 40 employees using portable radios across the Engineering, Security, Housekeeping, Room Service and Banquet/Event departments. In the hospitality industry, meeting guest's expectations is crucial, so timing and coordination are essential to achieving rapid response times. Communicating instantly and efficiently amongst your staff is critical to providing excellent service and customer satisfaction. Whether it’s getting a guest extra towels to the room or responding to an electrical issue on the roof, the operator stationed at the base station relays the message and dispatches the respective department to respond right away. Two way radios expedite guests’ requests in a timely manner and keep the operations running smoothly on a day-to-day basis.