Chicago Communications gets involved with Ronald McDonald House's: 'Meals From the Heart'     

Last June, I got the opportunity to tag along on an important visit to the Ronald McDonald House near Lurie Children’s Hospital in downtown Chicago. You see, the charity was nearing its Grand Opening (to become the world’s largest) and we were making a special delivery. Motorola Solutions was kindly donating some new two way radios (walkie-talkies) for the staff to use at the Ronald McDonald House and Chicago Communications had programmed them. The Motorola Digital SL7550 portable two-way radios they received were to become the key communication tool at the facility. Having instant communication assists the RMHC team within the house and also allows the hospital to communicate back and forth in times of need, when family members aren't able to be reached on their cell phones.

Coordination & Solid Communications are Crucial to Events Success

2013 marks the 26th year of the Little Angels Pledge Run, a fundraising event that has become the lifeline for the Little Angels Center for Exceptional Care. On May 19^th this year the Little Angels invite you to jump on your bike and roar through 80 miles of rolling countryside in Northern Illinois. And they don’t mean ride 80 miles on your typical mountain bike, they’re talking about gliding the course on a bike with a lot more power- a motorcycle.  You’d be joining between 1,500 and 2,000 other motorcycle riders that gather at the Woodstock Harley Davidson every year to support this great cause.      

Tom's Tech Talk #17: How to Troubleshoot Mobile Radios

WARNING: This article assumes you have an intermediate understanding of RF and two way radios.

Every so often you may experience a problem with your mobile radio, regardless of its manufacturer. I've heard one of our technicians once say “a radio is a radio; it transmits and it receives. I don’t care if it is Motorola, Johnson, Kenwood or Vertex.” It doesn't matter what type of radio you have because they all need the same basic components to work properly. Because of this, we can point out a few problems that typically occur among all mobile radios.

   In order to address a mobile radio problem you first need to know which part of the radio isn't working properly. Before we get to troubleshooting, let me define the pieces that make up a mobile two way radio:

   Does Your School Have a Secure Emergency Preparedness Plan in Place? 

   In the aftermath of 2012, educational institutions everywhere re-evaluated and re-examined their security and emergency-preparedness plans. Administrators went into crisis mode to comfort students and parents while ensuring all that plans and procedures were in place to keep their schools safe and secure. A critical piece of the plan is communicating across school grounds, and two-way radios are an instrumental part of that plan. 

     On this blog we talk a lot about mission critical situations and the communications and technology that assist first responders and public safety agencies every day. But the importance of good communication doesn’t stop there.  We realize that it's essential to keep everyone connected to their teams, everywhere they go.  We’re able to provide solutions that reach industries very diverse in nature from public safety, whether it’s helping customers in schools, casinos, hotels or sports stadiums. Take for instance our rental department, which puts radios in the hands of security crews at concerts,  videographers covering special events (like the Tour of Elk Grove) and even engineers running environmental tests on equipment at a power plant--which probably isn't the first place that comes to mind when you think of places using two way radios. Let’s take a closer look at the last scenario mentioned, since we happen to know of a nearby environmental testing firm called Mostardi Platt, that was willing to share how two way radios help their staff stay connected.

    Have you ever thought about the antenna on the end of your radio or the ones on top of a tower or building? Probably not much. But there's a lot more to an antenna than what meets the eye. It’s not just a stick that gets installed there; it is actually a tuned circuit which becomes part of the radio (or the system) itself. This antenna circuit resonates on a specific frequency band. Antennas work to amplify coverage, making them a Very-Important-Part (VIP) of the radio system working well. And since I happen to be an expert in this area, I've put together a list of things to help you become an expert too. 

What Local Municipalities Need to Know about LTE & P25

      In a discussion I was having with one of my co-workers, I was asked about P25 (public safety's latest standard), LTE (long term evolution) and what it means to local public safety radio users. It made me think about our current radio system configurations, the abilities they have now and what is needed to get them to a higher level. Current systems used by our local governments operate analog two way radios, in essence, I talk and you listen. Similar to cellular phones in 1983, when a call was placed it was on one specific frequency. Effective, yet in our world today with ever increasing demands on information, it lends itself to being archaic. In addition with the limited frequency resources from the FCC we find adding any type of capacity to these legacy systems in a similar analog fashion is restricted by co-channel users on that frequency. Thus we are educating users on digital and what it will do for them.

Two Way Radios Ensure Safety of SnoCross Racing Officials & Racers

Great Lakes Snocross (GLX) teaches the sport of SnoXracing in a safe and positive environment and is known as the “Southern most Snocross organization” in the country. GLX is a Not for Profit organization and one big extended family with everyone helping each other with parts, repairs, and support throughout the season.  Racing occurs pretty much every weekend from January to mid-March, with practices taking place a couple evenings during the week. Chicago Communications has been supplying the organization with rental radios and equipment for the past 5 years. The radios are used on the track by all of the crew members, who also use ear muff headsets to eliminate the noise of the snowmobiles during communications.  The track crew consists of workers at designated positions around the track who start the races, watch for accidents and flag riders by waving yellow flags to slow/avoid, watch for illegal moves made by riders which may cause him/her to be disqualified, and monitor the finish line.  The radios enable the workers to talk with each other before, during, and after races, as well as communicate with on-site emergency medical staff, and the race announcer and race director in the track tower.  Essentially, they make full communication possible throughout every race event.

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.