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Orlando Police Department Interview
June 21, 2000
Mr. Tom Sorley
System
Structure
How many users of the system? Police? Fire?
Other services?
Sorley said there are 2500-3000 users on the trunked system. The trunked
system does not encompass all radio users in the city, however.
"Everything is not on the same system; the biggest [system] is the 800
trunked system." The user base of the system is police, fire, public
works, and aviation.
Problems with too many users wanting access at a given
time?
"Yes, but it's rare. When there is a large-scale event, [we] have had
problems. Two or three times a year [the city] gets busy
signals." Sorley said that during times of peak usage, the system is
at 37% capacity.
Problems with frequency allocations?
"Yes, there are no available 821 MHz" channels. The city
obtained an FCC waiver to obtain its radio channels. The city was able to
get its first five channels, then it got six from neighboring Seminole County in
an 806/821 MHz channel swap. Sorley noted that the city is putting up an
automatic vehicle location (AVL) system in the 460 MHz range.
How many tower locations?
Sorley said the system is a five tower simulcast system.
Do the tower locations provide adequate coverage of the
city?
"No, when first built it did, but the [city's] annexations are causing
problems. The fringe areas sometimes do not have coverage."
Sometimes the city must break their wide-area coverage connection. Sorley
noted that the trunked system must cover 125 square miles.
System
Performance
Problems with interference?
"Yes, mostly on the control channel with Nextel co-channel
interference." (Nextel licenses many cellular phone radio
sites.) This can "render the radios useless." The North
American Public Safety Frequency (NIPSPAC) coordinators have "restrictive
rules for coverage areas." Radios may not transmit more than three
miles outside of city limits. These rules are related to the Frequency
Reuse Plan (FRIP). Sorley said that there are coverage issues because of
the areas that the city has annexed.
Problems with missed radio calls/cutoffs?
Sorley said that there are "very few other than when [there is]
interference."
Problems with system failing entirely?
"Rarely. [Other counties] have had problems." When this
happens, the city goes into site trunking. The city has had two major
failures in six years. The transmitters of both Orlando and neighboring
Orange County were struck by lightning during the same storm.
Problems with related support systems, such as computers
and 911 services?
"None."
Options in case of system failure?
The city has "three levels of redundancy." First, the city can
disconnect its system from the county's system. Second, the city can go to
site trunking, in which the city "loses a lot of functionality."
Third, the city can go to "Failsoft" mode. The city also has
alpha pagers to use if radio communications are lost. The city does not
have its old conventional channels to use, because it had to surrender them when
they received the trunked channels.
How
satisfied with the system are the dispatchers?
"Very satisfied. At this point, if the system goes down, [the city
has] unhappy people." There are also "training
issues."
How satisfied with the system are officers?
"Satisfied; not very satisfied. Expectations are high; [officers]
think they should be able to talk anywhere."
How satisfied with the system are communications
managers/support personnel?
"Very satisfied. [The system is] tied to Motorola; [they] charge
exorbitant prices for everything." Sorley noted that the city
"can't bring anyone else in" besides Motorola. The city is
"married to them at the hip." When a building was built in the
way of a microwave link, Motorola charged $228,000 for moving the microwave
link, which was "probably double" what it should have cost.
Is interoperability a problem, especially in major
incidents?
With Seminole and Osceola Counties, the city shares mutual talkgroups on the
system. There is no interoperability with Brevard because that county uses
an EDACS system. Also, there is no interoperability with Lake County
because that county uses conventional UHF channels. The Department of
Justice (DOJ) uses an ACU1000 system, in which the audio frequencies can be put
together and the city and DOJ can talk.
System Cost
How much did the current system cost?
The system cost $10 million, and there was a $1.5 million upgrade.
How much are maintenance costs per year?
Maintenance costs are $13,000 per month for everything. The city has a
contract with Motorola, but Motorola does not perform maintenance on the system.
Did upgrading to a trunked system decrease maintenance costs?
"No, the old system did not issue everyone a radio; now every officer has
his own radio...actual system maintenance is the same." On the old
system, the city had a limited number of frequencies (13). The maintenance
costs would still have been the same if the city had stuck with the old
system.
Would upgrading to a digital system decrease maintenance costs?
"No, but it might increase capacity." The city is doing this in
three to four years. Fifty consoles have been replaced.
Adequate funding for maintenance/upgrades?
"Yes, because [the city was] fortunate to set up the system correctly the
first time." The city uses a $12.50 surcharge from traffic tickets
for the radio system.
Is cost-benefit analysis used in determining upgrades/procurement?
"Right now, no we don't...have not done a system upgrade not covered by
maintenance."
System Upgrades
What are planned upgrades in support systems (e.g. CAD,
MDTs, Enhanced 911, etc.)?
The support systems are not on the radio system. The MDTs operate on the
CDPD protocol. The city has 40 right now, and is planning on installing
them everywhere.
Are upgrades sometimes foregone because of inadequate
funding?
"Just happened...can't upgrade just one piece...consoles out of
production." The city is building a new communications center and
wants to add new consoles.
Are upgrades sometimes foregone because of conflicts with
local government?
"Yes, because [there are] so many different governments." Sorley
said it is "mostly a case of not having money."
System Politics
System subject to too much/too little oversight by local government?
"In most cases, too little oversight...we as radio management do not do a
good job of planning...need to include budget people in system so they can
understand methods."
Conflicts with communications managers and radio manufacturers (Motorola, GE,
etc.)?
"The level of service has dwindled significantly in the past ten
years...[Motorola has] more and more accounts and less people...engineering
support difficult to get because [there is] less staff." Sorley says
it took three-and-a-half months for Motorola to give a recommendation on an
engineering question.
Has the system been in the news much recently?
The system was in the news when lightning struck the transmitter. Most
issues with the radio system are seen as administrative problems. People
ask why the city spends money in a certain way.
How satisfied is the public with the system?
"Never had a complaint." Sorley does not see how the public
would ever know about the system.
Other Notes
Sorley explained a great deal about the architecture of the system. The
system is a five site, 22 channel system. There is a "node" in Orange
County. The system is a "Smartzone" system, and Orlando is a
node on the system. The central computer controls the channel
allocations. Orlando, Orange County, and Winter Park are
interconnected. When the central computer goes out of service, the
jurisdictions go back to their old systems and operate independently.
Sorley also spoke more about Motorola and their relationship with the City of
Orlando. He said the city requires engineering support because of the
annexations the city has made. Sorley said that the city is not
"unhappy" with Motorola, just "less happy then they used to
be." Motorola is the "only game once they get you." A
Project 25 (digital standard) system "may bring in some
competition." Sorley says hiring an independent engineering firm is
"very expensive," but that the city did use one "to check on
Motorola."
Finally, Sorley talked about Florida's digital trunked radio system. He
said Florida can operate on analog Orlando talkgroups. Florida is trying
to privatize the management of their radio system. There is a move to do
this among jurisdictions. Sorley said Florida's problems are political. |