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800 MHz SERS System

Below is an accurate reproduction (rekeying) of a PowerPoint presentation given by Snohomish County of a proposal for an expensive Motorola 800 MHz emergency response system which police, fire and other emergency services are being forced to use. This presentation was given in 2002.

HISTORY OF RADIO PROJECT

Levy and SERS Formation

• Level put to voters in 1996 - failed.
• Restart by public safety officials in 1997 led to renewed look at 800 MHz
• Project restarted in 1998.
• System manager hired in 1998 by E911.
• Snohomish County underwrites project costs using councilmatic bonds.
• SERS (Snohomish Emergency Radio System) formed in 1999.

• Existing policy/fire/EMS radio channels routinely get overloaded with local and distant radio "traffic."
• Existing system doesn't provide for silent, reliable policy office or firefighter "officer in distress" signaling to others.
• Wide-area communications between field units is not possible.
• Uneven radio coverage of the service area.
• No ability to exert positive control over lost or stolen radios.
• Difficult to add more users to any of the existing channels, and communication system configuration limits usefulness of added personnel.
• Few alternate channels exist for tactical use (such as narcotics task force, ERT, firescene, hazmat, and logistical support).
• No encrypted radio channels for secure communications.
• Existing radio equipment is 5 - 15 years old.

• Need for added spectrum-crated spectrum refarming.
• FCC rule changes now in effect create likelihood of harmful interference to operations: Washington State DNR has already begun licensing channels.
• Rules will cause further potential for problems at second channel split in 2005.
• Change is needed for VHF systems now.

• The existing infrastructure supporting VHG systems Is very fragile.
• This includes towers, buildings, power sources, and connectivity to comm centers.
• Earthquake will severely cripple all public safety communications in Sno County.
• "Near disaster" (floods, snow- and windstorms) will compromise public safety communications.

• VHF/UFH: No opportunity to grow
• 800 MHz: Available
• 700 MHz: No Allocation, no service rules, no treaty
• Commercial Services: Poor coverage in rural areas, poor reliability, cannot restore directly after failure
• Satellite: No service into structures, costly, no ability to repair easily with failure

• Addresses need to prepare for interference potential due to refarming.
• Moderate cost/Small benefit
• Does not solve capacity, safety, performance or infrastructure survivability problems.
• No additional wide area channels available.
• Must do it all again in 2005!

• Addresses all needs in a single integrated program -- solves all known problems and provides significant operational enhancements.
• Creates durable infrastructure for the future.
• Expensive but huge benefit -- 800 MHz trunking offers the best cost/benefit ratio.
• Compatible with next generation 700 MHz Washington State statewide system.
• Includes government VHF alphanumeric paging system for police/fire/EMS participants.

• Integration with all fire/EMS and law enforcement system in Snohomish County.
• Increased system capacity and capabilities.
• Better area coverage than existing systems.
• Distress signaling from all radios.
• Secure communications available with digital radios.
• Reliable equipment, upgraded towers and buildings.
• Improved comm centers with redundant dispatch capability and alphanumeric paging.

• Mobile/portable radios have a useful lifetime of 7 to 10 years (approx. 12% of project cost).
• Fixed radio equipment has a useful life of 10 to 15 years (approx. 25% of project cost).
• Microwave equipment has a useful life of 15 to 25 years (approx. 12% of project cost).
• Physical infrastructure (buildings. Towers) I assumed to have a life of 25 years plus! (approx. 24% of project cost)
• "missing" percentage is engineering cost.

• 1999-2002: Phase One - Southwest Snohomish County
• 2001-2004: Phase Two - North and East Snohomish County
• Project is six months behind schedule due to tower development delays
• The first phase of the system expected to begin operation in July of 2002
• Initial site development begun for Phase Two

• Everett Fire, Lynnwood Fire, Mountlake Terrace Fire, Edmonds Fire, Mukilteo Fire, FD1, area hospitals
• Everett Police, Lynnwood Police, Mountlake Terrace Police, Edmonds Police, Woodway Police, Brier Police, Marysville Police, Mill Creek Police, Mukilteo Policy, Snohomish County Sheriff's office
• ESCA, DEM, SNOPAC, SNOCOM, Marysville Dispatch, Washington State Patrol (Dispatch)

• Snohomish Police, Monroe Police, Lake Stevens
• Fire District 7, District 4, other districts indicated commitment
• Snohomish County Health District

• Proposed system significantly improves mutual aid and interoperability with all agencies in Snohomish and King counties.
• Ability to work cooperatively in tactical situations greatly improves through added regional channels/talk groups.
• Communications with non-800 MHz users are enhanced via links to VHF (LERN, Fire Tac).
• Airlift NW has 800 MHz radios in aircraft.
• Improved communications with hospitals and state prison.

• First fully "engineered" radio system in county.
• Design is for 95% in-building coverage in populated areas, medium density.
• King County system designed for less than 95% ON STREET (no in-building service).
• Sites can be added if coverage is not acceptable in any areas.
• Spare sites have been purchased to allow site additions if required (1 per phase).
• There will be areas where coverage is not perfect…but solutions do exist

• SERS staff drafted model language for "in-building coverage" ordinance.
• Seeks to ensure that developers of large new commercial and public facilities provide for public safety communications inside large structures.
• Further development required. Our goal is to bring the issue before county council in 2002

• Wide are trunking -- normal operations
• Site trunking (within east simulcast cell)
• Failsoft (wide area simulcast/voted but no trunking)
• Wide area conventional interoperability systems (ICALL and ITAC 1-4)
• Simplex (five statewide, plus 165 SERS licensed -- can set up bases at fire stations)
• Deployable portable repeaters

• Agencies which remain on VHF are changing the nature of their systems significantly.
• USFS is moving totally to narrowband analog VHF in 2005.
• DNR is moving to APCO Project 25 digital.
• Railroads are looking at P25 digital.
• WSP will either go P25 digital or 700 MHz digital.
• SERS interoperability infrastructure will probably be narrowband analog

• Frailey Mountain - Primary
• Eagle Ridge - Primary
• North Mountain / Gold Mountain - Secondary