Since the inception of MRA dba Raycom, we have supported the concrete industry with innovative solutions that improve operational efficiency. Our digital network serves one of the largest cement companies in Southern California, enabling all of its offices to be dispatched from a single central location. The advantages of our network allow all of their offices to be reached through one centralized dispatch operation, significantly reducing dispatch costs—especially after normal business hours and on weekends. Many transportation projects require concrete during off-hours to avoid road closures or major traffic disruptions near construction sites. As a result, concrete providers often need to operate at times when individual plants may not have dispatch personnel available. By consolidating dispatch operations into one central office for all concrete plants, companies can reduce staffing requirements during regular daytime operations and operate with a much smaller dispatch team at night and on weekends, all while maintaining high levels of efficiency and responsiveness.
Cellular communication can be unreliable in many circumstances, particularly in areas with weak coverage, heavy network congestion, or limited tower availability. This becomes even more problematic when urgent calls go directly to voice mail, leaving dispatchers, supervisors, or drivers unable to confirm that a message has been received in real time. In a trucking operation, delayed communication can affect schedules, safety, routing decisions, customer service, and overall efficiency. The ability to speak with any truck, a selected group of trucks, or the entire fleet at one time with the push of a button cannot be effectively replicated by standard cellular service. Two-way radio and push-to-talk fleet communication systems allow immediate contact without dialing numbers, waiting for a connection, or hoping the driver answers the phone. This instant, one-to-many communication is especially valuable when dispatch needs to issue route changes, weather alerts, loading instructions, safety warnings, or emergency notifications to multiple drivers at once. Cellular service is also expensive for several reasons. Each driver typically requires an individual device and a separate monthly service plan, and those costs increase as the fleet grows. Additional charges may apply for data usage, roaming, equipment replacement, upgrades, accessories, and device management. Lost, damaged, or outdated phones add further expense, and administrative time is often required to monitor plans, control usage, and manage billing. In addition, when cellular communication fails or calls are missed, the resulting downtime, delays, and miscommunication can create indirect costs that are often greater than the phone bill itself.
- State law prohibits the use of handheld electronic devices while driving which include cellular telephones unless connected to a Bluetooth or other hands free device. Hands free devices do not work well in environments that have background noise like in the cab of a truck, bus or other large vehicle.
- Kenwood white paper regarding new law affecting mobile device use by commercial drivers does not affect two-way radio.
- The initial cost of smart phones is high and the reliability is low
- Cellular phones often need to be rebooted
- Missed calls end up going to voice mail which significantly delays message throughput
- Cellular phones almost always fail during a major emergency
- Cellular systems become instantly overloaded during a major emergency
- It takes too long to dial, wait for the phone to ring and receive an answer compared to Push-To-Talk with two-way radio.
- Only 2-3 people can discuss an issue at the same time with cellular. With two-way radio, any size group of people can be part of the same conversation
- The liability associated with a driver getting into an accident while using a cellular device can cost a company far in excess the cost of a two-way radio system
Radios are used to communicate with concrete trucks, aggregate trucks, maintenance vehicles, supervisor vehicles, or administrative vehicles in the field for many reasons. These reasons include the following:
- Address or traffic information to facilitate the prompt delivery of material
- GPS tracking of the vehicles to facilitate accountability, efficiency and productivity including departure time or arrival times and detailed travel routes
- Eliminate costly wasted time by not having field personnel use a consumer cellular device that consistently competes for the attention of personnel and is designed for consumer grade reliability
- Insure that the material is being sent to the correct location because there is little room for error. Having a load of concrete harden in the drum is not an acceptable result.
- Employee safety
Click here to view an interactive presentation on Communications Solutions for Transportation.There are many interactive features in the presentation by clicking on the arrows.
Try our Diga-Talk radios with the following great features:
- Loud and clear quality audio that can be heard under loud noise conditions with Kenwood’s noise reduction technology
- Quick access to your personnel – connection time is typically 1.0 second or less
- GPS tracking can tell you where your crew are located
- Eliminate the distraction and illegal use of cellular while driving
- The liability associated with a driver getting into an accident while using a cellular device can cost a company far in excess the cost of a two-way radio system
Remember the 3 rules of making money in real estate, Location, Location and Location. The 3 Cs of radio communications are Coverage, Coverage and more Coverage. Our customers demand coverage. Every concrete company has their own need for coverage which is never the same as another concrete company. By providing more coverage in Southern California than any other radio company, we can provide solutions when the others can’t do it. Read more…