Severn Trent Water standardises on Entel's DN495 LTE radio
The Customer
Severn Trent Water, a renowned UK water authority based in the Midlands, is responsible for water supply management, waste-water treatment and disposal for 8 million people across 8,337 square miles.
Severn Trent Water is an existing customer of Coventry-based Mike Weaver Communications (MWC), which hires and sells two-way radio systems and accessories.
The Challenge
Achieving high-quality and reliable radio communications across 8,337 square miles and 137,000 km of water and sewerage pipes.
Severn Trent Water has formed a new emergency clean water tankering team who respond to burst water mains and restore water supply by pumping into the network.
Due to the unexpected nature of burst water mains, it is extremely difficult to predict where and when this will be needed. Plus, the distances involved can be hundreds of miles, making clear and reliable radio communications critical. The team trialled DMR two-way radios and portable repeaters, but they failed to provide the coverage needed and there were also channel congestion and interference issues.
The repair team responsible for fixing the pipes were also experiencing challenges to complete the repairs as they rely on a separate team to isolate the pipes by switching valves on and off. The repair team was using mobile phones to contact the dispatch centre (control room) to request isolation, who would then instruct the valve team, who would then confirm isolation back to control, who would in turn update the repair team. The mobile phone coverage was often patchy due to staff working outside of major cities and the teams were keen to communicate directly to save time and receive absolute certainty of pipe isolation.
The Solution
Entel’s DN495 delivers operational simplicity and best-in-class performance.
To overcome these challenges, MWC identified Entel’s DN495 E-PoC radio as a potential solution. The DN495 combines the best of traditional PTT (push-to-talk) radio simplicity with national cellular and private WiFi network operation for best-in-class performance, capability and user benefit.
Operating on all four UK national cellular networks, the DN495 radio delivers far superior coverage and 3 watts of crystal-clear audio, its volume exceeds radios twice its size and it does not require a radio license to operate. DN495 radios can also be updated and programmed over the air, instantly, regardless of where they are.
MWC purchased some of Entel’s DN495 radios to loan to Severn Trent Water, which proved so successful that they ordered an initial batch of 60 within only a few weeks.
“This is the easiest sale I ever made; the DN495's simply sold themselves and the over-the-air programming is easy to use - I can re-program a radio without leaving my chair and unlike other PoC products I’ve tested, the DN495 radios just work,” said Mike Weaver, Director at Mike Weaver Communications. “Most importantly, it was the perfect solution for Severn Trent Water - once the first department had the Entel DN495 radios, the other departments saw them and went on to purchase their own. Severn Trent now has several hundred DN495 radios and this continues to expand,” he added.
The DN495 is a key product in Entel’s range of E-PoC Push-to-Talk over cellular solutions. It has all the features you would expect of an advanced Tier III/Capacity Plus/Max portable radio, but is intuitive, straightforward to operate and (if required) can be easily configured for simple PTT operation too.
Steve Mulka, Global Product Manager at Entel UK, explains: “We are now supplying DN495 E-PoC radios where previously DMR Tier III and Capacity Plus/Max systems would have been the only option. Dealers are increasingly finding that these trunked systems are time consuming and expensive to install and maintain, with the benefit of E-PoC being that the cellular networks take care of that and their ability to roam all four UK cellular networks delivers a higher degree of resilience too”.
The Result
Better-quality audio and superior performance.
Using Entel’s DN495 E-PoC radios, Severn Trent Water are now experiencing reliable coverage across their entire operational area, as well as direct, simple and instantaneous communications.
The DN495 is supplied with a multi-network EU roaming SIM that supports all four UK networks and with Entel’s proprietary software, it seamlessly hands over to Wi-Fi without dropping the call - ensuring superior coverage compared to other radios or smartphones. Using all four UK networks ensures continued operation even if one of the networks goes down. With access to thousands of base stations, users do not risk a single repeater/aerial system or network connection as a point of failure.
These features ensure Severn Trent Water employees always have the best network access and coverage with virtually unlimited range – comfortably covering their 8,337 square mile area. Plus, one of the unique advantages of Entel’s E-PoC service over analogue and digital radio systems is that Severn Trent Water benefits from an unlimited number of interference-free virtual channels, which is critical for the instantaneous and reliable communications they require.
Severn Trent Water is also benefitting from much louder and clearer audio quality than the two-way radios and mobile phones they previously used. The maximum volume of their old two-way radios and mobile phones was far lower than the DN495, making the radio’s unique combination of loud and natural-sounding audio ideal for the noisy work environments often experienced by their employees. Other advantages include no more missed calls and enhanced safety and security for employees.
“I think they are brilliant; you can talk to anyone, anywhere, at any time. They are so good they have already been adopted as best practice,” said Rhys Addison, Manager at Severn Trent Water.
These combined benefits led to improved safety, management of water main breaks and allowed the repair and valve teams to communicate directly, saving time and providing increased confidence around pipe isolation.
Reliability, security & instant deployment
The DN495’s outstanding battery endurance is benefiting employees working in remote locations for long periods of time, where regular and reliable communication is key. The robust specs of these commercial-grade radios and the fact they are IP68 certified - meaning they can be fully submerged to two meters in water, for four hours and are fully dust and dirt proof – make them ideal for the demanding roles of Severn Trent Waters’ employees.
The DN495’s ability to be instantly deployed and its virtually unlimited number of channels is allowing Severn Trent Water to easily establish communications across its vast operational area and hundreds of radio users.
Another unique benefit of the DN495 radio is its AES-256 bit encryption, one of the securest available that is included as standard. This delivers further peace-of-mind for Seven Trent Water that their company and customer data is secure.
“Almost every dealer I have spoken with tells me the DN495 is by far the best PoC radio they have seen and used,” said Steve Mulka. “During the development phase, our headline requirements were focused on latency, audio, functionality and durability and our R&D team have delivered against this with a truly uncompromised design”. “The DN495 looks, feels and works just like you would expect a two-way radio to, but with many more features including Lone-Worker, Man-down and Emergency Button, full duplex emergency calls, GPS tracking, Geo Fencing and multiple levels of call priority (transmit interrupt),” he added.
Tailoring features to meet customer needs
Entel Group is the industry’s only British-headquartered radio communications manufacturer and has research and development laboratories in both Elstree and Cambridge.
“Entel develops its own hardware and software, so the benefit is that we are open to developing specific features requested by our dealers and their customers,” explains Steve Mulka. “In the case of Severn Trent Water, they requested some customisations - one of which was a ‘call received and understood’ button for when a radio operator was unable to respond with a voice transmission. We were able to design and deliver this for them in just a couple of weeks and using the Entel Portal, the firmware upgrade was sent over the air, with no downtime or interruption for Severn Trent” he added.
Looking forward
Severn Trent Water also plans to add PC Dispatchers, which will allow them to better manage staff out in the field. They will also be implementing the DN495’s Lone Worker and Emergency functions, which in the event of an emergency will automatically transmit the radio’s GPS location to the dispatcher’s map ensuring an accurate and speedy response.
These safety features are ideal for those working alone, are available together with the DN495’s Man-Down feature and will replace one of Severn Trent Water’s existing lone worker devices. This will result in even further cost savings and improved performance, while also reducing the number of devices staff need to carry, charge and maintain.
Additional Background
E-PoC push-to-talk over cellular (PoC / Wi-Fi) solution & new private server.
Entel’s extensive range of E-PoC products include Basic and Advanced PC Dispatchers, Low-Cost Android Dispatcher, Indoor Location and Full Call & Data Recording PC application for safety and security monitoring.
Entel’s E-PoC service operates on the Tassta platform, a global leader in PoC software. Working closely with Entel’s R&D team, the platform has been optimised for Entel hardware and is MCX/MCPTT ready (to be updated as soon as all plug tests have been completed later this year).
Entel’s latest Universal Radio Gateway (V3.0, due in July 2020), enables users to connect DN495 radios with almost any existing radio system including Tetra, P25, DMR Tier III and Capacity Plus/Max to name some. This increases its range and allows everyone to talk together at a press of a button. “Dealers are already using DN495 radios and our V2.0 Gateways on their existing DMR and analogue radio systems to extend range and the life of their investment,” said Steve Mulka. “Entel’s fully redundant Tier 3+ UK-hosted solution was essential to Severn Trent Water’s decision and we’ve invested in delivering a highly resilient and robust 24/7 service that is critical to their operation” he added.
Entel will soon be launching its private PoC server. This is a low cost, key-feature version of its E-PoC server, which can be installed in a customer’s own premises or in the cloud. The server itself will typically cost less than a single DMR repeater and antenna system and customers will benefit from virtually unlimited number channels and range. A single private server can support hundreds of sites and thousands of DN495 radios.
About Entel
Fully independent UK company.
Established in 1995, the Entel Group is a fully independent UK company operating its own design and manufacturing divisions, with distribution to a global market. Ranked among the leading industry brands, Entel brings exacting standards of innovation, quality and excellence to its business-critical radio communications equipment, ensuring users can communicate effectively, in even the most hostile environments. Entel’s radios are used for applications including Blue light, Manufacturing, Maritime, Construction, Transport, Utilities, Fuel & Power, Government, Hospitality, Education and many others.
