Kansas City Power and Light, MO, USA

As a result of an acquisition of another utility company, KCP&L found themselves with three entirely separate radio systems covering different parts of their service area. Any time crews based in different regions were brought together in storm situations, they had no interoperability between radio networks, forcing them to resort to cell phones as backup. This resulted in a dangerous lack of communication when they needed it most.

Coverage was also a problem. Their radio networks suffered large gaps in service, often in areas where cellular coverage was also unreliable, creating locations with virtually no communication options at all. Safety is the top priority at KCP&L, and the potential human risk was unacceptable. As one of their radio networks was quickly approaching end-of-life, they seized the opportunity to find a better option.

"The Tait system has been very good. It's improved our safety, which at KCP&L is the number one priority." says Cory Miller, Senior Manager of Emergency Response, KCP&L.

Staff working on power lines can do so with confidence, supported by a great system of safety technologies. In emergency situations, workers can easily communicate their distress with the push of a button. If they're unable to communicate, then Man Down or Lone Worker can send automatic notification to Dispatch. GPS location services alert dispatch to the worker's exact location, enabling help to arrive as quickly as possible.

"Partnering with Tait, we were able to deliver a communication system that is reliable, dependable and available all the time." says Melvin Charuvilayil, Supervisor, IT Network Planning & Engineering, KCP&L. As the new radio network all runs on the DMR Tier 3 standard, the problem of having several separate networks was immediately solved. Coverage is better than ever, and staff can get in touch with each other instantly without having to resort to phone backups. Coordination during emergencies is greatly improved, and resources can be allocated more efficiently on a day to day basis.

The DMR communication network has vastly improved the response time of KCP&L, helping them provide a better service to their customers, more safely and efficiently than ever before. Tina Andrews, Supervisor Distribution System Operations Control Center, said it best, "Our job is to keep the lights on. The Tait system allows us to communicate faster with the field during storm situations, to restore power, get problems fixed, and keep the lights on."