(Source: PRNewswire)
LAS VEGAS and BOSTON, Aug. 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Harris Corporation (NYSE:HRS), an international communications and information technology company, announced that the State of Maine Office of Information Technology (OIT) has selected the company's Public Safety and Professional Communications business to deploy MSCommNet, a hybrid Project 25 (P25) VHF statewide digital radio system, based on the company's VIDA(R) (Voice, Interoperability, Data, Access) Network technology. Designed to meet the unique needs of Maine's law enforcement, public safety, and public service first responders, the P25 VHF system is fully compliant with Phase 1 of the federal P25 standard and will include 40 sites throughout Maine, providing mobile coverage across 95 percent of the state. Supporting suppliers on the Harris winning bid include Jacobs Telecommunications, Radio Communications Management and Alcatel- Lucent.
"We are pleased to announce that as a result of receiving our panel's highest score, the Office of Information Technology has contracted with Harris," said Richard Thompson, Chief Information Officer (CIO), State of Maine Office of Information Technology. "Following a lengthy, open and comprehensive bid process, the hybrid system proposal was selected for a number of reasons, including a rapid, low-risk implementation plan, a proven, state-of-the art technology platform and a cost-effective approach that will utilize and consolidate our existing resources and systems. The Harris proposal provides the State with a clear roadmap to future technologies and growth, avoiding stranded costs."
The State of Maine's system will join Nevada, Florida, Delaware and Pennsylvania in adopting statewide radio systems based on Harris proven VIDA Network technology. The VIDA Network is a cost- effective, Internet Protocal (IP)-based interoperable radio communications technology that fully supports analog and digital radio communications systems, including the P25 Phase 1 and Phase 2 standards. VIDA also supports communications between new and legacy systems to provide seamless interoperability with other agencies, regardless of frequency band, radio brand or operating mode. The system is P25 Phase 1-compliant and software upgradeable to the new P25 Phase 2 standard.
"We are confident that Maine's public safety and public service users will receive a reliable, robust interoperable communications system from Harris that will provide the support they need to focus on the tasks they do best - protecting and assisting the residents of Maine," said Dana Mehnert, group president, Harris RF Communications.
