Fixed broadband radio networks are a cost-effective alternative to placing new fiber in developed areas. The cost of placing new cables in a seaport environment can be quite high due to channel crossings, pavement cutting, trenching and building entry issues, not to mention being disruptive to port operations. Fixed point-to-point microwave radio networks have the advantage of being less expensive and much quicker to install in these instances. The services provided for fixed radio networks in seaport applications include:

• Requirements definition
  • Define the functional requirements
  • Review operational & cost implications
  • Develop technical requirements based on the functional requirements
  • Document requirements in a manner supporting design activities
• Demand studies & capacity analyses to size radio equipment
  • Evaluate current circuit terminations & usage
  • Forecast growth in existing traffic & capacity needed for new services
  • Develop link capacity requirements based on existing & future utilization
• Technology surveys & analyses
  • Review technology options available, including strengths & weaknesses
  • Discuss operational & cost implications
• Feasibility studies examining system design options & costs
  • Radio network topology options
  • Radio link performance, reliability & survivability analyses
  • Antenna heights & antenna sizes
  • Equipment recommendations
  • Equipment & installation costs
  • Implementation schedules
• Spectrum recommendations
  • Frequency coordination & licensing support for licensed systems
  • Spectral analyses & frequency recommendations for unlicensed systems
• Detailed system design
  • Radio system path analyses
  • Equipment selection
  • Site surveys
  • Interconnection with other systems or equipment
  • FAA & FCC studies & applications
  • Budget & schedule development
• RFP development & bidding process support
  • Development of radio system sections of the RFP
  • Support in working with bidders
  • Bid evaluation support
• Project management & implementation support
  • Project management support for the radio portion of the network
  • Implementation support for the radio portion of the network
• Test program development
  • Development of a program to verify compliance with design & performance requirements
  • Development of specific test procedures used for testing & collecting data
• Performance verification
  • Execution of the radio portion of test program
  • Review & validation of test data

Wireless networks can do what wired networks cannot, and that is provide mobility for port staff. Mobile networks can be designed to carry a variety of communications, ranging from general voice and data communications to workforce automation and mobile access of security cameras. The services provided for mobile data networks in seaport applications include:

• Requirements definition
  • Define the functional & coverage requirements
  • Review operational & cost implications
  • Develop technical requirements based on the functional requirements
  • Document requirements in a manner supporting design activities
• Demand studies & capacity analyses to size radio equipment
  • Evaluate number & location of users, and traffic load
  • Forecast capacity needed for both initial & new services
  • Develop cell & link capacity requirements based on utilization
• Technology surveys & analyses
  • Review technology options available, including strengths & weaknesses
  • Discuss operational & cost implications
• Feasibility studies to examine system design options & costs
  • Signal level thresholds for coverage
  • Radio link performance & reliability
  • Antenna heights & sizes
  • Equipment recommendations
  • Equipment & installation costs
  • Implementation schedules
• Spectral analyses & frequency recommendations
  • Spectral analysis of the proposed deployment area for potential interference
  • Operational frequency recommendations based on analysis results
• Detailed system design
  • Base station location recommendations & radio coverage predictions
  • Equipment selection
  • Site Site surveys
  • Interconnection with other systems or equipment
  • FAA studies
  • Budget & schedule development
• RFP development & bidding process support
  • Development of radio system sections of the RFP
  • Support in working with bidders
  • Bid evaluation support
• Project management & implementation support
  • Project management support for the radio portion of the network
  • Implementation support for the radio portion of the network
• Test program development
  • Development of a program to verify compliance with design & performance requirements
  • Development of specific test procedures used for testing & collecting data
• Performance verification
  • Execution of the radio portion of test program
  • Review & validation of test data

The use of fixed radio links to augment existing fiber-based networks is becoming more common as broadband applications get further from the administrative offices. The majority of fiber systems were initially deployed to serve office buildings, government facilities and educational institutions. In a seaport environment, fiber does not reach all of the locations where broadband communications is normally needed. Fixed radio links can be an economic alternative to extending fiber systems. The services offered include:

• Requirements definition
  • Define the functional requirements
  • Review operational & cost implications
  • Develop technical requirements based on the functional requirements
  • Document requirements in a manner supporting design activities
• Demand studies & capacity analyses to size radio equipment
  • Evaluate current circuit terminations & usage
  • Forecast growth in existing traffic & capacity needed for new services
  • Develop link capacity requirements based on existing & future utilization
• Technology surveys & analyses
  • Review technology options available, including strengths & weaknesses
  • Discuss operational & cost implications
• Feasibility studies examining system design options & costs
  • Radio network topology options
  • Radio link performance, reliability & survivability analyses
  • Antenna heights & antenna sizes
  • Equipment recommendations
  • Equipment & installation costs
  • Implementation schedules
• Spectrum recommendations
  • Frequency coordination & licensing support for licensed systems
  • Spectral analyses & frequency recommendations for unlicensed systems
• Detailed system design
  • Radio system path analyses
  • Equipment selection
  • Site surveys
  • Interconnection with other systems or equipment
  • FAA & FCC studies & applications
  • Budget & schedule development
• RFP development & bidding process support
  • Development of radio system sections of the RFP
  • Support in working with bidders
  • Bid evaluation support
• Project management & implementation support
  • Project management support for the radio portion of the network
  • Implementation support for the radio portion of the network
• Test program development
  • Development of a program to verify compliance with design & performance requirements
  • Development of specific test procedures used for testing & collecting data
• Performance verification
  • Execution of the radio portion of test program
  • Review & validation of test data

Video surveillance using streaming video over Ethernet networks has become very popular in recent years and is seeing wide-spread implementation. The biggest impediment to deploying these networks is connecting the camera locations to the rest of the network, and depending on the system architecture, fixed point-to-point or point-to-multipoint can be used. Radio links used for video surveillance are a special application of fixed broad-band radio networks described above. Depending on the application, either licensed or unlicensed radio links can be used, with the licensed links providing protection from interference. The services offered include:

• Requirements definition
  • Define the functional requirements
  • Review operational & cost implications
  • Develop technical requirements based on the functional requirements
  • Document requirements in a manner supporting design activities
• Demand studies & capacity analyses to size radio equipment
  • Evaluate current circuit terminations & usage
  • Forecast growth in existing traffic & capacity needed for new services
  • Develop link capacity requirements based on existing & future utilization
• Technology surveys & analyses
  • Review technology options available, including strengths & weaknesses
  • Discuss operational & cost implications
• Feasibility studies examining system design options & costs
  • Radio network topology options
  • Radio link performance, reliability & survivability analyses
  • Antenna heights & antenna sizes
  • Equipment recommendations
  • Equipment & installation costs
  • Implementation schedules
• Spectrum recommendations
  • Frequency coordination & licensing support for licensed systems
  • Spectral analyses & frequency recommendations for unlicensed systems
• Detailed system design
  • Radio system path analyses
  • Equipment selection
  • Site surveys
  • Interconnection with other systems or equipment
  • FAA & FCC studies & applications
  • Budget & schedule development
• RFP development & bidding process support
  • Development of radio system sections of the RFP
  • Support in working with bidders
  • Bid evaluation support
• Project management & implementation support
  • Project management support for the radio portion of the network
  • Implementation support for the radio portion of the network
• Test program development
  • Development of a program to verify compliance with design & performance requirements
  • Development of specific test procedures used for testing & collecting data
• Performance verification
  • Execution of the radio portion of test program
  • Review & validation of test data

Local Positioning Systems (LPS) are seeing more and more application as a means to track personnel, high-value assets and supplies throughout the port. The Global Positioning System (GPS) is well known for its ability to locate objects using using a constellation of satellites and low-cost portable receivers. The biggest problems with GPS are twofold. First, GPS only works reliability when there is a clear view of the sky, and second, that while the object knows where it is, some type of communications link is needed to convey this information to a central control location. PCN Professionals, in association with one of its partner corporations, has studied this area and has developed a concept that can be deployed using commercially available equipment and will provide location data both indoors and outdoors. We expect to deploy this system later this year. The services offered in LPS include:

• Requirements definition
  • Define the functional requirements
  • Review operational & cost implications
  • Develop technical requirements based on the functional requirements
  • Document requirements in a manner supporting design activities
• Technology surveys & analyses
  • Review technology options available, including strengths & weaknesses
  • Discuss operational & cost implications
• Feasibility studies examining system design options & costs
  • Radio network topology options
  • System performance & location accuracy
  • Number of access points
  • Equipment recommendations
  • Equipment & installation costs
  • Implementation schedules
• Spectrum recommendations
  • Spectral analyses & frequency recommendations
• Detailed system design
  • System coverage analyses
  • Equipment selection
  • Site surveys
  • Interconnection with other systems or equipment
  • Budget & schedule development
• RFP development & bidding process support
  • Development of the RFP
  • Support in working with bidders
  • Bid evaluation support
• Project management & implementation support
  • Project management support
  • Implementation support
• Test program development
  • Development of a program to verify compliance with design & performance requirements
  • Development of specific test procedures used for testing & collecting data
• Performance verification
  • Execution of the radio portion of test program
  • Review & validation of test data

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) systems are a hot topic these days. With these systems, objects are identified using radio waves to interrogate a tag on the object, even though it may be inside a carton or non-metallic container. RFID systems are currently used in supply chain logistic applications to track items as they pass through the various parts of the supply chain. A limitation of these systems is that portals must be installed to read the tagged items as they pass through them, and these portals must be connected to a data processing system running a logistics management package. If multiple portals are involved, then wide-area networking becomes necessary. In a seaport environment, RFID technologies can be used to track items as they move throughout the port, and record hand-off transactions as they are passed from one user to the next. Wireless technologies provide the means to network multiple portals at a large facility and allow the use of hand-held wireless RFID readers. The services offered associated with RFID systems include:

• Requirements definition for the communications network
  • Define the functional requirements of the communications network
  • Review operational & cost implications
  • Develop technical requirements based on the functional requirements
  • Document requirements in a manner supporting design activities
• Technology surveys & analyses of communications equipment
  • Review technology options available, including strengths & weaknesses
  • Discuss operational & cost implications
• Feasibility studies examining communications system design options & costs
  • Radio network topology options
  • Number of access points needed for hand-held readers
  • Equipment recommendations
  • Equipment & installation costs
  • Implementation schedules
• Spectrum recommendations
  • Spectral analyses & frequency recommendations
  • Interference detection & mitigation recommendations
• Detailed system design
  • Radio path analyses
  • Equipment selection
  • Site surveys
  • Interconnection with other systems or equipment
  • Budget & schedule development
• RFP development & bidding process support
  • Development of the RFP
  • Support in working with bidders
  • Bid evaluation support
• Project management & implementation support
  • Project management support
  • Implementation support
• Test program development
  • Development of a program to verify compliance with design & performance requirements
  • Development of specific test procedures used for testing & collecting data
• Performance verification
  • Execution of the radio portion of test program
  • Review & validation of test data

Radio Frequency surveys and spectral analysis is a powerful tool associated with wireless system design. There are numerous wireless devices deployed these days, all of which share common blocks of the radio spectrum. Because of the proliferation of RF devices, it is always advisable that an RF site survey be performed prior to purchasing and installing equipment. This provides assurances in advance that there are not any interference sources that could be "show-stoppers." For smaller installations, RF site surveys may not be feasible, but for the deployment of large systems using license-free spectrum, it is highly advisable. The services offered for RF site surveys and spectral analysis include:

• Spectral sweeps at all frequencies that have equipment that can meet the requirements
• Identification and documentation of all potential interference sources
  • Type of signal
  • Source
  • Location
  • Intensity
  • Frequency & bandwidth
• Assessment on the impact of the system planned for deployment
• Recommended mitigation measures
  • Customized hopping sequences
  • Channel selection to avoid interference
  • Shielding & other mechanical mitigation techniques