Chilean Forests Are Safer with Expansion of Emergency Communications Technology

Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI) today announced the expansion of its managed services agreement supporting Forestal Mininco’s mission-critical communications system. The system improves employee safety and security, operational efficiency and Forestal Mininco’s impact on the environment.

The system supports a number of Motorola Solutions’ high-tech innovations, such as the TETRA messaging application, which enables lighthouse keepers to deliver weather data, such as air humidity, wind and rainfall, from radios in the forest to the dispatch center. The data is then analyzed to generate forecasts and statistics, predict the behavior of fires and used to develop action plans.

“As the operations of Forestal Mininco are very diverse and carried out in a rugged landscape, they need to be coordinated. We had to keep improving the technology deployed some years ago. In order to extend coverage, we were looking to seamlessly cover the area between Regions 7 – 9. In addition, thanks to Motorola Solutions technology, we have been improving our communications, which will enable us to enhance operational efficiency and safety,” said Luis Rodriguez, administration manager at Forestal Mininco.

Through the fleet management application, radios in the field can be tracked, improving security in the forest while saving time and fuel, reducing the environmental impact of Forestal Mininco’s operations.

New electronic dispatch guides are bringing another innovation to the forestry industry in Chile. The cranes located in the forest generate the guides, enabling workers to conduct online tracking of materials, from the harvesting of the raw material to the end of the process.

“The managed communication system provided by Motorola Solutions helps our customers reduce their initial capital expenses and avoid errors as it operates with different technology options,” explained Mitchel Zúñiga, services manager at Motorola Solutions for Forestal Mininco Operation. “In cases like Forestal Mininco, we can manage the entire system from initial deployment, and develop it based on their business needs.”

“One of the keys to our success with Mininco has been the investment we’ve made in learning more about forestry industry operations,” Zúñiga added. “During the course of years of collaboration, we gained extended experience in the industry, allowing us to develop innovative solutions that anticipate business needs and make operations both safer and more efficient.”

The Terrestrial Trunked radio (TETRA) system will include 10 new radio frequency sites, new applications and portable devices to increase coverage due to the rugged geography, spanning over 49,000 square kilometers in the areas of Maule, Biobío and La Araucanía. The new solutions include two sites connected to the system via satellite links. These links provide communications in difficult-to-access places and enable mobile coverage, a feature specifically designed to support harvesting tasks in the large areas of the forest.

These enhancements will provide considerable increase in signal coverage and service quality. The renewal of the agreement entered into Motorola Solutions and Forestal Mininco in 2010 includes the extension of coverage with new sites and 2,350 new terminals.