TAIT announces "Tait Tough Competition" Winners

Tait Communications’ global network of resellers have shared their true customer stories of putting Tait products to the test in their everyday working environments for a ‘Tait Tough’ competition.

Today the company announced the one overall winner and six finalists of its reseller competition, which solicited entries from around the world detailing incidents where Tait radios lived up to the ‘Tait Tough’ standard, surviving improbable tests of ruggedness and dependability.

The entries were representative of the broad cross-section of industries Tait serves, including fire services, mining companies and construction—all of which demand the most rugged and dependable of radio gear to safely and reliably communicate, not to mention reduce replacement rates.

The competition was also a showcase of the company’s commitment to investing in research and development to create products and solutions that meet the specialty needs of Tait customers across industries.

While Tait has received recognition and accolades for its renowned ‘Tait Tough’ tests, including a New Zealand Marketing Award earlier this year, the competition brought to life real-world examples where Tait radios survived in the harshest of conditions.

“Our radios consistently reset the frontier of radio usability,” said Garry Diack, CEO of Tait Communications. “While no one wants to have to put our radios to the ultimate test, having the confidence that they will work when they’re needed most is a tremendous boost for users—particularly those in critical communications and first-responder roles. I’m very impressed with the various ways they have been put to the test in the field.”

A recap of the winning and finalist entries follows:

Overall Winner

Colvins Ltd. (New Zealand) – “A Long Winter” A Tait portable radio fell 20 metres out of a backpack being hoisted on a wire over a valley by a forestry gang, falling into a flooded river. Three months later, the same radio was dug out of a mud pit, and worked perfectly with a fresh battery.

Finalists

• Tasmanian Electronic & Communication Services (Australia) Intentionally dropped a Tait portable radio from a fire observation tower in rural Tasmania onto a rocky outcrop 20 metres below, incurring only a few nicks and scrapes.
• PT Alssa (Indonesia) A Tait portable radio was accidentally dropped into a mud puddle and run over by a heavy equipment truck, but worked fine again after replacing a snapped antenna.
• The Charlie Edwards Company (United States) A Tait P25 portable radio used by a Los Angeles fire department was left inside a burning house, emerging with a badly burnt antenna, heat-damaged belt clip and control knobs and a melted microphone cord, yet remaining fully operational.
• Nixon Communications (Australia) A Tait P25 portable survived tumbling through the steel frame of a dragline crane at an Australian mine, then plummeting 30 metres and impacting onto the rocky ground below. Oelmann Elektronik GmbH (Germany) Tait portable radios at
• Oelmann Elektronik survived a bevy of unfortunate incidents, including falling off a cliff in the Caucasus Mountains, dropping out of a car on the move, being left out in hard rain and under the snow, charged with improper voltage, and even being used as a hammer.
• Baud Telecom (Saudi Arabia) A radio accidentally dropped into the ocean was recovered after 48 hours, only to spring back to life with application of some contact cleaner to drive out the residual seawater.