BerryV wrote:system_tech wrote:Unless there is anything brand new, the so called GRN portable site is sitting at Dubbo and has been for around 10 years.
There are quite a few issues with a portable site. Frequency assignments deopending on area / other 400 - 420 channels being used, as base stations need to be reprogrammed and cavities retuned (Govt did not think to licence a set of portable frequencies) and also links from the target area back to the NOCC. No company can put in a link in a day or 2, or perhaps even a week.
ST
Cavities/combiners would not need to be re-tuned when properly set-up as a dedicated NSW or even Australia wide mobile site. I see the only weak link in the chain to be the IP link back to NOCC. In most cases, it's an existing site that requires increased capacity as per Mt Tomah's example over the past 2 weeks.
Use any of the mobile phone providers as a prime example. I'm sure that you are already aware that when any significant event where there is projected to be a large number of mobile phone/data requirements the major networks deploy transportable sites to increase capacity. Yes these are usually only required within metro areas but all 3 SP's have these available. Why should the GRN be any different(if not more critical!!)
In my previous employment I helped commission the GRN Portable Site. I came to that position while it was being built. I can tell you that it had 7 standard Motorola Bases, 5 for trunking and 2 for PMR. The configuration and equipment was identical to that in a standard GRN Site. The bases needed reprogrmming to changes frequencies, no drama there but the transmit cavitities definitely needed retuning when changing channels.
I know all this as we set it up at Chullora GRN Site and borrowed some of the Chullora Frequencies for the test (corresponding actual Chullora frequencies were turned off). Cavity retuning had to occur.
So:
1. It did not have a set of "go anywhere" frequencies.
2. It certainly did need tx cavity retuning.
And for the record, the specifications were written / signed off by the Govt, not my comany, as we built it and couldn't write the specs.