Business Case

RF Narrowband Migration

Version 1.0
Division of Information Technology Services

Revision History
Name Date Reason for Changes Version
Boyd Webb 9/30/2003 Original Draft 1.0
Table of Contents
1Executive Summary....................................................................................................................3
1Product Description, Purpose, and Value.............................................................................3
2Customer Base........................................................................................................................3
3Financial Requirements.........................................................................................................3
4Feasibility ...............................................................................................................................4
2Product Description....................................................................................................................5
5Description of the Product.....................................................................................................5
6Features of the Product..........................................................................................................5
7Purpose of the Product...........................................................................................................5
8Fit with ITS Strategies ..........................................................................................................5
3Target Market..............................................................................................................................6
9Customer Overview ...............................................................................................................6
10Product Alternatives.............................................................................................................6
11Time to Market.....................................................................................................................6
4Product Attributes.......................................................................................................................8
12Technical/Architectural Approach.....................................................................................8
13Acquisition and Partnering Alternatives...........................................................................8
14Feasibility Considerations...................................................................................................8
5Financials..................................................................................................................................10
15Revenue Projections...........................................................................................................10
16Cost Projections..................................................................................................................10
17Cost Recovery.....................................................................................................................10
6Assumptions, Dependencies and Risks....................................................................................11
18Assumptions.........................................................................................................................11
19Dependencies ......................................................................................................................11
20Risks.....................................................................................................................................11
21Commitments......................................................................................................................11
1 Executive Summary

• The State of Utah, Information Technology Services, owns and operates two
separate statewide VHF/UHF radio communications systems consisting of
mountain top repeaters, base stations, public safety dispatch center support, and
required FCC radio channel licensing.
• These systems provide essential radio communications to state, and non-state
local government, public safety agencies on demand.
• The currently a large majority of the units are 15 to 20 years of age and need to
be replaced because of obsolescence.
• In recently published FCC docket WT99-87 the FCC has ruled that new
applications for 25 kHz radio channels will at sometime yet to be defined will
have to be narrow band compliant. Replacing the units will make us compliant
with the FCC mandate once the date to comply has been defined.
• This FCC ruling will significantly impact ITS and the public safety customer
agencies who utilize the ITS radio systems

1 Product Description, Purpose, and Value

The VHF/UHF Radio communications systems owned and operated by ITS are
statewide legacy systems that include the existing LES (Law Enforcement System) and
SRS (State Repeater System) systems. The LES/SRS and mobile data systems
operated by ITS provide essential voice and mobile data communications to state, and
local government, public safety agencies on demand. Value estimates for the statewide
LES/SRS systems and associated FCC radio licenses is approximately 6 million dollars.

2 Customer Base
The customer base for critical wireless communications systems provided by ITS include
UDPS, UDOT, UDNR, and UDOC. ITS wireless communications systems also support
many local government public safety agencies in rural Utah.

3 Financial Requirements
Cost recovery for the LES/SRS systems, Dispatch center support, and FCC licensing is
achieved through separate billing mechanisms for each service provided.
• Costs associated with the LES system, including ongoing delivery, equipment
acquisition, equipment installation, and equipment maintenance, are fully
reimbursed to ITS from DPS on an annual contract basis.
• Costs associated with the SRS system are recovered through monthly $4.00 per
radio billing agreements with customer agencies for each radio programmed to
use any portion of the SRS system statewide.
• Dispatch center support is covered under various customer agency contracts.
• FCC licensing and licensing support is billed directly back to the agency
requesting assistance. Costs associated with FCC licenses issued directly to
 ITS are recovered through a charge against the radio system under which the
license is utilized.

4 Feasibility
The current VHF/UHF radio systems owned and operated by ITS are legacy systems
with existing and well established cost recovery models. These radio systems have
been in operation under the ITS consolidation since 1990.
2 Product Description

5 Description of the Product

In 1990 the State legislature consolidated radio communications systems from UDPS,
UDOT, and UDNR, into two separate radio systems under Information Technology
Services. ITS essentially operates the radio systems according to the needs and
requirements of participating customer agencies. The existing LES/SRS systems are
based on 25 kHz “wideband” radio channels.

6 Features of the Product

• The LES/SRS systems provide essential radio communications capabilities for
public safety agencies statewide.
• The LES/SRS systems provide essential radio communications connectivity to
PSAP 911 dispatch centers.

7 Purpose of the Product

• Public Safety operations require wireless voice and mobile data communications
systems.
• ITS operates a cost effective statewide radio system for and in behalf of public safety
customer agencies.

8 Fit with ITS Strategies

The LES/SRS radio systems are products offered to State and local government public
safety agencies for the purpose of providing essential wireless voice and mobile data
communications capabilities.
3 Target Market

9 Customer Overview
• The Utah Department of Public Safety requires radio communications in critical law
enforcement operations
• The Utah Department of Transportation utilizes radio communications to facilitate
highway maintenance, repair, and snow removal.
• The Utah Department of Natural Resources requires radio communications for
critical law enforcement, fire control, state parks, and wild land resource
management operations.
• The Utah Department of Corrections requires radio communications systems in
nearly all prison and parole operations.
• Emergency Medical Services and State health require radio communications
systems for essential service delivery.
• Non-State public safety agencies require interoperability with State agencies and in
some cases rely on the state radio system to provide primary local coverage.
• The growth rate for wireless voice and mobile data systems is increasing rapidly as
agencies become aware of advancements in technologies that directly benefit
agency operations.

10 Product Alternatives
• Through the LES/SRS Information Technology Services provides wireless voice
communications services to State and local government agencies in all 29 counties
of the State. ITS is also in the process of building a statewide mobile data system in
order to accommodate customer requests for the service. ITS is a cost recovery
organization.
• UCAN provides wide area 800 MHz trunked radio services to virtually all State and
local government agencies along the populated Wasatch front. UCAN is in the
process of expanding their 800 MHz system coverage into rural areas of the State
along interstate corridors and State highways. UCAN is a cost recovery organization
with a “per month” billing requirement for each end user radio on the system.
• Several public safety agencies in Utah own and operate their own “in house” radio
systems including Salt Lake City, and Salt Lake County.
• Commercial cellular and PCS providers offer a variety of voice and mobile data
services to government agency end users.
• Nextel offers “Push to Talk” wireless voice services to government agency end
users.

11 Time to Market
• In order for ITS to maintain end user radio compatibility with LES/SRS system
upgrades and expansion a narrowband migration strategy must be in place prior to
the January 2004 licensing deadline.
4 Product Attributes

12 Technical/Architectural Approach
• Possible strategies for dealing with the required migration to narrowband
technologies are as indicated below:

1. Preserve legacy system based on 25 kHz “wideband” radio channels with

increasing limitations.
2. Migrate from legacy 25 kHz system to 12.5 kHz narrowband technology.
3. Abandon VHF/UHF bands and migrate to 700/800 MHz.
4. Combine old and new systems in an ad hoc manner.

• Since VHF/UHF operations are a requirement today for public safety and, will
continue into the foreseeable future, the clear long term best strategy is a complete
migration to narrowband technologies in the VHF/UHF bands. This approach can be
implemented in both regional and operational phases.

o For the purpose of narrowband migration the State can be divided into
regions. Migration priority should be given to those regions with the
greatest number of end user radios already narrowband capable.
o Specific channels in each region should be designated for long-term (10
year) continued “wideband” operations, i.e.: Statewide 155.5050 MHz,
and EMS 155.3400 MHz, Paging Channels, etc. Other regional
channels, including priority dispatch operations can then be converted to
narrowband technology.
o This process provides interoperability between older end user equipment
incapable of narrowband operations during the transition period.
o A “narrowband technology” sub-committee under UWIN should be
organized for the purpose of making regional boundary decisions and
channel selection for narrowband conversion.

• Narrowband migration will require that a significant percentage of the radios used by
customer agencies today be replaced due to the fact that a majority of end user
equipment in operation is not narrowband capable. For the same reason several
repeaters and base stations in the LES/SRS system will also need to be replaced.
Customer agencies should attempt to obtain grant funding for the purpose of
replacing older radios.

13 Acquisition and Partnering Alternatives

There are many opportunities for partnering with local government agencies throughout
the State who operate VHF/UHF systems on a citywide, or countywide basis.
Acquisitions, and/or partnering opportunities, with local government entities should be
addressed by the narrowband sub-committee under UWIN.

14 Feasibility Considerations
• Due to recent FCC action public safety communications systems are now required to
migrate to narrowband technology. It is not a matter of if, but when, and the sooner
the better. If an unplanned ad hoc approach is taken much of the opportunity to
facilitate the migration in an ordered and beneficial manner will be lost.
• The narrowband sub-committee under UWIN should require an inventory of all end
user equipment in order to determine what percentage of the radios in each area are
already narrowband capable prior to replacing existing equipment and determining
migration schedule.
5 Financials

15 Revenue Projections
• Revenue projections are unknown at this time and will depend upon
recommendations from the narrowband sub-committee under UWIN.

16 Cost Projections
• Project estimates are unknown at this time and will depend upon recommendations
from the narrowband sub-committee under UWIN.

17 Cost Recovery
• Cost recovery projections are unknown at this time and will depend upon
recommendations from the narrowband sub-committee under UWIN.
.
6 Assumptions, Dependencies and Risks

18 Assumptions
Recent action, by the FCC, requiring narrowband channel migration in the VHF/UHF
bands will impact the LES/SRS systems in important and significant ways. It is in the
long-term best interest of all spectrum licensees and users to immediately address this
issue and develop a cooperative strategy. This task is most easily taken up under the
UWIN charter because it provides cooperative access to all interested parties statewide.

19 Dependencies
With few exceptions nearly every public safety agency in the State of Utah is dependent,
to some degree, on the existing VHF/UHF Law Enforcement, and State Repeater
Systems currently operated by ITS. ITS has a unique opportunity to play a pivotal
leadership role in the future of wireless public safety communications in Utah.

20 Risks
Without an appropriate narrowband migration strategy ITS and other public safety
entities risk the following:

• Incompatibilities between wideband and narrowband systems.

• Lack of interoperability between systems.
• Premature replacement of end user equipment.
• Secondary status for existing 25 kHz licensees.
• Confusion and potential domino effect as agencies migrate to narrowband
channels.
• Increased technical engineering at communications sites due to a lack of
consensus over channel utilization.
• Potential officer safety and liability issues.

21 Commitments
ITS has a long-standing commitment to provide quality wireless communications service
to customer agencies as required. Customer agencies have come to expect priority
service from ITS in the delivery of essential radio communications. Customer agencies
can expect proactive leadership on the narrowband migration issue from ITS.