The Tait TM8100 Series of rugged, reliable mobile radios has already found favour among customers in all corners of the globe - from taxi companies to county transport departments to sugar milling operations.

Since the product was launched in global markets late last year, customers from the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Australasia have realised the benefits of an advanced feature set based around three key strengths - ruggedness, ease of integration and high speed data transmission.

Mobiles Product Manager David Hicks says applications for the TM8115 and TM8110 mobile radios and TM8105 data radio are widespread, with orders now flowing in steadily.

"The TM8100 mobile radio was developed as an ideal solution for a wide range of voice and data applications. We're finding that the ruggedness of the radio and its ability to be easily integrated as part of a customised solution, are really important to existing and potential customers," Mr Hicks says.

Customers in global markets who have purchased large quantities of TM8100 mobile radios since last year's launch include:

  • Cochise County in Arizona, US - TM8115 mobiles for use by the county's transport department
  • Middle East Advanced Communications - TM8115 mobiles to monitor security of electricity pylons
  • Emcom Communications, the exclusive Tait distributor in South Africa - TM8115 mobiles
  • Raywood Communications - strong TM8115 orders over the next six months, for use as the radio communications backbone of job despatch and vehicle tracking solutions for the taxi industry
  • Systems integrator Kenta Electronic in France - TM8105 mobiles fitted with Tait High Speed Data capability, to monitor highway traffic in Rennes, Brittany. The radios send data messages from traffic sensors to large electronic displays, to inform drivers of traffic volumes and any delays
  • Sugar mills in North Queensland, Australia - TM8115 mobiles to enable remote monitoring and automatic vehicle location (AVL) of vehicles

Tait North America National and Key Accounts Manager Doug Chapman sold the TM8115 radios for Cochise County to dealer Durham Communications, and says the county's transport department uses the radios in its truck fleets to communicate throughout the 10,000 square kilometre county.

"Much of the county is in the desert where the temperatures are obviously extreme, with summer temperatures often between 120°F (49°C) and 150°F (65°C) in the vehicles. The improved duty cycle of the TM8115 means it is able to transmit for a longer period of time in these temperatures, while still maintaining its high performance. This feature is a real winner for Cochise County, and the transport department's purchase of these mobiles is future-proofing the vehicle fleet," Mr Chapman says.

In Australia, where the challenge is to ensure reliable radio communications over such a wide expanse, the TM8100 key feature of voting is in strong demand - a function which allows the radio to scan a number of channels to find the strongest repeater signal.

"Customers around the world are purchasing this radio for use in all sorts of applications. The data capabilities of the TM8100 are very impressive, and it is gaining wider use in telemetry applications. The TM8100 is also being used in a number of vehicle-based systems including AVL. We are very confident that the TM8100 Series of Tait mobile radios will be the market leader in its class for many years to come," Mr Hicks says.

The TM8100 range will eventually replace the popular T2000 mobile radio range. Many existing T2000 customers have already converted to TM8100 radios, and with the recent release of the new 10-channel TM8110 mobile radio to replace the T2010, a significant increase in sales is expected.