Honda is working to improve communication inside its buildings and helping local first responders at the same time.
The company recently constructed Multi-Agency Radio Communication System (MARCS) tower and installed the related equipment on Honda property. This morning, Honda announced it would donate the system to the state of Ohio to be used by public safety organizations and first responders in the region.
“This new addition is going to help our public safety as a whole,” said Union County Sheriff Jamie Patton.
The sheriff said his office, and every agency in the county is part of the MARCS radio system. He said the MARCS offers better quality, but like any radio system, it has limitations. He said radio coverage in the western part of Union County, as well as similar areas in neighboring counties can be weak or nonexistent.
“When you get to that side of the county, there are challenges and there are some dead spots.” Patton said. “There is nothing more frustrating when you need to communicate, when you need to call for additional manpower…than to be in a dead zone.”
Until this donation, the nearest towers were in Marysville, Richwood, Bellefontaine and Urbana.
He said one of the most frustrating dead zones is inside the Honda building. Patton said that because of the size and construction of the manufacturing plants, in the past when emergency medical responders or law enforcement personnel go inside the buildings, they could not communicate with dispatchers. He said they would need to communicate by radio to officials outside. Those outside then relay messages to and from the dispatchers.
In a statement this morning, Robert Bibart, Honda of America Mfg.’s security manager, said that by donating the MARCS system to the State of Ohio, the company is, “not only enhancing critical incident response capabilities within our plants, but enhancing coverage to our surrounding counties, where so many of our associates live.”
MARCS is a wireless, digital communications network for first responders that provides technology to enable state, local and federal agencies to communicate instantly with one another during public safety events.
Patton said the company has “been working with local first responders for some time,” trying to find a solution. He said the company and the Ohio Department of Administrative Services (DAS), which manages the system statewide, has researched the tower and equipment and feel confident it will address the areas of concern.
DAS Director Matt Damschroder said the new tower will, “help improve coverage not only within Union County but also in Delaware, Marion, Logan, Champaign and Madison Counties.”
“As the state fire marshal, and on behalf of Ohio’s first responder community, I applaud Honda for its efforts to greatly enhance the ability of area responders to communicate as effectively as possible during a time of emergency,” said State Fire Marshal Kevin S. Reardon. “The ability of first responders to communicate with partner agencies is critical to the success of any emergency response plan.”
Honda employs more than 15,000 associates in Ohio across five manufacturing facilities including the Marysville Auto Plant, East Liberty Auto Plant and Performance Manufacturing Center, as well as the Anna Engine Plant and Russells Point transmission plant.