North Star Casino

Background

The North Star Mohican Casino Resort, located on 20 acres of land in northern Wisconsin, features a Las Vegas-style casino and a full-service resort with 130 hotel rooms. Other amenities include a spa, several conference rooms, additional gaming space, as well as diverse dining and entertainment venues. The 600,000-square-foot facility employs a staff of over 400, and is committed to providing the highest level of service to its customers in a prompt and professional manner.

After incorporating a new property into its already extensive complex, North Star realized it would have to replace its VHF analog two-way radio system in order to broaden coverage. The analog system was unable to provide the coverage and signal strength needed to effectively handle the communication challenges of its expanding facility. In addition, each of the eleven departments within the organization had its own set of requirements to be considered, such as security and privacy issues. The new system would have to be a flexible, scalable solution that could take them from the present into any future expansion.
 

Hytera Solutions

Working closely with Hytera dealer Nielson Communications, North Star opted for the Hytera DMR(Digital Mobile Radio) communication system, which would address the coverage issues and provide the talk group capability required for enhanced communications throughout the facility.  Hytera DMR PD782G radios, in conjunction with the RD982 DMR repeater and two Omni antennas, provided North Star with an affordable and reliable communication system to effectively manage daily operations of the resort and casino.


Features

Digital Encryption
To secure communications throughout the Hytera DMR system, the customer has a choice to use the standard Hytera encryption of up to 256 bits, DMR Association's algorithm ARC4 (40 bit),  or AES encryption (128 or 256 bit).
Excellent Voice Transmission
Simultaneous application of narrow band codecs and digital error correction combined with AGC technology provides outstanding audio quality in loud environments and in boundary regions of the radio coverage, thus extending the range for clear communications.
Emergency Button
The PD7 Series radios allow for a user to signal an emergency situation by holding the dedicated emergency top key. The emergency signal can be programmed to be audible or silent and will be sent to the radio(s) that have been set to receive it.
System Monitoring & Control
Hytera's RDAC software allows for the monitoring and control of the system from a remote location. The channel change can be performed either via RDAC PC tools, via the repeater's front panel channel knob and via the channel steering from the repeater's rear port.
Improved Use of Radio Spectrum
With the TDMA process, users can assign the available bandwidth with double channel capacity. This has a clear mitigating effect on increasing spectrum scarcity.
Battery Life
Using a 5-5-90 duty cycle on high transmission power, the range of can be up to 15 hours in digital mode operation.

Outcome

The user-friendly, lightweight design of the Hytera PD782G radios streamlined the transition to the new system. The entire staff found the radios easy to operate and appreciated the extended battery life that allows greater time between charging.

The Hytera DMR system provides increased coverage and faster response times, allowing the staff to better serve the needs of their customers. Improved communications between departments and throughout the complex, combined with the low maintenance needs of the system, has resulted in greater operational efficiency.

Voice of the Customer

“The DMR digital technology is a secure and expansive form of communication – allowing for better control and to direct radio traffic occurring simultaneously from multiple sources to multiple recipients.”
Terrance Miller, Director of Security and Facilities, North Star Mohican Casino & Resort