The FINANCIAL — Mall of America, the largest mall in the U.S. and one of the most visited destinations in the world, is expanding and has chosen Motorola Solutions’ digital two-way radio system to help improve communications and provide flexibility for additional capacity to accommodate future growth.
The mall, located outside Minneapolis, Minnesota, is already the size of some cities and home to 520 stores, more than 50 restaurants, the largest indoor theme park and other attractions. The mall needed to enhance security with instant, always-available communications as the older, analog system experienced coverage and frequency issues, as well as static and interference which hindered employees’ ability to communicate, according to Motorola.
“Mall of America operates like a municipality in that our operational entity is vast and our employees can be anywhere and everywhere at any time,” says Chad Martin, communications manager, Mall of America Security Department. “We need to know that our radio communications are seamless and that as technology advances, we can integrate our radios with other systems such as those used by local public safety agencies. MOTOTRBO provides that reliability for all departments, from security and engineering to housekeeping and grounds keeping.”
The four-level mall, with 5.5 million square feet of retail space and punctuated with concrete walls, parking ramps and service corridors, uses a MOTOTRBO system to help eliminate potential dead zones and allow mall staff to communicate clearly at any moment.
Unique features of MOTOTRBO radios were crucial to Mall of America officials’ decision to switch to Motorola Solutions. In the past, radio interference made it difficult for mall dispatchers to know who was calling or to understand messages. Now with a radio caller ID feature, users know where a call originates, such as an exterior maintenance vehicle, patrol officer or housekeeper. MOTOTRBO’s “transmit interrupt” feature allows users to send priority transmissions so they can immediately break into radio traffic and convey instant information.
“Visitors to Mall of America expect an enjoyable and secure environment,” said Claudia Rodriguez, vice president, Devices Product Management, Motorola Solutions. “Motorola Solutions’ MOTOTRBO digital radio system and Infinity Wireless are helping mall officials create that environment with the latest digital radio communications for security and other mall personnel.”
Mall of America staff worked with Motorola Solutions’ partner Infinity Wireless to upgrade the analog radios to MOTOTRBO digital communications. MOTOTRBO XPR 7550, XPR 5500 and SL 7500 Series two-way radios were distributed to employees in security and other departments to provide loud, clear and reliable communications in more rugged, slimmer and lightweight devices.
A multi-million dollar expansion of Mall of America, which will likely include additional retail, attractions, hotel and office buildings, is planned during the life of the contract with Infinity Wireless and Motorola Solutions. The flexibility of the MOTOTRBO system will allow additional radios to be deployed, and coverage and capacity can be expanded using MOTOTRBO Capacity Plus to accommodate new users.
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