Hytera DMR solutions ensure smooth operations for the hospitality industry

The hospitality industry covers hotels, restaurants, nightclubs, pubs/bars, theme parks, travel and tourism. It also includes short term events such as major sporting fixtures and all kinds of outdoor festivals.

Hospitality is an immensely competitive sector where every expense matters as margins can be fierce. The industry is under constant pressure to save time and money, to boost productivity and deliver more streamlined operations.

Hotels, holiday resorts, restaurants, clubs, bars and sports venues are rated not just on the standard of their facilities, but on their quality of service. Excellent service means guests have a better experience and are therefore more likely to return and to recommend the venue.

High standards of service can only be achieved through rigorous staff training and having the right facilities and tools in place to provide an efficient and seemingly ‘effortless’ service. This can only be provided to guests and visitors if all the constituent parts and job roles that make up that service work together as one team.

The only way they can do this is through clear, timely communications between management and staff. To enable this it is essential that hospitality staff can be informed immediately of any request or problem that needs attention. This means the right staff member, or members, must be instantly contactable anywhere, anytime. That necessitates a highly reliable, always available communication system.

Hytera Digital Mobile Radios (DMR) provide just that solution. DMR systems deliver consistent coverage tailored to the exact requirements of the building or site, unlike cellular coverage which can be patchy or even non-existent, especially indoors.

DMR radios provide clear voice, data and messaging services and support individual, group and broadcast calling. Group calling allows messages to be communicated to multiple groups of people simultaneously.

Staff can be divided into convenient talk groups, so only the relevant group needs to hear the call. This is a very efficient way of communicating compared with consumer mobile phone services, which are restricted to one-to-one calling, and helps to ensure smooth and discrete operations.

Safety features

Hytera DMR radios also enhance the safety and security of both staff and guests. Hytera radios are equipped with an emergency button and support Man Down and Lone Worker alarms, which send automatic alerts if a staff member is unable to respond.

Integrated GPS enables staff to be monitored and located outdoors, while Bluetooth or RFID technology in the radio can be integrated with beacons and RFID tags to provide indoor location fixes. Location technology means that managers can quickly locate any staff member who has an accident or gets into trouble if they press the emergency button or an automatic alarm is triggered.

Hytera offers a wide range of hand portable radios to suit any job role. The compact PD300 or the full size PD500 series may suit smaller hotels, clubs, bars and restaurants. The PD600 and PD700 series offers larger hotels and holiday resorts a more sophisticated device capable of supporting more applications.

The ultra-thin X1p terminal is particularly popular with front of house staff and security guards, who want a lightweight radio they can use discreetly with a Bluetooth wireless earpiece. Maintenance and housekeeping staff may also prefer to carry a pocket-sized unobtrusive radio. Hytera radios have a long battery life capable of lasting a full shift.

Hytera digital radios can also support job ticketing and workflow management software. Cleaning and maintenance staff can be sent job tickets, acknowledge receipt of the job, and send a confirmation to supervisors when the job is completed.

Security guards may also wear body cameras to deter anti-social behaviour and provide evidence following an incident. Hytera offers four bodycams: the VM550; VM550D; VM685; and the new VM780, which supports 4G LTE for video streaming and push-to-talk over cellular calls, along with mobile device manager and digital evidence manager software.

Radios can also be integrated with fire alarm panels so alerts can be sent silently to fire marshals for a faster response. Smart building technology can be integrated into radios, including automatic notification of equipment failure.

Hytera radio systems can also be integrated with fixed telephony systems, cellular networks, CCTV platforms and Internet of Things (IoT) sensor data to provide access to a wider range of data and to enable communications with people without radios or outside the DMR coverage area.

Major events

Major events such as big sporting fixtures and large music festivals require a different approach, but the Hytera technology solutions remain the same. Major events are a huge logistical challenge for the organisers and a reliable, efficient temporary communication system is absolutely essential during the set-up period, the actual event itself and the post-event break down of the site.

The key thing is to establish what kind and size of DMR radio solution is needed for the event in terms of RF coverage and capacity. Knowing the number of call groups, radio channels and repeaters required ahead of time is essential so the right DMR solution can be installed.

It also means a frequency plan can be prepared and the necessary Ofcom licences applied for. RF pre-planning and design is obviously vital. Outdoor events are usually surveyed in winter, so it is important to factor in changes in topography from tree foliage in the summer when events generally take place.

Many events can be comfortably covered by a DMR Tier II system, but larger ones, or those with high level of multi-channel, multi-call group interactions, may require either a Hytera XPT (extended pseudo trunking) solution or a DMR Tier III trunking system. The Hytera XPT system is a firm music festival favourite as it is simple to use and provides plenty of additional channels.

However, some festivals are so big now that DMR Tier III systems are being deployed where the additional channels, capacity and ability to support more dispatching applications are proving popular. Hytera’s DWS Dispatch solution is sometimes used at the larger events, as it makes it easier to manage the radio fleet.

Hytera RD625 DMR repeaters are regularly deployed at outdoor events because of their relatively light weight and size, while rack-mounted RD985 repeaters are often deployed for multi-channel systems.

Some events may require coverage between the site or venue and hotels where the talent, be it sporting or musical, are staying. This may mean siting a repeater on the key route to the venue. Something like a road cycle event or marathon race requires further refinements such as the installation of a linked DMR repeater system along the course.

Some organisers provide vehicle transport for the talent and may need a Hytera DMR mobile radio like the MD785i to be temporarily installed to ensure communications are maintained during the journey with GPS to enable organisers to keep track of where the talent is.

Once on site it is essential for organisational and safety reasons that the radio system is continually available to ensure the organisers can run the event successfully. Back-up power, fail over systems and RF interference management solutions need to be put in place.

DMR Terminals

When it comes to radio terminals, Hytera’s PD405 series provides a good, small entry-level radio for simple, instant communications. More usually the Hytera PD600 and PD700 series radios are used, as they are rugged, most have IP67 dust and moisture protection and they can support safety features such as Man Down and Lone Worker alarms.

Radios with Hytera noise cancellation technology are also popular, especially at noisy events like music festivals. Accessories are also important. Hytera radios have a 3.5mm jack situated above the PTT button, which enables event staff to bring their own earpiece moulds and fit them to the radios.

Most specialist Hytera partners will provide training for event staff and volunteers. But generally, Hytera radios are easy to use and require minimal training even for novice volunteer staff. They are rugged and reliable, so they are able to withstand knocks and the effects of bad weather. Hytera has a solution for any type of major event, venue or business in the hospitality sector.

For more information about Hytera solutions for Hospitality, contact a Hytera Approved Dealer.