Harris dials up $100M radio upgrade project for Miami-Dade

Harris Corp. will upgrade public safety and public service communications for Miami-Dade County, Fla., as part of an improvement project that could be worth as much as $100 million.

The company will equip Miami-Dade with a new Harris 800 MHz radio communications system known as Project 25 to the power of Internet Protocol, or P25IP, according to a Harris announcement today.

Also included in the upgrade are radio terminals that comply with the Federal Communications Commission's rebanding mandate.

The new standards-based system will bring the county greater functionality on a flexible system platform, the company announcement said.

The new Harris P25IP system will serve more than 80 agencies and 31,000 users throughout the county, including the Miami-Dade Police Department, Water and Sewer Department, and Miami International Airport.

Miami-Dade County is comprised of 35 municipalities with an overall population of more than 2.4 million residents.

The P25IP system will interoperate with Miami-Dade Fire Rescue’s conventional VHF system, operating in parallel with the county’s existing system to provide a smooth transition for county users during the upgrade to the digital system, the statement said.

“When this project is complete, the county will have a modern, standards-based digital radio communications system that will last us well into the future and provide considerable cost savings,” Felix Perez, division director of the Radio, Enterprise Technology Services Department in Miami-Dade County, said in the statement.

Harris Corp., of Melbourne, Fla., ranks No. 13 on Washington Technology’s 2009 Top 100 list of the largest federal government prime contractors.