The systems, according to company president Bill Hensler, are a key fundamental to mines' communication infrastructure and offer features that can impact worker safety as well as mine production.
The Becker Varis Leaky Feeder system that WMS has in its product line offers two-way communication capabilities for consistent contact and supports automated man-working-alone systems, while SmartCom amplifiers use contiguous UHF-VHF radio coverage to permit messages to be sent and received clearly, Hensler said.
The intrinsically safe (IS) SmartCom can be installed anywhere, and its Ethernet feature can aid in the implementation and use of gas sensors, seismic and resource tracking systems.
When workers need to be in communication underground on an everyday basis, the system offers real-time, two-way, push-to-talk communications that are key to the coordination and dispatching of crews.
Even when workers absolutely must be in contact, such as in an emergency situation, they can know that the Becker Varis system has 16 VHF radio channels that do not have intermodulation noise so user groups can be dedicated to channels with clear lines for talk, Hensler said.
The SmartCom system, he added, also supports CCTV video or IP video for an added step in miner safety technology.
Hensler said that while wireless communication has seen a lot of press, the redundancy now required by federal law will allow the two technologies to complement one another in many ways.
“It will take multiple means of communications to ensure miner safety, and each system has a strength that together builds a complete communications solution," he said.
As far as the myths of wired communications that have come with the advent of more wireless innovation, Hensler invites anyone with questions about performance to contact WMS or any of the more than 80 US operations that have leaky feeder systems – a number that will continue to grow by leaps and bounds as mines install the foundation of communication for both emergency and everyday use.
“Becker and Varis have more systems in mines than anyone else in the world," he said, adding that WMS’s top subject of feedback from system owners is the clarity and reliability workers and the surface enjoy.
