Radios that rally: Tait Tough competition winners announced

Real-life customer stories of putting Tait products to the test in their everyday working environments have been shared by Tait Communication’s resellers and partners in the ‘Tait Tough’ competition.

The company announced the overall winner and six finalists from the competition, which received entries from around the world describing incidents where Tait radios proved the ‘Tait Tough’ standard, surviving improbable tests of ruggedness and dependability.

The entries were representative of a broad cross-section of industries, including fire services, mining companies and construction — all of which require rugged and dependable radio gear to safely and reliably communicate.

“Our radios consistently reset the frontier of radio usability,” said Garry Diack, CEO of Tait Communications.

“While no-one wants to have to put our radios to the ultimate test, having the confidence that they will work when they’re needed most is a tremendous boost for users — particularly those in critical communications and first-responder roles. I’m very impressed with the various ways they have been put to the test in the field.”

Overall Winner

Colvins Ltd. (New Zealand) — ‘A Long Winter’

A Tait portable radio fell 20 metres out of a backpack being hoisted on a wire over a valley by a forestry gang and landed into a flooded river. Three months later, the same radio was dug out of a mud pit and worked again with only a fresh battery.

Finalists

Tasmanian Electronic & Communication Services (Australia)

A Tait portable radio was intentionally dropped from a fire observation tower in rural Tasmania onto a rocky outcrop 20 metres below, incurring only a few nicks and scrapes.

PT Alssa (Indonesia)

A Tait portable radio was accidentally dropped into a mud puddle and run over by a heavy equipment truck, but worked fine again after replacing a snapped antenna.

The Charlie Edwards Company (United States)

A Tait P25 portable radio used by a Los Angeles fire department was left inside a burning house, emerging with a badly burnt antenna, heat-damaged belt clip and control knobs, and a melted microphone cord, yet remaining fully operational (see image).

Nixon Communications (Australia)

A Tait P25 portable survived tumbling through the steel frame of a dragline crane at an Australian mine, then plummeting 30 metres and hitting the rocky ground below.

Oelmann Elektronik GmbH (Germany)

Tait portable radios at Oelmann Elektronik survived a host of unfortunate incidents, including falling off a cliff in the Caucasus Mountains, dropping out of a car on the move, being left out in hard rain and under the snow, charged with improper voltage and even being used as a hammer.

Baud Telecom (Saudi Arabia)

A radio that was accidentally dropped into the ocean was recovered after 48 hours, only to spring back to life with application of some contact cleaner to drive out the residual seawater.

Read more about the entries on the Tait blog here.

Image shows the still fully operational Tait P25 TP9400 portable radio after being left inside a burning house. Image courtesy of Tait Communications.