Early in 2017, RACOM and Leax Arkivator Telecom formalised a Strategic Partnership and production of the new Class 3 LEAX-RAy antennas with direct mounting for RAy microwave units began.
Since RAy units with LEAX-RAy antennas have now been used in the field for more than 3 months, RACOM has been liaising closely with some of its partners to collect their experiences and feedback.
The feedback received has been generally positive. Users are impressed with the narrow and sharp beam pattern which makes antenna alignment much easier, especially when using the RAy Tools App. Additionally, excellent side lobe suppression, the light weight and easy installation have been appreciated.
Let us share a few quotes received from our partners:
Martin Králík, NHK Solutions, installing RAy links mainly for CETIN and Vodafone:
“LEAX-RAy antennas very good side lobe suppression as well as exceptional resistance to interference of RAy units have made it easier for us to mount the links in premium positions on busy sites and still experience excellent signal strength and speed”.
Ondřej Dvořák, SUPTel-DISK, installing RAy links mainly for Vodafone:
“Although it is hard to believe, RAy’s unique filter for 10 GHz band is further enhanced in harsh conditions by the side lobe suppression built in to LEAX-RAy antennas. We have got less troubles on Vodafone crowded sites now”.
Miroslav Bebjak, RACOM SLOVENSKO, supplying RAy links mainly to ISP market:
“Our ISP customers are always asking for reliable long haul links. Combining RAy’s exceptional system gain with the excellent antenna gain offered on LEAX-RAy antennas has increased signal strength in real terms on such links and is very much appreciated by our ISP customers”.
All this positive feedback catalyses RACOM-Leax co-operation in the field of R&D. We are hoping to introduce the next generation LEAX-RAy antennas soon.
Towards the end of September, we attended the EUTC annual conference, hosted this year in Lisbon, Portugal. The core theme of the conference was ‘Telecommunications empowering the digital utility’.
EUTC continues the quest to inform, understand and share best practices from around the world in the highly specialised world of Utility Telecommunications. The conference brings new insights to this field, updates on progress across working groups and actively encourages the sharing of expert opinion and practical deployment through formal and informal discussion. Delegates have ample opportunity to network in an intense, focused but enjoyable atmosphere, over three days of presentations, panels and workshops.
Becoming a focal talking point in recent years, security once again featured highly in discussions. Perhaps appropriate then that RACOM chose this event to introduce the latest RipEX firmware release including IPsec and other security features, to provide a fully secure radio network without compromises!
As ever, our guys took full advantage of the focused attention of so many influential people from the utilities market to establish current and future requirements in the market and ensure that RACOM continues to position itself where it can meet that need and remain placed, as a producer that should be considered as a viable option in any radio network.
Thanks for the time shared with so many friends, old and new and we look forward to meeting up again in the near future.
RACOM has long recognized the potential for all our product lines in the Middle East. In 2011 we realized the need for physical RACOM presence in the region. As a result Syed Muhammad was appointed Area Sales Manager (MENA) in January 2012 and set about building on all the good work that had gone before to consolidate and further develop RACOM’s footprint in the region.
Product lines have been approved for use throughout the region, most recently with all our product lines now approved for use in Iran by the Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA), Iran. RipEX has also recently been approved by the Telecom Regulatory Authority (CITC ) in Saudi Arabia. Resulting from these and earlier approvals, our modems, microwave units and routers are being selected as the product of choice and optimal solution in many projects. As a standard part of our quality control, units produced by RACOM are individually tested in a climatic chamber from -30 °C and below to +55 °C and above (modems/routers rated up to +70 °C; see website for full product specs). This ability to function seamlessly in extreme temperatures is greatly welcomed.
Telecom companies and ISPs in several countries are making RAy 11, RAy 17 & RAy 24 their product of choice, whether through migration from 5 GHz links or installing new specialized links for their customers. Our recent strategic partnership with LEAX-RAy, using their Class 3 antennas with direct mounting of our microwave units is already proving popular. Customers are reporting this new combination of RAy microwave units and LEAX-RAy antennas provides even better end to end performance on links.
Our radio modems are operating effectively in SCADA networks for utility and mining companies throughout the region with a number of new networks currently in the planning stages. RipEX’s reputation for reliability, performance and robustness is proving well founded as is the ability to operate over long distances and using low power options. Please use the links to read about the biggest RipEX network in the region in Jordan here. There is also detailed information available about a RipEX network in Saudi Arabia here and about M!DGE network in Oman here. Our 3G routers are also being used to automate oil fields in UAE, manage power distribution in Oman and more recently, in a network to manage financial transactions at ATM’s on a national basis in Iraq.
These and other successful projects are testament to the reliability and robustness of our products to withstand the extreme climatic conditions experienced in the region. As we continue to develop a deeper understanding of the needs of the local markets now and for the future, we can confidently say the Middle East will remain an important market for RACOM.
Please contact us for more information about our products or how best to meet specific requirements in your area of operation.
RACOM is very happy to announce its recent partnership agreement with SIMOCO wireless solutions.
Simoco has over 70 years of experience operating at the forefront of the radio and mobile communications industry, with a forward thinking approach to constantly provide innovation and new technologies for a digitally driven future. With such a track record, Simoco wireless solutions makes an ideal partner for RACOM, sharing the same visions for the future of the industry.
Simoco works across multiple sectors, helping organisations such as utilities providers, public service operators and airports to communicate and innovate. The expansion of the company’s SCADA and telemetry portfolio will include technologies such as Ethernet radio, cellular routers, Microwave and mesh radio networks, allowing organisations to include data communications as part of their wider unified communications infrastructure.
VP Sales at RACOM, Mark Sutton said: “Simoco wireless solutions has a proven track record of delivering first-class mission critical communication technologies to a wide variety of sectors. We are looking forward to working together as Simoco looks to develop its SCADA and telemetry product ranges as part of its wider unified communications offering.”
Chief Sales Officer at Simoco wireless solutions, Andy Woodhall, said: “This partnership with RACOM is a great step forward for our company. It allows us to expand our product range and ensure our customers have access to the latest SCADA and telemetry solutions. In the Internet-of-Things era there are more connected devices than ever before. Our customers have to manage increasingly large amounts of data, and reliable communication systems that enable this are therefore becoming increasingly important to their operations and overall business objectives. The technologies we are introducing alongside Racom, providing best in class and innovative radio products, are designed to meet these needs as well as anticipate those of the future.”
RipEX – A leading radio modem always predicting market requirements comes to the market with its next improvements, mainly in terms of security.
These new features are available from 1.7 fw version:
IPsec in RipEX uses a standard Linux well proven implementation and can be used to combine a full set of security features thus reducing overhead. It is also possible to setup an IPsec tunnel either between two RipEX units or between RipEX and another device.
IPsec fulfils all expected security requirements – especially:
IPsec in RipEX = fully secure radio network without compromises !
Secured SNMP v3 with SNMP Traps and acknowledged SNMP Informs is now available.
Read-only management account
Besides Admin account, read-only Guest account is available.
RipEX can be mounted in really harsh environment now. IP51 version is available.
Please see RipEX firmware release notes, RipEX web page and RipEX datasheet for all new features or contact us for more information.
Leax Arkivator Telecom and RACOM, both renowned for having excellent technical parameters in their products, have recently agreed a strategic partnership, to combine these parameters and offer an end to end link of the highest quality.
Leax will produce Class 3 antennas with direct mounting of RAy Microwave units. Additionally, Leax are keen to support current and future RACOM development to produce antennas specifically designed to offer the optimal solution for end to end links.
RAy’s efficient use of the spectrum on narrow channels, exceptional system gain and resistance to interference using a unique filter system, coupled with LEAX-RAy Class 3 antennas’ excellent side lobe suppression, low cross polarisation and high antenna gain offer unique new opportunities to the market. The compact size of both the RAy & LEAX-RAy antenna further adds to the appeal of this solution on busy sites.
Feel free to read details about LEAX-Ray antennas here.
This strategic partnership provides ideal solutions for ISPs’ and other users of microwave units. Ever increasing demands for wireless communications result in pressure on noise and electromagnetic smog resistance on equipment used. An antenna site becoming overcrowded with devices only makes the problem worse. In such situations, only a very high quality compact device with extreme interference immunity will provide an acceptable solution.
The market is always looking for improved end to end performance on a link – We provide it!
As most customers are aware, access to RAy and RipEX is already available via Wifi/USB adapters. Resulting from positive feedback received from the market and RACOM’s reputation for setting trends, these and other tools for our products are being introduced to the market as mobile phone applications.
RAy Tools is the first of these and Antenna Alignment, the first tool.
Just leave your laptop and voltmeter at home when you go to adjust your antennas!
Antenna Alignment key features:
The RAy Tools App is supported from RAy fw 2.1.28.0 and is available for download on Google Play. iOS and Windows mobile versions will follow soon.
RAy Tools can access the link configuration web interface and can also perform a basic link availability calculation
Your feedback is welcome – pm@racom.eu
Early April and back on the road, in what has been a busy first quarter for our Sales managers; this time to attend UTCAL in Brazil. Always a busy and informative event, this year was no exception with the summit being hosted in Salvador, Bahia, the oldest city in Brazil situated in the North East of the country. Salvador was in fact, Brazil’s capital before Brazilia was planned and built for the purpose.
Over 400 delegates from the utilities sector converged on the summit from all parts of Latin America to discuss market issues and in particular spectrum requirements, new business models, the impact of Big Data on our telecommunications networks, smart grid requirements, cybersecurity and infrastructure issues.
It is from taking a central role in these types of discussion that RACOM can secure a robust understanding of market requirements now and in the future and gain the necessary feedback to ensure our product lines continue to innovate and set trends in their markets. Interestingly, feedback from many of the utilities we talked with, confirm that the demands being placed on them in South and Central America are the same as those we hear from utility companies in other parts of the world; more comprehensive levels of engagement with customers, addressing cyber security issues and providing solutions to manage renewable energy sources.
RACOM look forward to providing continued levels of innovation and support to the Latin American market and come away from this summit, secure in the knowledge, that our current and future product lines will provide solutions to the issues currently being addressed by our markets, whether that be in migrating legacy networks to meet current demands or in designing and commissioning new networks to cater for future demands within the industry.
And finally, obrigado [thank you] to UTCAL, for again hosting an excellent summit. See you next year!
MUM’s European flagship event recently took RACOM to Milan, Italy. All our event passes were taken up by customers and partners keen to meet us, to discuss the market in general, future developments within RACOM and specific orders currently being processed.
Pavel Nespor, one of our Sales Managers, ably assisted by Jiri Hlavac from our Product management department in a Technical support capacity represented RACOM in Milan. Both were kept busy throughout the two days meeting with many current and potential customers from throughout Europe and beyond and fielding a wide range of discussions; since many ISP’s are migrating from unlicensed 5.8 GHz, there was a particularly high request for information about our 17 and 24 GHz license free band RAy microwave units.
General visitors to our stand, coming to find out exactly who we are and what we do, particularly enjoyed the company video we had on a loop and especially the sections of the video which show our in-house PCB manufacturing processes at our custom facility in Blansko, Czech Republic. This facility was developed to serve part of RACOM’s overall strategy to perform all processes in-house; to protect our high-levels of know-how as well as full control over product quality. This particular part of our in-house manufacture generated much discussion among visitors, keen to find out more about the processes involved.
Although this was MUM’s European flagship event, we also received visitors to our stand from further afield including Africa and North and Central America, all of whom were not only interested in what we offered, but in representing us in their particular regions.
Thanks, to all those who visited our stand and spent time with us. We are happy with what we achieved during our time in Milan and with the amount of follow up work we generated as a result of attending the event. Now the hard work begins in earnest, converting that interest into new partnerships and confirmed orders! Watch this space.
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