Case Study: Hawaii State Civil Defense achieves reliable, remotely monitored statewide siren warnings with ORBCOMM

Satellite for Siren Warning System in Hawaii

Hawaii State Civil Defense, which operates the state-wide outdoor siren warning system for hurricanes, tsunamis and other hazards, faced a decades-old VHF/800 MHz radio network that could not be monitored centrally, required twice-yearly manual checks and frequent, time-consuming field repairs, and needed a lower-bandwidth, redundant solution that would work across the islands’ challenging terrain. ORBCOMM provided satellite and cellular M2M connectivity (sat/cell terminals and network service) to modernize the siren communications and meet the FCC’s lower-bandwidth requirements.

ORBCOMM’s sat/cell M2M solution was integrated with Federal Signal sirens and solar power across the state, enabling remote monitoring, centralized testing and real-time alerts for siren status, battery/solar charger health and intrusions. The deployment covers 490 sites, improved redundancy and reliability across islands, eliminated many site visits, and produced clear cost savings—leasing sat/cell service at about $11/month and lower equipment costs yielded roughly $570,000 in savings versus purchasing new 800 MHz trunk radios when amortized over 10 years.

Hawaii State Civil Defense

Tom Simon

Systems Engineer