SONiM TECHNOLOGiES CASE STUdy

sonim technologies Case Study
IndustrY: agriculture
Hendrix UTD‘S AGRICULTURAL PROCESSING FACTORIES REAP
REWARDS FROM SONIM XP3340 SENTINEL LONE WORKER SOLUTIOn
Hendrix UTD is a Dutch company,
that makes compound food for
prime central European markets
including Germany, Belgium
and the Netherlands. Hendrix’s
six Dutch factories rely heavily
on reliable and rugged on-site
communications to maintain
operational performance and
safeguard engineers in the dusty,
loud and extremely challenging
conditions found within its busy
fodder manufacturing facilities.
THE CHALLENGE
When the radio frequency used by
Hendrix UTD’s factory-based security
system was sold by the government,
Hendrix UTD had to find an alternative
solution to support its six facilities
operating in the Netherlands.
It was eager to replace its existing
10 year old communications system
with a reliable, robust platform that
could meet its increasingly stringent
operational and safety criteria and
deliver a solid return on investment.
“Handsets risk being
dropped into water, from
vehicles and from heights
of up to 50 metres onto
really hard surfaces.”
The nature of Hendrix UTD’s manufacturing
environment, products and
raw materials created some unique
challenges as Remko Hendriks,
Project Manager for Hendrix UTD
states, “Our Dutch factories produce
dry compound feed - including compounds,
premixes, concentrates and
speciality products - in what can be a
dusty, hard and rugged environment.
Movement of materials through the
processing facilities takes place over
seven floors which can mean operating
heights of up to 50 meters. Raw
materials are mostly transported by
boat from the river to the factory and
after production loaded onto trucks
for transportation.
“This means that our engineers work
in an environment where their handsets
are at risk of being dropped into
water, from vehicles and from great
heights onto really hard surfaces. In
addition, the factory produces noise
levels well beyond 85 dB which makes
it difficult to hear or make voice
calls when in the factory. For these
reasons, it was crucial that our new
site communications included rugged
handsets with good speech quality.”
“Safety features were also paramount,”
Hendriks adds. “Many of our
Hendrix UTD maintenance staff work
alone, at night and in hazardous conditions.
overview I
country
Netherlands
customer profilE
Hendrix UTD, part of the Business Unit
Hendrix and integrated into ForFarmers
Group as of 1 April 2012, is a modern
and ambitious company active in
Netherlands, Germany and Belgium.
Core activity is the sale of compound
feed. Number of employees within the
Business Unit Hendrix: about 680.
The Total turnover of compound feed
within the ForFarmers Group is
4.6 million tons.
Business situation
• Large dispersed team of onsite
engineers, production, handling and
maintenance crews
• Many lone workers operating in night
shifts
• Dusty environment, heavy equipment,
high drops as well as water
and road transportation
• Stringent Health & Safety criteria
and own Hendrix UTD mandatory
safety requirements
• Communications vital for team
coordination, maintenance scheduling,
logistics, security & safety
• Traditional system frequencies no
longer available, DECT system too
expensive and not suited for heavy
duty use
ABOUT HENDRIX UTD
Hendrix UTD, part of the Business Unit Hendrix is integrated into ForFarmers Group per 1 April 2012. Hendrix UTD is a modern and ambitious
company active in Netherlands, Germany and Belgium. Core activity is the sale of compound feed. Number of employees within the Business
Unit Hendrix: about 680. The Total turnover of compound feed within the ForFarmers Group is 4.6 million tons.
www.hendrixutd.nl
Copyright © Sonim Technologies, Inc. 2012

To ensure they are safe-guarded,
we have strict safety controls and
processes which are audited by
Hendrix UTD’s worldwide labour
inspection team. Hendrix UTD
also mandates the inclusion of an
emergency button on handsets
so that engineers can send urgent
requests for help even if they are
unable to make a voice call.”
THE SOLUTION
As part of a two year assessment
process, Hendrix UTD examined
several technology alternatives
including DECT but this was
considered too cost prohibitive
and also insufficiently rugged for
Hendrix UTD’s heavy duty industrial
environment. It also required extensive
hard wired infrastructure which was
inappropriate for the complex sites.
Hendrix UTD finally selected the
CapX Private GSM solution offered
by telecom partner Scaldis Telecom.
This involved the installation of
strategically located base transceiver
stations within individual sites and
full integration with the company’s IP
system to allow alarm notifications
to be sent direct to the engineers’
mobile phones.
To provide high levels of reliability
and to withstand the rough handling
and tough working conditions, Sonim
XP3340 SENTINEL ultra-rugged GSM
handsets were specified to run on
the new system. No ordinary GSM
phones, the Sonim handsets go well
beyond MIL-SPEC criteria in terms of
physical durability and feature a tough
Corning ® Gorilla ® Glass display,
which is both scratch proof and shock
resilient. Resistant to dust, water and
extreme temperatures, the Sonim
SENTINEL family also offer specific
Lone Worker safety features including
a dedicated red alert button for use
in emergencies and as demanded by
Hendrix UTD’s own safety inspectors.
Ideal for coordinating on-site teams
and initiating vital maintenance
processes, the Sonim phones
also respond to emergency SMS
messages generated by the factory‘s
monitoring server - and when GSM
I/O alarms are activated - alerting
engineers instantly to urgent actions
that are required within the factory.
“The ultra-rugged Sonim
phones are a third of the
cost of our old devices,
provide better performance
AND last considerably
longer.”
The company’s five hectare site at
Heijen was the first to go operational
with the system in November 2011
with subsequent roll-out to other
Dutch sites in Helmond, Oosterhout,
Deventer and Lochem. The final site
in Zwolle switched on at the end of
January 2012.
THE BENEFITS
Both the system and the handsets are
already delivering tangible benefits as
Hendriks explains, “The private GSM
solution was much simpler to install
and manage than other systems we
explored as it did not require any
extensive cabling. It was also more
cost effective coming in at around a
third of the cost of the DECT systems.
In addition, the platform itself is very
flexible and can be used to support
on-site calls from ordinary GSM
phones as well as from the Sonim
handsets which are used by over 100
of our engineers who operate
overview II
Solution
Total solution specified and supplied
by Sonim reseller Scaldis Telecoms to
Hendrix UTD’s six Dutch factories:
• 100 Sonim XP3340 Sentinel GSM
phones
• CapX Private GSM Framework
comprising:
• 29 BTS (Pico cells)
• SIP Client integration with Cisco IPBX
• CapX Integration Suite (CIS)
• CapX Loneworker Server and ESPA
4.4.4. fire alarm integration
• GSM I/O alarm units for factory alerts
Benefits
• Flexible GSM platform which supports
‘multiple devices’ to boost ROI
• 66% lower cost than alternative
DECT system
• Total cost of ownership of Sonim
handsets 66% less than Hendrix‘s
old devices
• Red alert button complies with internal
safety standards
• Noise cancellation feature improves
onsite voice call quality
• Less communications downtime
due to phone charging, breakage or
repair
about private gsm
Today the deployment of Private GSM
technology as an Inhouse Private
solution, is a fast growing global market.
CapX has firmly established itself
as provider of leading edge Private
Mobile Solutions and an early leader
in the growing private mobile space.
CapX inhouse GSM solution enables
mobile phones to become part of a
company voice and data networks
while in the vicinity of the workplace,
similar to the standard telephone
handsets on the desk. With a private
mobile network, mobile phones can
be used to make calls from the workplace
for the same cost as calling
from an internal telephone extension.
More information can be found on:
www.capx.nl
Copyright © Sonim Technologies, Inc. 2012
www.sonimtech.com

on production floors and in our
handling and transportation areas.”
Because the Sonim GSM devices
are more robust than DECT phones
or other ruggedized handsets, they
offer Hendrix UTD greater longevity
thereby lowering the long term total
cost of ownership. This has also
allowed Hendrix UTD to increase the
number of engineers who have access
to the rugged devices, improving the
reachability and performance of key
staff.
And the benefits don’t stop there.
With their extra-long battery life of
more than 16 hours even with GPS
tracking active and heavy voice
call use, the Sonim phones can be
used across two back-to-back shifts
with charging - thereby ensuring
continuous connectivity of the staff,
reducing communication downtime.
“Without doubt, the
investment has been well
worth it.“
Hendriks comments “Our old
devices were three times more
expensive than our new Sonim
phones which last considerably
longer. Their outstanding durability
means breakage, maintenance and
downtime is now at a minimum.
The handsets are also really easy
to use and we have even been able
to enhance functionality further by
customising on-phone screens and
data to allow our engineers to place
calls to the relevant contacts around
the site more efficiently.”
“With the Sonim phones,
background noise is
significantly reduced
allowing engineers to
be heard clearly and
greatly improving the
effectiveness of our
maintenance calls.”
An added bonus of the Sonim XP3340
was the noise cancellation feature
which, although was not a key part of
the original requirements, has proved
a tremendous success with the teams
involved.
Hendriks confirms, “Service engineers
in the past were almost impossible to
hear over the site phones, particularly
when they were close to machinery
where noise levels were at their
highest. With the Sonim phones,
this background noise is significantly
reduced allowing engineers to be
heard clearly and greatly improving
the effectiveness of our maintenance
calls.”
Summing up the move to GSM,
Hendriks concludes, “Without doubt,
the investment has been well worth
it. From the initial GSM installations,
we have gained invaluable experience
which will help us evolve our on-site
communications further. For example,
we are currently examining the use
of RFID tagging to provide better
location positioning and enhanced
staff safety within difficult to monitor
areas such as silos.”
By using proven technology from
industry leaders such as Sonim and
Private GSM supplier CapX, local
telecom reseller Scaldis Telecom, we
have been able to cope with each
site’s various challenges - handling
processes, operating environments,
building infrastructure and power
constraints - to create a wellfunctioning,
highly resilient, cost and
operationally efficient communication
system that will meet our needs today
and well into the future.”
RPS CERTIFIED
EXTRA-LONG BATTERY LIFE
1750mAh with up to 29 Hrs of GPS
tracking time at 5 min intervals
ACCESIBLE KEYPAD
Widely spaced keys for ease of use
with gloved hands
EXTRA-LOUD SPEAKER
Capable of producing up to 100 dB
of noise
PROTECTION FROM DUST
Non-porous casing blocks entry of
microparticles
PROTECTION FROM WATER
Water submersible to 2 metres for
1 hour
PROTECTION FROM DROPS
Withstands 2 meter drops on concrete
RESISTANT TO SHOCKS & VIBRATIONS
Built to withstand random vibrations
up to 4G
RESISTANT TO EXTREME TEMPERATURES
Works in environments ranging from
-20 °C to +55 °C
RESISTANT TO EXTREME PRESSURE
Withstands up to 1 ton of pressure
PUNCTURE PROOF
Withstands up to 5J of impact energy
RESISTANT TO PETROLEUM OILS
Resistant to many common chemicals
3-YEAR COMPREHENSIVE WARRANTY
ABOUT SONIM TECHNOLOGIES
Sonim Technologies (www.sonimtech.com) is the provider of ultra-rugged, water-submersible mobile phones designed specifically for
workers in challenging outdoor and industrial environments. Sonim’s industry-leading three-year comprehensive warranty has redefined
customer expectations of rugged technology. Sonim provides a suite of high-performance workforce management solutions that keep
workers safe and enhance their productivity, including push-to-talk, lone worker safety and NFC proof-of-activity services. The company
is headquartered in San Mateo, California and offers its products in over 50 countries.
Copyright © Sonim Technologies, Inc. 2012
www.sonimtech.com