Sea Tow unveils radio over Internet dispatch system
SOUTHOLD, N.Y. — Sea Tow Services International publicly unveiled its VHF Radio over Internet Protocol (RoIP) radio network during the annual Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services meeting last week.
Similar to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone systems, RoIP technology transmits VHF radio communications between boaters and a Sea Tow dispatch center in real time via the Internet, Sea Tow said in a release.
“We identified the need for a nationwide 24/7 radio network that provides better communications for our members and Sea Tow franchises,” Joe Frohnhoefer, Sea Tow’s founder and CEO, said in the release. “We have built the network over the past four years. It’s impressive. We can communicate with a member and with our Sea Tow boats in one part of the country from anywhere else in the country. No one, other than the U.S. Coast Guard, can match that capability.”
Marine radio calls from boaters to Sea Tow are now handled locally, regionally or nationally depending on the circumstances.
“We’ve tailored and optimized communications to each area’s needs. Coordination and operational support are much easier,” said Charlie Zaloom, Sea Tow vice president of business technology. “The guys love it; it’s another one of those Internet things that you wonder how you lived without before.”
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