The Floyd County Commission plans to hire a team of consulting engineers to build from scratch a new countywide emergency communication system.

“Basically, it’s project management — from the beginning to the end,” said Scotty Hancock, director of the Floyd County Emergency Management Agency.

The 2009 special purpose, local option sales tax package contains $26.7 million for an 800 megahertz digital simulcast radio system. It will replace a patchwork of VHF and UHF systems operating off a single tower built in the 1960s.

Officials are accepting proposals through Jan. 4 from companies with at least five similar projects under their belts. The firm also will be asked to help with the communications in a new emergency operations and E911 back-up center, another 2009 SPLOST project.

Hancock said the countywide communication system was essentially designed before the SPLOST vote. What’s needed now is the technical expertise to implement it.

Click here to see a PDF of request for proposals.

Major tasks for the selected firm include setting the specifications for the equipment and reviewing those bids, getting the federal licenses for the radio frequencies and handling the land lease agreements for the towers.

“We have the general locations for the tower sites, but we haven’t locked any of that in yet,” Hancock said.

At least four firms already have expressed interest in overseeing the project. The request for proposals gives them through Wednesday to ask Hancock any questions about the scope.

The proposals will be reviewed and rated in January by an awards committee made up of Hancock, Rome Assistant City Manager Sammy Rich, Assistant County Manager Blaine Williams and Cave Spring Public Safety Director Randy Lacey.

Face-to-face interviews and further negotiations could be used to zero in on a recommended firm. The County Commission will make the final decision on the selection.

“We’re hoping to have somebody on board by Jan. 31,” Hancock said.

The new system will let emergency responders and law enforcement communicate directly with each other in the field. Agencies ranging from animal control and public works to local schools and hospitals also will be linked with assigned frequencies.

The 2009 SPLOST collection doesn’t start until July 1, 2010, but voters also approved the issuance of SPLOST-backed bonds to get started on some priority projects. Officials expect to offer the bonds by March.

Plans are to have the communication system operating by Aug. 15, 2012, according to the request for proposals.

Much like the shift that sparked the nationwide switch to digital TV, the Federal Communication Commission intends to cut the public safety bandwidth on Dec. 31, 2012.

Click here to read a previous report on the emergency communication system.