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Terminal operation teams do their best work when they have the right tools for the job. As technology becomes more deeply integrated into intermodal, rail, and port environments, field technicians and other personnel are increasingly reliant on mobile devices in their day-to-day activities.

Anyone who has spent any time in the yard knows that terminal operators can’t simply buy tablets off the shelf at their nearest electronics retailer. From network compatibility to durability to required functionality, mobile device purchases must meet a long list of requirements.

So when your field team needs new devices, what’s the best path forward?

“It’s all about finding the right solutions for your specific use case, and Buckeye Mountain are experts in distilling those requirements and only giving you the technology that will fit in that space.”

Matt Hunter, Principal of Sales and Operations

While traditional device procurement partners want to sell you on a particular device or brand, Buckeye Mountain’s experts search through hundreds of hand-held devices to find the best-fit solutions for your needs. That customer-centric approach is how we make sure your business invests in technology that offers the best short- and long-term value to their operations.

The Industry-specific Challenges of Mobile Connectivity

The up-front purchase of hand-held equipment is just one expense to keep in mind when considering the long-term cost of these devices. Industry-specific challenges affecting device availability, longevity, and performance within your terminal yard can all affect the total cost of ownership for your devices—and they need to be accounted for when choosing appropriate hand-helds for your use case.

These challenges include:

Cellular and Broadband Compatibility

Excessive Repair and Maintenance Costs

Extreme weather, heavy machinery and the rigors of outdoor industrial environments all increase the need for ongoing device repair and maintenance. But investments into rugged devices designed to withstand this regular wear and tear can reduce repair and maintenance costs, extending device lifespans and reducing the total cost of ownership for your hardware.

On-going Device Management

Optimal hand-held performance is dependent on continual device management to implement software updates, monitor device health, and troubleshoot issues that may arise. Remote device management can be instrumental in minimizing disruptions to terminal operations, allowing certain management activities to be executed without removing devices from the field.

Device Downtime

When mobile devices are integral to terminal operations, unplanned device downtime can slow or completely halt certain field operations. These disruptions can have a ripple effect across your terminal, creating bottlenecks and other slowdowns that reduce throughput and frustrate your customers.

Failure to deploy rugged hand-held devices across your field operations only increases the risk of incidents that result in unplanned downtime—resulting in material costs that extend far beyond the repair or replacement of that device.

Five ways the ‘Buckeye Difference’ Differs from Traditional Device Procurement

When terminal leaders approach device manufacturers in search of new hand-held solutions, most of those manufacturers will quickly recommend certain products they’re trying to sell—regardless of whether those devices are a good fit for the customer’s needs. As a result, terminals risk procuring mobile devices that aren’t suited to their outdoor environment, intended use case, or other requirements.

But Buckeye Mountain isn’t trying to sell your terminal products we’ve already manufactured. Instead, our experts are solely focused on making sure you invest in hand-held devices that are best suited to your terminal’s unique needs. 

“We’re not going to try to fit a round object into a square hole, as so many manufacturers do,” says Hunter. “It doesn’t matter if the right technology comes from Panasonic, Honeywell, Zebra, or a different manufacturer. We cast a wide net to find the technology that fits.”

Matt Hunter, Principal of Sales and Operations

Here are five key ways Buckeye’s approach differs from traditional device procurement:

1. Tailoring solutions to specific use cases

Tablets and other hand-held devices are used across a wide range of terminal operations, including intermodal check-in, interactive kiosks, and mobile data units. Different terminals must also account for environmental factors such as wireless networking compatibility, extreme temperatures, heavy rain, and other outdoor conditions.

Rugged mobile devices are available to serve all of these specialized needs—and Buckeye Mountain’s experts have the industry expertise needed to ensure a successful deployment.

“Customers approach us all the time saying, ‘This is what we’re trying to do,’ says Hunter. “They might be trying to solve a problem at their gates, or they need a kiosk where the drivers can interact. And we’re able to say, ‘Oh, we just set this up for a different terminal. We’ve already solved your problem—here’s what it looks like.’”

Matt Hunter, Principal of Sales and Operations

2. Investing in Best-of-Breed Tech

Terminal operations run better when environments are built from a best-of-breed approach, ensuring that specialized use cases are supported by the best-fit specialized solutions on the market.

But for terminals managing technology procurement in-house, a best-of-breed approach is also far more resource-intensive. Each new technology acquisition can involve narrowing a field of hundreds of potential devices to a single, best-fit solution. 

Buckeye Mountain’s experts have dealt with devices from more than 450 different manufacturers over the years—and that deep industry knowledge allows them to quickly identify the mobile devices best suited to a customer’s specific use case.

“For example, when a customer says they want to look at best-of-breed hand-helds that are 5G and FirstNet compatible, we find the devices that meet those requirements and toss out the rest,” says Hunter. “We use our expertise to make things simple for the customer. Otherwise, they’re going to get overwhelmed.”

3. Providing Comprehensive Device Management and Support

Buckeye Mountain’s commitment to customer success spans the full mobile device lifecycle. After we’ve helped you identify and deploy the best-fit mobile solutions for your terminal, we provide ongoing remote device management and support to optimize device performance, assist in troubleshooting, and minimize device downtime that can disrupt your operations.

Our continued support is designed to maximize the overall return on your mobile device investment through improved operational performance and extended device lifespans. We don’t measure success by the number of devices sold—we measure it by the value we deliver for your terminal.

4. A Strategic Framework to Maximize the Value of your Device Investment

Any investment into rugged hand-held devices should be supported by a strategic framework that clearly defines the intended business outcomes, lifecycle support strategies, and long-term value generation associated with that technology acquisition.

Procurement teams and field operations leaders must work together to ensure alignment on these goals and agree on the best approach for managing implementation and ongoing support for those assets. 

This strategic planning is central to what Buckeye Mountain offers your terminal. Instead of selling your hardware without any ongoing partnership and support, we work with each terminal’s operations and IT professionals to set up plans and procedures concerning preventative maintenance, tech support, planned downtime, and other scenarios each facility will encounter across the lifespan of your hand-held devices.

5. Unrivaled Asset Management Expertise

Poor, inconsistent asset management practices can increase the occurrence of preventable repairs, resulting in more frequent operational delays and reduced device lifespans. For product manufacturers, lackluster asset management creates an opportunity to sell a new generation of hand-held devices to your terminal. 

But because Buckeye Mountain prioritizes long-term value creation, we offer “boots-on-the-ground” support for asset management that controls your ongoing device management costs and maximizes your ROI across the full device lifecycle.

“Customers who move away from our ‘boots-on-the-ground’ approach quickly realize they lose a lot of asset management expertise that Buckeye Mountain brings to the table. We do things beyond scope to ensure our customers are taken care of—and we have an internal structure for managing assets that other companies can’t match.”

David Fajardo, Manager of Field Technical Services

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Don’t buy Mobile Devices: Invest in Long-term Value Creation

Vendors that push certain hand-held devices and brands aren’t acting in your terminal’s best interest. You need a procurement partner you can trust—an expert hardware vendor who uses your unique requirements and goals to single out the best-fit solutions for your specific use case.

That’s what Buckeye Mountain does for its customers. We’re willing to comb through hundreds of different hand-held device options in search of the technology that offers exactly what your terminal needs—and then we continue to add value through ongoing support across the full device lifecycle.

We use our expertise to make the procurement process easier for your business, ensuring that your mobile device purchase is an investment that’s going to pay dividends for your on-the-ground operations.

See for yourself how Buckeye Mountain can streamline procurement and elevate business outcomes for all of your technology acquisitions.

Marine port environments need strong, consistent wireless connectivity to power their day-to-day operations. 

Unfortunately, that urgent need is why so many terminal operators are frustrated with their current network infrastructure. Whether they’ve tried LTE, private LTE, or other Wi-Fi implementations, many of these environments have been forced to rely on wireless connectivity solutions that impose stark limitations on day-to-day operations.

After getting burned with ineffective Wi-Fi implementations in the past, many marine terminals have concluded that LTE and private LTE are the best available solution to their connectivity issues. 

That’s why we’re eager to spread the word about our Rapid Deploy family of products, including Rapid Sky, which deliver wired and wireless connectivity customized to your terminal’s specific geography and unique connectivity requirements.

“If you need to set up an office space within your facility, for example, our infrastructure can provide gigabit connectivity almost anywhere, and at a minimal cost. In contrast, cellular solutions are restrictive: you’re limited by modem options, the expense of adding new SIM cards, and the inability to deliver comparable bandwidth or capacity. Our solution is not only more agile but also offers far greater capability and flexibility.” 

James Crooks, Senior Solutions Architect at Buckeye Mountain

Read on to learn more about the connectivity challenges faced by today’s marine ports—and how Buckeye Mountain’s Rapid Deploy products can deliver a positive impact for your port operations.

The Current Options for Wi-Fi Connectivity in Ports

In recent years, marine terminals have made significant investments into mobile technologies that improve communication and streamline operations across the port. 

LTE carriers

Both LTE and private LTE carriers deliver wireless connectivity using the same network infrastructure used for wireless consumers. Many marine terminals have been using LTE carriers for years because of its accessibility and ease of deployment: unlike Wi-Fi solutions, LTE doesn’t require any equipment installation, and it can still offer decent speeds and connectivity relative to other options.

The limitations of LTE come into play when relying on this technology to support mission-critical operations. The bandwidth limitations of LTE often can’t meet the throughput requirements of a large marine terminal. Large uploads and data transfers can be slow to execute through an LTE carrier—and these delays can create or exacerbate operational inefficiencies that wireless connectivity was meant to address.

There’s also the issue of signal availability in a port environment with tall stacks of shipping containers. If wireless devices are in a position where cellular signals are blocked by containers or other obstacles, wireless connections may be impeded or lost.

Wi-Fi

Compared to the bandwidth limitations of LTE, Wi-Fi’s greatest strength is its ability to deliver excellent bandwidth, throughput, and availability in a port environment. Unlike LTE and private LTE, where ports are dependent on shared infrastructure they don’t own or control, Wi-Fi infrastructure is exclusively owned by your property.

“That’s the beauty of Wi-Fi: you control that space, you control that connection, and you’re able to pivot when you see constraints and connectivity issues,” says Crooks. “You can’t do that with LTE or other technologies. You’re pretty much reliant on them to provide the service.”

James Crooks, Senior Solutions Architect at Buckeye Mountain

But conventional Wi-Fi infrastructure comes with critical disadvantages that limit the inherent flexibility of this technology. Along with the prohibitive cost of installing the necessary infrastructure, for example, access points are installed at fixed locations. This makes it difficult for Wi-Fi connectivity to adapt to dynamic outdoor environments.

With our Rapid Deploy family of products, we’ve created a new approach to wireless infrastructure that gives marine terminals the best of both worlds: high-speed, high-throughput Wi-Fi that minimizes installation costs and maximizes connectivity across your terminal. This is backed up by a high speed, exceptionally reliable fiber in the air backhaul that removes the need to implement physical fiber throughout your terminal.

Rapid Deploy for Ports: A Reliable Solution for Terminal Connectivity

Rapid Deploy is an established solution in leading wireless connectivity for rail and intermodal terminals. The operational advantages of this technology translates seamlessly to port environments—and it could be exactly what your terminal or property needs to elevate the performance of your marine yard operations.

What is Rapid Deploy?

Rapid Deploy is Buckeye Mountain’s patented approach to deploying consistent, scalable Wi-Fi infrastructure in even the most challenging outdoor environments using ultramodern technology.

The Buckeye pledge to our customers also includes our above and beyond style of network monitoring and maintenance. Our Rapid Deploy networks are monitored and maintained by trained professionals 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Often, we can alert our customers of anomalies or potential problems before they are aware of them from an operational perspective. The key to our success has always been the ability to proactively act to minimize downtime to your operations.

“Our solutions are tailored to each customer’s unique environment,” says Crooks. “We’re not an off-the-shelf company. We conduct on-site physical and RF surveys to ensure that our network designs are customized to the specific geographic location and the customer’s needs. This approach ensures that their investment is optimized, rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all solution.”

Buckeye’s Suite of Rapid Deploy Products

To meet individual environmental requirements, Buckeye Mountain often deploys a mix of Rapid Deploy solutions tailored to the customers’ needs. Our solutions most applicable to port environments include the following:

RapidSky

RapidOne

RapidMiniMax

RapidFixed

How to get Started with Rapid Deploy

When a marine terminal is interested in using Rapid Deploy solutions for its wireless infrastructure, Buckeye Mountain’s experts have a streamlined, tried-and-tested approach to planning, designing, and testing each custom network before sending it out for deployment.

That process consists of the following stages:

The Buckeye Mountain Difference: World-Class Support and a Design-First Approach

“One advantage of Buckeye is that we’re small enough to dedicate resources where they’re needed most, yet large enough to have those resources distributed and ready to deploy quickly,” says Crooks.

Meanwhile, our proactive mentality for designing solutions ensures that your networking technology can maximize its long-term value to your organization. 

“The more proactive monitoring and maintenance you perform, the less you need to rely on being completely reactive,” says Crooks. “This principle is central to our support team’s approach. They are trained to focus on proactive measures to identify and address potential issues before they escalate and disrupt operations.”

James Crooks, Senior Solutions Architect at Buckeye Mountain

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Unlock New Efficiencies Across your Rail Yard Operations

Poor connectivity is a drain on your day-to-day operations, leading to more stoppages, disruptions, frustration, and less revenue for your terminal.

The status quo is no longer acceptable. With our Rapid Deploy family of products, Buckeye Mountain can deliver fast, flexible, and scalable wireless infrastructure that benefits every facet of your day-to-day operations.

And, with Buckeye Mountain’s expert support, you can enjoy peace of mind knowing your networking system will be perfectly configured for your environment.

Mobile computers and other specialized hardware have delivered powerful new capabilities that improve speed, efficiency, and productivity in rail and port terminals. But realizing the value of your hardware investment isn’t as simple as buying tablet devices and placing them in the hands of field operations teams. 

Devices require constant management and maintenance to keep them in proper working order. Terminals require durable hardware that can withstand the wear and tear of a rugged work environment—and even then, those facilities need a plan to repair and replace damaged assets. And personal devices must be constantly managed and monitored to make sure they’re used in alignment with company policy.

All of these ongoing tasks fall under the umbrella of hardware lifecycle management—a strategic framework for maximizing the ROI of your terminal’s technology investments. Effective hardware lifecycle management improves the longevity, availability, and performance of your terminal hardware, which in turn delivers tangible performance gains for your field operations teams. 

Terminals have two options for implementing hardware lifecycle management:

• DIY: Your in-house technical teams handle everything on your own: hardware deployments, device management, software updates, repairs, and everything in between.
• Working with a lifecycle management partner: At Buckeye Mountain, for example, our cradle-to-grave approach encompasses the full lifecycle for every hardware solution. From creation to disposal, we manage the full lifecycle thoughtfully and responsibly, ensuring it aligns with your operational and environmental goals.

Let’s dive into the pros and cons of each approach—and lay out the business case for partnering with Buckeye Mountain.

What it Means to Tackle Lifecycle Management with a DIY Approach

Businesses that handle hardware lifecycle management in-house must pull from their existing personnel and resources to enable this strategic framework. 

Inadequate resource support can undercut the effectiveness of DIY lifecycle management. This lays the groundwork for a number of issues which can impact the cost and value of these hardware investments:

Higher Rates of Hardware Downtime

One of the core objectives of lifecycle management is to maximize the availability of hardware for your field ops teams. 

Equipment breakdowns, malfunctions, and device damage are inevitable in challenging rail and port environments. Any instance of hardware downtime can impede operations and overall business performance. 

“Speed is critical because it equates to minimal downtime—especially when dealing with rail and port terminals. In a rail yard, even 10 minutes of downtime can feel like a significant stoppage for workers on the ground and can have costly effects on a terminal.”

Erica Toney, Southeast Operations Manager at Buckeye Mountain

An Increase in Worker Distractions

In a DIY scenario, hardware distractions can come in two forms. 

The first is the amount of time workers end up spending to manage hardware and software on their own instead of fulfilling their primary work responsibilities. These management tasks cancel out some of the productivity gains of the hardware—while also increasing the risk of human error in hardware management.

In some cases, workers may use these devices to access applications or other content that is prohibited on the job site.

“In a rail yard, you can’t have a train and engine employee—someone responsible for counting and assessing train cars—standing there watching YouTube on an iPad,” says Toney. 

But without access to industry-leading mobile device management systems and other remote device management capabilities, DIY lifecycle managers may not have the tools they need to enforce these device policies.

Excessive Repair and Maintenance Costs

Without a readily available, scalable process for handling hardware maintenance and repairs, the DIY approach is likely to result in high repair and maintenance costs that impact your organization’s capital budgets.

If organizations don’t anticipate these costs and allocate an appropriate budget, DIY lifecycle managers could face situations where their capital budget is exhausted before the year’s end, resulting in longer delays for device repairs and even higher rates of equipment downtime. 

Even with a budget in place, the lack of proven, efficient repair and maintenance processes is almost certain to inflate the cost of performing these services in-house.

What Terminal Workers can Accomplish When They Aren’t Tasked with DIY Lifecycle Management

Uninterrupted service during natural events

A severe storm or other natural event can threaten a terminal’s ability to maintain operations. When lifecycle management is being handled in-house, terminal workers may need to focus on getting devices and systems back online to mitigate downtime and keep operations running.

But with a partner like Buckeye Mountain managing this hardware, terminal workers can instead focus on performing their regular tasks. Buckeye can manage everything remotely, and terminal operations can proceed uninterrupted.

“We work closely with our customers—not just on the hardware side, but also to ensure failovers are in place for situations beyond their control,” says Toney. “We understand that outside of the day-to-day hardware support involved in lifecycle management, there are mission-critical scenarios where operational continuity is non-negotiable.”

Ensuring Compliance with Rail Operations Regulations

As terminals move from paper to electronic documentation, materials like rule books and safety documents must always be accessible. This access needs continual oversight to ensure that a failed app update or other technical issue doesn’t restrict access to essential materials.

DIY lifecycle management often leans on terminal workers to make sure this documentation is available—instead of using that documentation to support terminal safety and other compliance requirements. 

With a partner like Buckeye managing devices remotely and ensuring continual access, terminal workers can spend more of their time using that documentation to enable more efficient, compliant operations.

The Benefits of Outsourced Lifecycle Management: What Buckeye Mountain Brings to the Table

Exceptional Customer Service and an Agile Approach

Hardware lifecycle management is a big part of what we do. Whether you’re faced with managing inventory, configuring devices, coordinating repairs or deploying new devices, Buckeye can do it faster and more efficiently than your in-house personnel—even when your needs arise outside of traditional working hours.

“Our commitment to exceptional customer service is evident in both our business-hour service centers and our 24/7 support operation center, which all thrive on Buckeye’s customer-first culture,” says Toney. “This approach exemplifies how we efficiently manage the speed and demands of hardware lifecycle management.”

As terminal technology and hardware infrastructure evolve, Buckeye Mountain also retains the agility to help address emerging changes and seize opportunities to procure new hardware that best serves your facility’s long-term goals.

“Our customers are understandably focused on their day-to-day operations—which means they aren’t always paying attention to the long-term trajectory of their technology, including whether devices are outdated or approaching the end of their lifespan,” says Toney. “Part of our ‘cradle-to-grave’ approach involves keeping track of devices and operating systems nearing the end of their life cycles while understanding the future of projects so we are able to set our customers up for seamless transitions into new hardware rollouts.”

Erica Toney, Southeast Operations Manager at Buckeye Mountain

Timely Device Management and Repair

An Unmatched Partner, from Procurement to Replacement

Our lifecycle management services are comprehensive. We don’t leave any gaps for our customers to fill, and we pride ourselves on being a technology partner that adds value at every stage of the hardware lifecycle.

“A true partnership means both parties are equally invested in the success of the relationship,” says Toney. “At Buckeye Mountain, we’re deeply integrated into our customers’ experiences. We’re part of their successes and their challenges. We remain fully engaged throughout every phase of the lifecycle management process, ensuring we’re not just a vendor but a true partner in their technology journey.”

Erica Toney, Southeast Operations Manager at Buckeye Mountain

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Manage hardware lifecycles at your own risk

Effective lifecycle management isn’t something you can piecemeal from your existing internal resources. It requires expert oversight, long-term strategic planning, and the freedom to quickly take action at scale without interfering with terminal operations.

A DIY approach puts your hardware ROI at risk—and could lead to a plague of inefficiencies and disruptions spilling over into your terminal operations. Buckeye Mountain can help you avoid this outcome while enabling the efficiencies, productivity gains, and long-term cost controls you envisioned when investing into upgraded terminal hardware.

Put your trust in Buckeye Mountain’s lifecycle management expertise.