Dan Murunga 
Industry: Specialty Foundation Drilling (Second largest specialty drilling company in the United States)
Quote
“I feel like my communication nightmare is over finally. This has been a very long many years with not being able to hear on the radio, so this has made my life much easier.” – Jodi Sharrock, District Safety Manager, Malcolm Drilling
Business Challenge
Malcolm Drilling’s southeast district faced significant communication challenges across their 13 Miami-area job sites. Their previous radio systems (Motorola and Kenwood) suffered from interference issues, poor clarity, and weren’t sufficiently durable for their demanding environment. With crews working in noisy conditions around drilling equipment and in wet/dusty environments, effective communication was critical but difficult to achieve. Additionally, with many Spanish-speaking workers, language barriers complicated coordination further. The company was spending approximately $120,000 annually on radio systems that weren’t meeting their needs.
Why They Chose Walt Smart Radio System
After discovering weavix, Malcolm Drilling’s leadership recognized potential solutions to their ongoing communication problems:
- Durability needs (waterproof and dustproof capabilities)
- Clear audio in extremely loud environments
- Translation capabilities for Spanish-speaking crew members
- Better reception and connectivity
- Cost effectiveness (they were spending approximately $120,000 annually on radio systems)
The Solution
weavix deployed approximately 140 Walt Smart Radios across Malcolm Drilling’s southeast operations:
- Personalized implementation with on-site training and support
- Custom channel configuration for different crews
- Offline channels for critical crane operations requiring minimal delay
- Translation setup for Spanish-speaking workers
- Dedicated support for troubleshooting
The Results
- Dramatically improved audio clarity in noisy environments, with workers able to hear communications even while wearing earplugs next to extremely loud drilling equipment
- Successful language translation between English and Spanish speakers
- 10,000+ messages sent weekly (approximately 11,000 in the past week, with 20,000 over 14 weeks), demonstrating high adoption
- Long-distance communication capability (crews can communicate from 2-3 hours away from job sites)
- Better durability in wet and dusty conditions
- “Best rollout ever” after eight years of radio system implementations
Key Use Cases
- Crane operations coordination
- Cross-language communication
- HR department using translation for Spanish-speaking employees (with a notable example where a Spanish speaker was so impressed by the translation that he asked “I buy on Amazon?”)
- Text messaging during meetings
- Photo sharing for field documentation (with “very clear” image quality)
- Long-distance team coordination
Future Expansion
- Potential rollout to other Malcolm Drilling districts
- Interest in upcoming speaker mic accessories
- Exploring safety flash communications
Footer
Simple, Smart and Safe for Your Frontline Workforce.
You’ve seen how weavix transformed one of the world’s largest specialty foundation drilling companies – now imagine what we can do for your team.
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