Beginning in late December, wireless carriers began to disable their 2G cellular towers to make room for newer, faster technology such as 3G and 4G. By December 31, all 2G communication was eliminated.
All MFA Oil delivery trucks are equipped with routers that send communications from the drivers’ handhelds to our operating systems through cellular transmissions in constant live communication. Well over half of these trucks used 2G communication while the rest are on 3G.
The loss of 2G has impacted those trucks with a blue ZBox router. The drivers of these trucks are no longer on a live system and must now upload their routes in the morning before leaving the plant and download their handheld’s data at the plant at the completion of their shift. The company does not plan to replace the ZBox routers at this time since these trucks will go back to a live environment after they are converted over to the E-1 system. Trucks with newer 3G router equipment are not affected by these changes.