Ballast weight is how the industry has historically answered the PCMS stability...
What Cleated Footplates Do That Ballast Weight Alone Cannot
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About The Author
Rusty Latenser
Founder of INEX, USAF and USAFR fighter pilot, commercial airline pilot, and the engineering lead behind the Spyder Platform PCMS.
Rusty Latenser served nearly two decades as a USAF and USAFR fighter pilot, flying F-16s and F-4s from 1976 to 1995. After retiring from military service, he spent years as a commercial airline pilot before founding Information Exchange Network, Inc. (INEX) in 1994.
Drawing on a career built around precision engineering and zero tolerance for failure, Rusty set out to solve the problems that had gone unaddressed in the portable changeable message sign industry for decades — stolen components, unstable platforms, unreliable power systems, and equipment that put crews at unnecessary risk.
Today, he leads the design and engineering of the Spyder Platform PCMS, a full-size, full-matrix message board manufactured in El Reno, Oklahoma. His approach is simple: listen to the people who deploy and maintain PCMS equipment in the field, then engineer solutions that eliminate the problems they deal with every day.
Questions? Give us a call.
How Slope Capability Determines Where a Message Board Can Legally and Safely Sit
Slope is rarely the first thing an operator thinks about when selecting a PCMS...
PCMS Trailer Theft: What Gets Stolen, Part by Part
If you manage a PCMS fleet long enough, you stop being surprised by what turns up...
What the AASHTO 18-Foot Guideline Actually Means for Your Operation
There is a number that shows up in roadside safety guidance that most traffic control...
Why PCMS Placement Distance From Traffic Is a Design Problem, Not a Site Decision
Ask most traffic control operators where they place a PCMS unit, and the answer is the...
What An MPPT Is— And Why It Matters For PCMS Units
An MPPT (Maximum Power Point Tracking) controller is a smart solar charge controller...
Why PCMS Tip-Overs Are Not Weather Events — They’re Engineering Failures
When a portable changeable message sign goes over in a windstorm, the incident report...
PCMS Lead-Acid and LiFePO4 Batteries Cold and Hot Weather Ops
Bottom line in general: Lead-Acid does not handle heat well, requires lowering...
How to Read Controller Data to Predict Lockouts
Most lockouts don’t “just happen.” The controller almost always warns you first. Message...