INDUSTRY NEWS
Technology and Innovation
After two decades of informal collaboration, two industry leaders have now formally partnered to deliver an integrated solution for public safety control rooms in the UK.
The partnership between Hexagon and Frequentis allows emergency services to deploy a proven, best-of-breed solution at the heart of their critical control room ecosystem, which promotes innovation and constant evolution, while avoiding supplier lock-in.
More than 30 public safety agencies in the UK and Europe already use Frequentis control room communication solutions with Hexagon’s computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system, and North America is taking notice.
The challenges of keeping society safe have never been more visible – or felt more acutely – than in the critical control room environment. The new control room solution features superior integration by design coupled with unsurpassed industry experience.
Operational staff demand timely actionable information and insight to make the right decisions and deliver the right response yet multiple data sources, while offering opportunity and insight, risk confusion and unmanageable complexity. The quicker a situation can be visualized, the faster it can be acted upon. It is the overwhelming ambition of the Chief Information Officer to deliver this situational awareness.
Frequentis is a specialist in safety-critical communication and information solutions with more than seventy years of cross-industry experience in civil aviation, defence, public safety, maritime and public transportation markets. It is now the market leader in the provision of UK Public Safety control room communication solutions for First Contact and Despatch.
“We are pleased to partner with Hexagon to combine our expertise and experience in the market and deliver safety-critical control room solutions that put the operator back in control, enabling enhanced situational awareness and a faster emergency response,” said Andy Madge, Frequentis UK Managing Director. “We intend to provide the best information available to those who make the key decisions in critical scenarios. Our Emergency Services can then deliver an effective service to the public.”
Hexagon is the world leader in the supply of incident management solutions and is unique in the UK in providing these to customers across all three emergency services as well as roadside rescue. Its broader portfolio: notably asset management, mobility, analytics, major event planning and crisis management underpins Safe City initiatives around the world.
“Suppliers must offer open solutions possessing superior integration characteristics while focussing on their core competencies,” said Pete Prater, Managing Director of Hexagon Safety & Infrastructure in the UK. “The best way to support the ambition of the emergency services is to recognize that an ecosystem of suppliers – offering a combination of superior components – is the key to critical ICT provisioning. The latest integrated solution from Frequentis and Hexagon delivers on this ambition.”
