Public Safety Communications: Shifting the Paradigm

1
Public Safety Communications Shifting the
Paradigm

• Greg Meacham
• Vice President, Federal Programs Homeland
  Security
• Nextel Communications

2
The Present

• Existing communications paradigm is the owned
  and operated Land Mobile Radio (LMR) system. It
  has advantages
• High degree of control
• Coverage
• Capacity
• Cost
• Priority Access on system
• One to one or broadcast capability
• Simplex (talk around) capability independent of
  infrastructure
• Encryption

3
Disadvantages of Owned and Operated LMR Systems

• Expensive Huge capital requirement
• Inflexible System upgrades are expensive and
  technological refresh is limited
• Annual maintenance costs
• Repairs
• Personnel
• Tower Rent (Real cost or opportunity cost)
• Linking Circuits- T lines
• Need to over engineer the system
• Back up power supplies
• Redundant microwave
• Planning, Funding, Implementation cycle is very
  long
• If you err in planning you are stuck with the
  problem for the lifecycle

4
Advantages of Commercial Solutions

• Connectivity to PSTN
• New technologies more easily deployed and less
  expensive
• One provider can give you priority access on
  their Direct Connect feature today
• One provider will offer two way radio connections
  between members of a talk group anywhere in the
  country this year and coast-to-coast radio
  connections in 2003
• Form factor on subscriber devices
• Smaller and lighter
• Greater flexibility- customize phone to user
• Limited up front capital costs
• Reoccurring costs can be budgeted with accuracy
• No hidden costs, and competition lowers total
  cost
• Higher data speeds both now and in the future
• If you make a mistake you cancel the service

5
Disadvantages of Commercial Service

• Loss of control
• Dependent upon others to maintain your system
• Limited input re coverage and capacity
• Only one provider currently offers two-way radio
  capability in addition to cellular. Current
  systems dependant on infrastructure
• Encryption not offered.

6
How Much Control Do You Really Have?

• Do you have access to unlimited funding to get
  all the coverage/capacity you want?
• Have you compromised coverage to locate on
  Government sites?
• Does your system rely on commercial circuits for
  connectivity/linking?
• Do you depend on the local radio shop for
  infrastructure repair?

7
World Trade Center Example

• Several federal agencies used WTC as primary
  transmit site for NY/NJ area, their systems were
  down. still not up to pre 9/11 condition.
• FBI experienced 60 system degrading in lower
  Manhattan when a major telecommunications central
  office went offline knocking out system
  connectivity 7 days and gt 5 million dollars to
  restore.
• Paging services, ATM machines, and data services
  were all degraded in varying degrees 10-15 days
  to restore.
• All commercial service providers dynamically
  increased capacity through the deployment of
  COWs in less than 12 hours.
• Telecommunications is critical infrastructure
  It is a terrorist target.

8
Can you afford to build a telephone system to
handle Mothers Day?

• A private LMR system will remain a critical
  component of Public Safety Communications for the
  near future however, significant amounts of
  Public Safety wireless communications could
  appropriately be off loaded to commercial service
  providers
• Reduce the required number of channels
• Reduce capital cost
• Reduce maintenance costs
• Enhance interoperability
• Lower cost per unit facilitates communications
  with non-traditional users
• Red Cross, Salvation Army, the Volunteer Corps
• Heavy equipment operators
• Utility company personnel

9
Dont Put All Your Eggs in One Basket

• An Integrated Digital Wireless Communications
  System combines the strengths of private LMR
  systems with the strengths of commercial systems
  to yield the best total system solution at less
  cost.
• Increased capacity
• Higher data speeds
• Connectivity to PSTN (efficient connectivity)
• Encryption
• Inherent redundancy in infrastructure
• Technical support to system grows exponentially
• Technology refresh comes faster and cheaper
• Risk mitigation

10
The Winter Olympics was a Public Private
Partnership

• The State of Utah (UCAN), and the Department of
  Justice (JWN) each built new, state of the art
  radio networks to support the Olympic games. 
• The Utah Olympic Public Safety Command (UOPSC)
• Coordinated the activities of 83 federal, state,
  and local agencies
• Deployed over 15,000 personnel in support of the
  games
• Largest domestic security operation in US history
• The UOPSC organizational structure is being
  duplicated across the country in the creation and
  development of Homeland Security Departments
• UOPSC utilized a commercial service provider to
  expand system capacity and facilitate
  interoperability.

11
The Case for Data

• Commercial Providers will deliver streaming video
  with 3G
• The most often used data applications currently
  running on MDTs can be pushed onto a cell phone
  or PDA by all major commercial service providers.
• Commercial coverage is greater than ever, more
  robust and continues to grow
• One commercial provider presently offers Java as
  a data platform bringing greatly enhanced data
  capability.
• One provider will introduce a Blackberry type
  device that offers cellular interconnect, two way
  radio, paging, web browsing, customized data
  solutions, and 128 bit DES III encryption for
  data by year end.

12
When the only tool you have in your box of
solutions is a hammer, all your problems are
treated like nails

• Dont leave communications system design to
  engineers or technicians
• Get a bean counter involved
• Manage your requirements/expectations
• Present politicians with options not ultimatums
• An enhanced capability today is of more value
  than a perfect solution in 5-7 years.

13
Thank You!