Critical Communications World 2019: A Recap
From 18th-20th June 2019, the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MITEC) in Kuala Lumpur, was home to the much-anticipated Critical Communications World 2019 (CCW), and now that it is over for another year, we reflect on what made this show such a success for Sepura.
What Sepura Launched
The SCG22: a fully-featured TETRA mobile radio paired with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth which like its SC Series hand-portable counterparts, is enabled with AppSPACE and extends communication into areas that have previously been beyond network coverage. The world-class gateway offers a range of installation options for use in cars, trucks, motorcycles, boats, trains and mobile and fixed control rooms.
Over The Air Programming (OTAP): introduced as a solution to combat the costly and undesirable downtime of radios when updating, configuring or installing software in the traditional manner. Sepura’s SC Series, including the newly launched SCG22, benefit from Wi-Fi functionality which enables seamless remote upgrades to run in the background, whilst out in the field through OTAP.
What Sepura Showcased
Applications for deployment through AppSPACE are continuously evolving to meet the needs of those in both public safety organisations and commercial businesses, helping to transform the capability of SC Series hand-portable and mobile radios. The following apps were demonstrated at CCW2019:
Radio Asset Logger: Simplify the management of pool radios by enabling ID entry at radio ‘power on’. The radio then sends this data to a regularly updating asset register, detailing which user has which radio, helping to reduce the prospect of financial loss and any risks to security.
Battery Date Checker: A safe and simple approach to battery withdrawal; when a battery is due to be replaced, this app starts the withdrawal process by advising the radio user that the battery should be taken out of service and returned to their fleet managers.
What Sepura Presented
As TETRA experts, Sepura representatives were involved in presenting on current topics in the critical communications industry through masterclasses and the main conference sessions.
On Tuesday 18th, Peter Hudson, Sepura’s Head of Global TETRA Terminals Product Line joined the TETRA Today and Tomorrow session to present on "TETRA - convergence for innovation, safety and efficiencies", highlighting how TETRA has evolved over the years to support multi-functional devices in order to meet the needs of an ever-changing user base, whilst maintaining its mission critical performance ability, an imperative for many users. At the same time, Doug Bowden, Sepura’s Senior Business Development Manager Oceania joined the Insights into Malaysian and APAC Critical Communications session to present on "How private LTE deployments are complementing TETRA in the Australian mining resource sector". In this presentation Doug highlighted how mines are investing in autonomous vehicles through LTE and Wi-Fi technology, which paradoxically is increasing the need for mission critical secure and robust voice communication for safety purposes.
Later in the day, Phil Woodley, Sepura's Head of Products - TETRA Devices presented on "TETRA Increasing Efficiency and Staff Safety in Utility Plants". One of the examples he gave was an offshore windfarm that employed TETRA based communications with automatic location sensing to ensure the safety of workers in some of the most inhospitable working conditions.
Next, Hannu Aronsson, as a co-chair of the session "Mission Critical Applications: How do I get one?" talked about mission critical applications and how they can be used to add efficiency, safety and functionality to a TETRA radio whilst maintaining its mission critical status. He talked through several of the applications available, including using SDA data to deliver Hazchem information to front line firefighters when dealing with a chemical tanker accident.
On Wednesday 19th, Peter Hudson, joined the panel discussion "Devices: narrowband, broadband, hybrid, hype: what's real, what's realistic?". Peter then later joined the "Advances in TETRA Data and Apps" panel discussion with Hannu. In these panel discussions, the presenters were able to inform the delegates on the latest updates on the narrowband vs broadband debate, before answering a range of questions on the topic.
International Critical Communications Awards
Held on the evening of Tuesday 18th June, the International Critical Communications Awards rewarded those that have contributed to the industry through real-life examples which have improved the way a business or organisation operates. Congratulations are extended to all finalists and winners; a great night was had by all.
Sepura were pleased to be awarded a total of 3 awards which included the following:
“Best Use of Critical Communications in Other Vertical Markets” for our work with Shell Pulau Bukom
“Outstanding Contribution to Critical Communications” was awarded to Sepura colleague, Mark Rayne
Read more about Sepura’s full award wins here, with a full list of all award winners available here.
Finally, Sepura would like to take this opportunity to thank all visitors who joined us to see our product launches, live demonstrations, presentations and awards. CCW is always a great opportunity to see the latest innovations and celebrate success in the critical communications industry, we look forward to next year as CCW 2020 returns to Madrid. If you would like to find out more about the products introduced at the show or how Sepura’s solutions can enhance your organisations communications, please submit an enquiry here.