Mary Rose Roberts
Mary Rose Roberts is the associate editor of Urgent Communications, formerly Mobile Radio Technology magazine. She can be reached at maryrose.roberts@penton.com
ROCHESTER, NY, March 13, 2009 — Harris Corporation (NYSE:HRS), an international communications and information technology company, today announced an agreement with Monroe County, New York, to collaborate on the testing and development of new public safety communications technologies, including the Harris Unity XG-100, the new multiband, multimode radio that provides full-spectrum communications interoperability to public safety and government agencies.
The company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Monroe County’s Department of Public Safety, a recognized leader in the performance evaluation and adoption of new technologies. The agreement calls for the Public Safety Department, which procures radios for every public safety agency in Monroe County, to provide feedback and evaluation of the XG-100 as well as other Harris-developed public safety communications products. The agreement was announced at a press conference today in Rochester by Maggie Brooks, Monroe County Executive, and Dana Mehnert, president of Harris RF Communications.
The Harris Unity XG-100 provides instantaneous, direct, full-spectrum communications interoperability among federal, state, local and government agencies. Current radio systems for public safety are only compatible through ad-hoc work-around systems often configured at the time of an emergency. Harris introduced the first multiband radio for public safety.
“We’re pleased to begin field trials for the Unity radio family in Monroe County, an area with innovative, forward-thinking public safety and law enforcement personnel,” Dana Mehnert said. “When we entered the public safety market, we pledged to apply our expertise in software-defined, multiband radios to address the long-standing communication challenges facing public safety organizations and their first responders. This partnership with Monroe County will accelerate the development and enhance the effectiveness of our communications solutions.”
“Today’s announcement is a wonderful example of how government and the private sector can come together and forge a relationship that is not only beneficial to them, but also has an immediate impact on the taxpayers of our community,” Monroe County Executive Maggie Brooks said. “Public safety has been, and will always be, a top priority for Monroe County. Ensuring that our first responders, law enforcement, EMS, and other public safety workers are equipped with state-of-the-art technology to perform their duties is a win-win for our entire community.”
“The Unity family of radios is based on our heritage as the leading provider of high-performance software-defined tactical radios for military users. We are now on our third-generation of multiband tactical radios, with hundreds of thousands deployed all over the world,” said George Helm, vice president and general manager, Government and Public Safety Business unit, Harris RF Communications. “Harris is committed to applying this expertise to solve the increasingly complex communication problems of government and public safety personnel. We’re looking forward to collaborating with Monroe County personnel to gain further insights into the issues facing first responders and other government communicators.”
The Unity XG-100 is the first in a family of Harris radios designed to allow federal, state, and local public safety agencies to communicate more effectively. The new radio covers all portable land mobile radio frequency bands in a single radio and is compliant with the APCO Project 25, a suite of standards for digital radio communications for use by federal, state, and local public safety agencies.
The multiband capability of the radio will also allow public safety agencies to efficiently transition to new networks, including the newly available 700 MHz frequency band. The Unity XG-100 is easily upgradeable via software updates to support evolving P25 standards, future capabilities and changing mission requirements.
For more information on Unity and Harris capabilities in public safety, go to www.talkasone.com.
About Harris Corporation
Harris is an international communications and information technology company serving government and commercial markets in more than 150 countries. Headquartered in Melbourne, Florida, the company has annual revenue of $5.4 billion and 16,000 employees — including nearly 7,000 engineers and scientists. Harris is dedicated to developing best-in-class assured communications® products, systems, and services. Additional information about Harris Corporation is available at www.harris.com.
BridgeCom System, Inc. would like to introduce the CA-1 iDEN Bridge. The CA-1 provides a communications bridge between any popular iDEN network, like Sprint/Nextel or SouthernLinc, and the TL-NET network. The CA-1 allows an iDEN subscriber to communicate with and be party to a two-way radio talk group, conventional/LTR or Digital, via Push To Talk. Add your CA-1 to an existing site where the iDEN network is available. Each CA-1 will have its own iDEN private call number. The iDEN user will call the CA-1’s call number to connect to the two-way radio talk group. System Access is quick and the audio quality is excellent. For more information contact Tim@BridgeComSystems.com or www.BridgeComSystems.com.
Winston-Salem, NC — March 16, 2009 – InterAct Public Safety, a leading provider of security and public safety software used by local, state, national and international government agencies, announces three new convenient map maintenance services for Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs). InterAct takes full ownership of map updates, freeing up PSAP personnel to focus on more challenging public safety tasks while providing highly accurate and time-sensitive mapping updates.
Precise maps are essential to emergency dispatch centers. Even slight inaccuracies can cause unacceptable delays in fire, police, or emergency personnel arriving on the scene. PSAPs rarely have the available staff necessary to perform the complex and time-intensive data management that is required to provide up-to-date, accurate maps.
“Updating the maps in our GIS system was always a hassle,” said Johnny Cheatwood, director of the Lawrence County, TN Emergency Communication District. “Since signing up for InterAct’s map maintenance program, maintaining accurate area maps is a breeze. I took a quick training class and was able to perform map updates within a matter of minutes. This saves us a tremendous amount of time that can be used on more critical public safety tasks.”
InterAct’s three map maintenance plans range from $5,000 - $11,400 and offer up to 120 hours of map programming/update time. Agencies can choose to buy or lease a GPS device from InterAct that allows for the collection of accurate structure points and road centerlines. Organizations can provide this data to InterAct for conversion, cleanup, and merging with the PSAP’s existing GIS dataset. Building inspectors or other individuals can use the device to perform GPS collection, freeing up busy 9-1-1 personnel, while allowing continuous updates and improvements to an organization’s map precision and accuracy.
“We are always trying to address the needs of our customers and respond accordingly,” said Ted Collins, President and CEO of InterAct Public Safety. “Our customers have expressed that our mapping systems are tremendously helpful, but manual updates take up too much time and manpower. With our new mapping maintenance service, we are taking a chore away from our customers so that they can spend more time keeping the public safe and less time on administrative tasks and data input.”
About InterAct Public Safety
Since 1975, InterAct Public Safety Systems has been Making Connections for Life™ providing both stand-alone and fully integrated mission-critical public safety and homeland security systems and products. As the pioneers of the first three-screen E911 system 20 years ago, our passion for innovation is leading the way to Next Generation telephony, dispatch, records management, and mobile data systems. We’re extending the definition of public safety with unique applications like intelligent digital video surveillance, alert notification, and crisis management systems. InterAct makes it possible for first responders from private, state, local and national agencies to decrease response times and increase their effectiveness in the communities they serve. InterAct is also an ISO 9001:2000 certified company. Learn more at http://www.interact911.com or by calling 1-800-768-3911.
BOULDER, Colo. – March 16, 2009 – As the drumbeat of bad economic news hits a fevered pitch, last Thursday afternoon, FreeWave Technologies (www.freewave.com) distributed the third installment of a $9 million equity bonus to its employees. The bonus, part of a $113 million private-equity transaction, was given by Company Founders Steve Wulchin and Jonathan Sawyer to reward employees for their hard work and dedication that has helped the company become the leading supplier of high-performance spread spectrum and licensed radio products and services.
“This bonus is a tribute to the great work all FreeWave employees do everyday to build great products and deliver them to customers with the highest level of service,” said Co-founder and CTO Sawyer. “Our philosophy is simple – as the company prospers, so to should the employees that helped us get to where we are today.”
As the industry’s largest independent provider of spread spectrum and licensed radio products and services, FreeWave continues to build products that are more reliable, cost-effective and technically advanced to meet the growing need for remote wireless data transmission. The wireless data radio provider continues to build upon its leadership position in oil and gas; military; electric power; and, the water industries, to name a few. Its success is based on two simple concepts: First, hire the best and the brightest; and second, listen to your customers, deliver what they need.
“Having a common purpose and shared responsibility results in great business performance, satisfied customers and a self-fulfilled workforce,” said Wulchin, the company’s CEO. “Nine million dollars seems like a lot of money, and it is. Sharing in the success of the company has and always will be a cornerstone of how FreeWave builds it business.
“This bonus, of course, is very important. It does over-shadow some of the hallmarks of our philosophy for running the company successfully;” Wulchin continued. “FreeWave has never had a layoff and we are committed to avoiding ever having a layoff. We have paid bonuses every six months since hiring our first employees in 1995 – including as recently as January 2009. On average, the lowest the annual value this bonus has been for any employee over each of the last five years is more than $11,000,” he added. “We feel that being profitable is more than a goal. It is critical to our customers and employees. Every month since we have had employees, we have been profitable.
“Finally, we view each of bonus programs in the same light. Our people work very, very hard,” Wulchin noted. “These bonuses give them a chance to help define their own success along with the company’s success. We know that they will continue to contribute at very high levels and we will commit to sharing the fruits of our joint success.”
About FreeWave Technologies
Founded in 1993, FreeWave Technologies is a world leader in the innovative design and manufacture of license-free spread spectrum and licensed band radios and wireless data solutions that are trusted for mission critical applications around the world. Based in Boulder, Colorado, the company offers network design, path studies and pre-installation engineering services to enable reliable, error free data-flow in even the most challenging conditions and in environments. FreeWave is the only long term radio provider with in-family 100 percent backward compatibility with fully integrated, best-in-class engineered products. For additional information, contact FreeWave directly at 866.399.4930 or at newsinfo@freewave.com. Visit the company’s website at www.freewave.com.
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass., March 9, 2009 – L-com, a global leader in the manufacture of wired and wireless connectivity solutions has introduced a new Digital Signage distribution system to address the growing market for digital signage solutions.
“Increasingly we have had requests for more versatile, scalable digital signage systems from our customers. Due to this demand we have developed this easy to use solution which grows with the customers business,” said Greg Pepin Product Manager.
The new SignDriver™ system consists of a 4 port hub which connects via CAT-X cabling to remote units. Options for this line include audio support as well as several off the shelf kits that include a single distribution hub and one remote unit (with audio and without).
The SignDriver™ system can extend a maximum of 1,000 feet away from the source and supports video resolutions of up to 1600×1280@60hz.
For more information about this release, please contact:
Greg Pepin, Product Manager
978-682-6936 x1186, gpepin@L-com.com
About L-com
L-com, a global leader in the manufacture of wired and wireless connectivity products, offers a wide range of solutions and unmatched customer service for the electronics and data communications industries. The company’s product portfolio includes cable assemblies, connectors, adapters, computer networking components, and custom products, as well as their HyperLink line of wireless products which include Antennas, RF Amplifiers, Coaxial lightning and surge protectors, and NEMA rated enclosures. L-com’s HyperLink wireless products are designed for WiFi, WiMAX, SCADA, 802.11a/b/g/n, RFID and Bluetooth applications. Trusted for over 25 years, L-com, which is headquartered in North Andover, MA, is ISO 9001: 2000 certified and many of its products are UL® recognized. www.L-com.com
Arcata, CA - March 9, 2009 - Carlson Wireless Technologies (Arcata CA) is excited to announce that it has partnered with U.S. Commerce Equipment Finance, L.L.C. to provide financing for the purchase of Carlson’s Trailblazer™ leased line and telephone line replacement radios. Trailblazer radios create reliable microwave links often used in place of wired leased telephone lines, and are available in the unlicensed 5.x and licensed public safety 4.9 GHz frequency bands.
Leased line service for a single leased line provided by a telephone company can average up to $800 per month. Many agencies lease multiple lines, racking up thousands of dollars in monthly fees. The average cost of a Trailblazer lease line replacement system is less than $7,500 per link; however, even this modest upfront capital investment can sometimes be too much for a municipality or business to afford. This is why Carlson Wireless and U.S. Commerce Equipment Finance developed the “lease-to-own your own leased line” program, making it possible for an agency to eliminate monthly leased line payments in as little as 24 to 48 months without negatively impacting their existing budgets.
“While we have seen interest from agencies planning to utilize anticipated Stimulus Package funding, there are still many others who cannot avail of that resource,” said Larry Goldberg, Director of Sales with Carlson Wireless. “Even so, budgets are getting tighter and tighter, and it has become critical for departments to find ways to reduce recurring costs like leased lines. By purchasing or financing a microwave replacement, these monthly costs can be significantly reduced or even eliminated.”
Public safety agencies often use leased lines to provide permanent voice and data connectivity for essential communications. Often these lines are susceptible to storm damage causing catastrophic failure of crucial communication services. Carlson Wireless exclusive TrueTDM™ technology Trailblazer™ radios provide reliable Carrier Class/wireline quality of service without many of the potential weather- or terrain-related complications.
“We are happy to be working with U.S. Commerce Equipment Finance, L.L.C.. Their reputation for great customer service is important to us; we think it’s a perfect fit,” said James Carlson, CEO of Carlson Wireless. Customers who are interested in participating in the new payment plan should contact a Carlson Wireless representative at 1-800-834-2076.
For over a decade Carlson Wireless has been providing wireless communications solutions for large telecommunications projects, industry and public safety agencies to single telephone and data links. Carlson Wireless’ unique combination of their exclusive TrueTDM™ and SWiFT™ technologies provide for perfect wireline quality for POTS, 4-wire E&M, T1, SCADA and IP for a variety of applications. For more information visit www.CarlsonWireless.com.
Award-winning iMAT enables lower cost of ownership, simpler integration, and improved aesthetic designs by replacing several antennas with one
VIERA, Fla.—Mar. 10, 2009— SkyCross, a global antenna solutions company, announced that it has applied its Isolated Mode Antenna Technology (iMAT) to a new product line for access points and routers. Both commercial and enterprise networking base stations are configured today with multiple antennas. iMAT consolidates the performance benefits of multiple antennas into a single antenna to lower cost of ownership, simplify integration, and improve aesthetic designs without sacrificing performance.
The first antenna released in this innovative product line covers 2.4 GHz and 5.1-5.9 GHz to support 801.11 a/b/g/n. iMAT is particularly advantageous for 802.11n, which requires MIMO (multiple-input, multiple-output) operation. Traditionally, this protocol requires device manufacturers to have two to four external antennas on an access point or router. By using an iMAT antenna, device manufacturers can quickly realize the cost and integration savings, and end customers can easily see the reduction of antennas when selecting a product.
“iMAT is perfectly suited to free device manufacturers from the convention of using multiple antennas for access points and routers,” said Joe Gifford, Executive Vice President of Business Development and Marketing at SkyCross. “This unique solution has attracted major OEMs and ODMs, and we are pleased to serve this market with our highly successful approach.”
iMAT has continued to demonstrate its versatility since SkyCross unveiled the technology in January 2008. The first release of products included solutions for WiMAX, WiFi, and HSPA, which were quickly integrated into winning devices such as the first USB dongle certified by the WiMAX Forum®. Most recently, SkyCross announced an ultra-low cost handset solution with Infineon that enables manufacturers to eliminate the switchplexer in their handset architecture by using a dual-feed iMAT antenna for transmit and receive.
The growing number of applications for iMAT technology is complemented by several prestigious industry awards including Fierce15, Portable Design Editor’s Choice Innovation of the Year, and EE Times Most Promising Technology Finalist.
About SkyCross
SkyCross (www.skycross.com) is a global wireless company providing antenna solutions to the mobile phone, home entertainment, and computing industries. SkyCross provides high-performance, frequency-agile, protocol-independent antenna technology bundled with RF system-level expertise and responsive regional support. This convenient approach empowers device manufacturers to develop winning consumer electronics products and deliver them to market faster and easier. SkyCross is ISO 9001 certified and supports customers from its full-service facilities in the USA, South Korea, and China.
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Irving, TX – March 10, 2009 – EF Johnson Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: EFJI) today announced that it has created a dedicated systems group to focus on the development, marketing, sales and implementation of the company’s IP25™ line of Project 25 compliant infrastructure systems.
“Our trunked and conventional IP25 systems offerings lead the industry in innovative features and exceptional value,” said Michael Jalbert, president and chief executive officer of EF Johnson Technologies, Inc. “Using industry-standard Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology, our IP25 systems provide a secure, reliable and scalable interoperable infrastructure. Our conventional system is the most full-featured on the market, while our trunked system sets the standard for protection against single point of failure. We have formed a systems group within our company to underscore our commitment to supporting trunked and conventional systems, encourage innovative developments, and drive market adoption of our standards-based systems.” The company has tapped David Lukeson, a 25-year veteran of land mobile radio systems, to lead the group, Jalbert added.
About EF Johnson Technologies, Inc.
Headquartered in Irving, Texas, EF Johnson Technologies, Inc. focuses on innovating, developing and marketing the highest quality secure communications solutions to organizations whose mission is to protect and save lives. The Company’s customers include first responders in public safety and public service, the federal government, and industrial organizations. The Company’s products are marketed under the EFJohnson, 3e Technologies International, and Transcrypt International names. For more information, visit http://www.EFJohnsonTechnologies.com.
Malaga, Spain, 10 March 2009 — AT4 wireless, the WiMAX Forum® Technology Competence Center, has been from the beginning of the WiMAX™ Technology Era a key player, not just due to its role as the first WiMAX Forum Designated Certification Laboratory (WFDCL), but also in quest of the best RF and Protocol Test Solutions.
Now, the MiNT T2110 Radio Conformance Test System and MiNT T2100 Pre-RCT for WiMAX as well as the MiNT 223x Protocol Conformance Test System, the last one jointly developed with Aeroflex, support the new 2.3 GHz frequency band in 5 MHz and 10 MHz bandwidths. This profile increases its importance worldwide becoming extremely popular in some regions as South East Asia and North America.
“This new profile enlarges the scope of our MiNT product family for WiMAX, becoming the first and the most versatile products in the marketplace. All of our WiMAX MiNT products are based on the MiNT E1130, BS/MS multi-profile emulator, able to support profiles from 2.3 GHz to 3.9 GHz. This capability is indeed a key factor for its success. Now, it is allowing our WiMAX products to rapidly evolve to the market expectations.” said Adrián García Muñoz, WiMAX Product Manager at AT4 wireless.
AT4 wireless continues to anticipate to the customer testing needs, covering all the official test cases for certification and supporting all the profiles defined by the WiMAX Forum in 2.3 GHz, 2.5 GHz and 3.5 GHz, ensuring the current leadership of the WiMAX MiNT test systems.
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About AT4 wireless
AT4 wireless is a global supplier of Testing Solutions for wireless technologies recognized as the most complete Wireless Certification & Testing Laboratory in the world and a leading manufacturer of cutting-edge test & measurement equipment for telecommunication technologies.
With the largest coverage in different technologies (GSM/GPRS/EDGE, WCDMA, HSPA, LTE™, WiMAX™, Bluetooth®, Wi-Fi®, RFID, NFC, EPC, WiMEDIA and Ultra Wideband) and a portfolio that ranges from design and verification, conformance, performance, regulatory and interoperability testing to worldwide compliance services, AT4 wireless’ Test Laboratory offers a one-stop-shop approach for the certification of telecommunication devices.
With our world-class self-developed Test Systems MiNT, BITE and RIDER, AT4 wireless meets all certification aspects like R&TTE, FCC, GCF, PTCRB, WiMAX Forum®, Wi-Fi Alliance and Bluetooth SIG.
AT4 wireless was founded in 1991, has more than 370 employees and operates from it’s headquarter in Malaga/Spain and its US-based branch in Herndon/VA.
For more information, visit www.at4wireless.com.
“WiMAX”, “WiMAX Forum”, “WiMAX Certified”, “WiMAX Forum Certified”, the WiMAX Forum Logo and the WiMAX Forum Certified Logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of the WiMAX Forum.
All other trademarks are the properties of their respective owners.
WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today the successful transition of the Secret Service’s fully searchable Digital Ink Library. The largest of its kind, this cutting-edge system for analyzing ink evidence will assist the Secret Service in the investigation and identification of suspects in critical financial crimes and protective intelligence cases.
Created in partnership with the U. S. Secret Service, CAMAG Scientific Inc. and the University of Lausanne, the now electronically searchable Digital Ink Library provides the Secret Service and other federal, state, local and international law enforcement agencies with the ability to identify and analyze written evidence by consulting an archive of nearly 10,000 digitized ink samples. These inks are critical in the investigation of criminal and terrorist cases involving fraudulent financial documents, checks, money orders, property and asset documents, and threats to persons under law enforcement protection.
“The transition of the ink library has been a collaborative effort between the Department and the men and women of the Secret Service. Without the Department’s support, transitioning our in-house ink collection, the largest of its kind in the world, would not have been possible,” said Assistant Director Michael Merritt of the Secret Service’s Office of Investigations. “Over the years, the Secret Service has placed tremendous emphasis on the partnerships that we have developed with our state, local, tribal, and federal law enforcement partners. The Digital Ink Library is another tool that the Secret Service will share with our law enforcement partners to enhance their investigative capabilities.”
The Digital Library uses a new high-quality solvent system to separate each ink sample into unique bands. By digitizing the results, the Library allows for accurate, timely classification and secure, real-time sample matching. As a result, ink sample matching takes minutes as opposed to hours or days, and irreplaceable inks remain safe from environmental degradation and accidental contamination.
“The transition of the Secret Service’s Digital Ink Library represents an important milestone in our efforts to enhance evidence collection and analysis to enable more rapid, effective prosecution,” said Dr. David Boyd, Director of the Science and Technology Directorate’s Command, Control and Interoperability Division within DHS. “The Digital Ink Library will significantly enhance the Secret Service’s ability to assist local, tribal, state, and federal law enforcement agencies with the investigation and identification of suspects, making our nation safer and more secure.”
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