Wide Area Coverage Achieved for Council thanks to PTTOC

Every council in the UK needs a reliable and effective communication system so that employees may stay in constant contact. Coverage can be difficult because staff can often work across various locations.

Radio Solutions have worked closely with councils to provide the best communication solution available. Traditional two-way radios (RF) were previously used by one customer on a wide area network. A problem they faced was that their council border had multiple blackspots and lacked functionality and the necessary flexibility.

Increasing Communication Capabilities

The council wanted to be able to add, remove, and modify users in order to improve communication. They searched for new technological possibilities as upgrading the existing wide area network was not the most cost-effective option.

Users of radio systems in this council were the community patrol and enforcement officers. They frequently work alone, so require specific features to protect their wellbeing. Man down, lone working, an emergency button, and GPS tracking were all incorporated. As well as a dispatcher for the personnel in the control room and the capability to record coverage when necessary.

The PTTOC/PoC (Push to Talk Over Cellular) Solution was discussed by the Radio Solutions team since they needed large area coverage. PTTOC radios, sometimes called as 4G radios, use Wi-Fi or LTE (3G, 4G, or 5G), as opposed to traditional radios that operate using the RF frequencies.

Wherever there is mobile signal or Wi-Fi, users will be able to connect seamlessly, so they are great for wide areas, and crucially they work on the same principal of PTT, with communication to all at once, or you can do individual calls if you wish.

Trialling PTTOC Radios

With all the features required and coming in on their budget, we quickly moved to proof of concept and set up a trial of 6 Telo T8 devices. An all on one solution that is a body worn camera and radio in one device.

The Telo T8 uses a multi-network roaming SIM and will automatically switch to the strongest network available for the best connection.

Features Supplied

• GPS positioning
• Remote Reprogramming
• Guard tour with NFC on device
• Live Video streaming
• Lone worker / Man Down / Emergency Button
• Remote stunning of devices
• Device management software offering GDPR compliant data from cameras

The proof of concept produced excellent results: coverage was excellent and provided a strong signal across their council border. The functionality of the dispatcher, particularly position tracking and the emergency button, exceeded expectations and was simple to use.

The Solution

The council decided on a 3 year contract of the Telo T8 devices, using their own SIM cards.

This was provided as a managed service, and it only takes a few minutes to add, delete, or alter users from a distance. Live streaming of the devices to the control room has also been set up. To live stream from the dispatcher, staff can simply right click on the device. Users in the field can press the emergency button to activate the live stream. Providing support for them if they were ever in a position of conflict or danger.

With their fleet constantly expanding across the departments, more council users are realising the benefits of the solutions.

Considering a PTTOC communication solution and would like to find out what will work best for your team? Get in touch with us on 01745 335811 to discuss your requirements.