Field Comm-1 allows the fire department to "provide the critical communications that are necessary at any incident scene, whether that be a working fire, a missing person search, or something as large as an area devastated by a hurricane," says Stephen Morgan, president of Incident Command Systems, one of the companies that developed the Comm-ONE communications vehicle the city is using.
"We found out how useful the unit was about two hours after we put it in service. Our hazmat teams got called out for an incident and we were on scene with the Field Comm unit before our crews even got there," said Greg Hauser, telecommunication supervisor and Field Comm leader for the Charlotte Fire Department. "This unit is unique in the fact that the vehicle was built around the communications, not the communications around the vehicle. It's practical. In a matter of five minutes we have communications."
Developed by E-ONE together with Incident Communications Solutions (ICS), Comms-ONE provides a first-to-arrive lifeline for responders on the front lines of public safety and emergency management, E-ONE said in a news release.
The SUV-based system delivers radio communications and interoperability, broadband wired and wireless data, telephone and video conferencing capabilities utilizing VSAT broadband satellite services. The Tactical-IP satellite service provides the Charlotte Comms-ONE unit with 3Mb/s download and 1Mb/s upload speeds anywhere in the continental United States.
"The Field Comm unit has given our department a greater connectivity with multiple disciplines in the city of Charlotte and surrounding areas," says Jeff Dulin, Deputy Chief of Special Operations and Homeland Security at the Charlotte Fire Department. "Upon arrival at the scene of an event, it instantly creates a communications bridge that enables the communications between all responders on scene and simultaneously enables the passing of real time information to our emergency operation center, allowing us to make quicker strategic decisions."
