Iridium trumpets latest satellite phones for emergency response
Its touting interoperability with existing VHF and UHF radio systems
May 1, 2006 12:00 PM ETComputerworld - Just a month before the official U.S. hurricane season begins on June 1, Iridium Satellite LLC today unveiled satellite telephone communications equipment that will interoperate with existing UHF and VHF radio systems already used by police, rescue agencies, firefighters and other first responders.
In an announcement today, the Bethesda, Md.-based vendor said the equipment can prevent much of the widespread communications troubles that plagued the Gulf Coast after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita pummeled the area last year. In the wake of the storms, landline and cellular telephone systems were largely devastated in Louisiana, Mississippi and parts of other nearby states due to downed lines, destroyed towers and other communications infrastructure failures. Emergency workers had to use radios, satellite telephones and other means to communicate until telephone service was restored.
The Iridium systems offer interoperable voice and data communications, will work anywhere and are portable, according to the company. The data services include integration of radio frequency identification tags to help track vehicles, supplies and personnel wirelessly during emergencies so that response efforts can be monitored, the company said.
Iridium services are already being used in some states, including Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, South Carolina and Texas.
The Iridium systems can interoperate with other communications systems, including VHF and UHF radios, making them flexible in times of emergency, Greg Ewert, executive vice president for Iridium, said in a statement. Many states that could be affected by hurricanes this season are still far from being prepared from a communications perspective, he said.
The Iridium systems also offer quick setup and do not use a land-based infrastructure that can be damaged in a disaster, according to the company.
Iridium may typically be thought of as a satellite phone in the hands of a first responder, Ewert said. Increasingly, government customers are seeking Iridium for tracking and redirecting of important assets in an emergency, including critical supplies, vehicles and even personnel. This is done through communications systems based on our data-only transceiver. Many first responders [during hurricanes Katrina and Rita] were left vulnerable when it came to asset tracking. Supplies sat by the side of the road because communications were hampered with a lack of deployed mobile satellite services. They were unable to redirect supplies as needed. With our solution, they can stay in touch and stay in control.
Ted OBrien, vice president of market development at Iridium, said today that the systems can be expanded as needed. Satellite telephone handsets are priced at about $1,500 each, while a fixed base station that can be used in a rescue facility costs about $3,000, including an external antenna. The interoperability system that allows satellite telephone users to communicate with VHF and UHF radio users -- as well as more than two-dozen other systems -- costs about $10,000. Small mobile wireless modems that can be attached to vehicles and supply containers for wireless tracking cost about $500 each if tracking capabilities are to be deployed.
Additional Resources


White Papers & Webcasts
Centralized Data Backup and Your WAN
Is your organization prepared to tackle the massive challenge of protecting your data in a cost effective and timely manner? With a growing...
HP StorageWorks EVA4400 & Microsoft
(Source: HP) The HP StorageWorks EVA4400 & Microsoft applications have been tested together for real performance & reliability gains & Dynamic Capacity Manager...
Best Practices for Backing Up VMware® with Veritas NetBackup™
VMware® is used by enterprises large and small to increase the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of their IT operations. With this in mind, Symantec...
Data Protection and Disaster Recovery with iSCSI and VMware
Data protection and disaster recovery are top of mind for any IT manager, and the challenges of complexity and cost remain as obstacles....
Managing Spend on Information Security and Audit for Better Results
(Source: Symantec) Almost all organizations have Information Security initiatives in place to reduce financial risk. Financial risks such as data loss, downtime and...
Usability Is Everything
Learn what sets Workday's HR and Payroll solutions apart from the competition....
Using VMware Site Recovery Manager to Simplify DR
(Source: NetApp) Nothing is scarier than the prospect of having to recover an entire site after a disaster. VMware® Site Recovery Manager (SRM)...
The Value of Real SaaS at Workday
Cost savings, speed to value, and innovation brought to the enterprise by Workday's software-as-a-service solutions for HR and Payroll....
From Trust to Process: Closing the Risk Gap in Privileged Access Control
In this whitepaper, Enterprise Management Associates examines this critical issue in IT security administration in light of the Symark approach to helping businesses...
SaaS at Flextronics, Inc.
Dave Smoley, CIO of Flextronics, discusses the real value of software-as-a-service and why he chose Workday for his HR solution....
Subscribe to Computerworld

Forrester Analyst Report: X86 Server Virtualization For High Availability and Disaster Recovery
Yankee Group. "Disaster Strikes! Is Your Business Ready? Disaster Preparedness for Mid-Sized Firms"
VMware White Paper: Transforming Disaster Recovery - VMware Infrastructure for rapid, reliable and cost-effective Disaster Recovery