As a TCCA member, Marja Dieben of PrioCom was interviewed for the international platform Critical Communications Today. An extensive article in which Simon Creasey conducts research into MNOs and public safety authorities. He also interviews Tapio Savunen, Finland’s strategic marketing manager, Airbus and Jason Johur, director of strategy and market development, mission-critical and private networks at Ericsson, board member of The Critical Communications Association (TCCA).

Click here to read the entire interview.

One company that clearly sees the benefits TCCA offers is Netherlands-based SMVNO PrioCom, which joined the association in March. Marja Dieben, sales manager at PrioCom, explains that the company is addressing mission-critical communications outside of the realms of public safety and is currently working to serve the critical communications needs of industries such as petrochemicals using the cellular network.

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“Most of the time these are on-site local organizations, so it’s not completely comparable in terms of usage with public safety because they tend to be more regional or national,” says Dieben. “You see in industry there is a drive for digitalization of business processes, and part of that drive is they aim to get all business processed on a digital platform, which in turn drives the need to use rugged smartphones. They are also looking at PTT over Cellular to have a one device and platform solution and to expand beyond their traditional radio users to get more efficiency out of their operations. That part is very comparable with public safety because the whole digitalization development is also ongoing with public safety.”

She says many companies in the private sector are already exploring hybrid models to start this migration process.

“What they’re looking at is the gradual transfer of TETRA radio users into the broadband space with PTT, so what’s going to be absolutely imperative is to deliver interoperability, which is also what TCCA is driving,” explains Dieben. “With the solution we have in the market we are able to provide a universal gateway to a number of traditional radio solutions.”

Operators like PrioCom are keen to embrace the significant changes that are currently occurring in the critical communications market and deliver solutions fit for purpose. MNOs are also shifting and adapting to meet these needs, according to Johur.