In emergency situations where time is of the essence, the ability for the emergency services to effectively communicate can significantly improve operational outcomes. Excelerate is at the forefront of revolutionising connectivity for those who operate in complex and challenging environments, and since the company’s origin in 2001, Excelerate has continuously invested in and innovated secure and resilient communications and IT technologies, catering specifically to the critical needs of first responders.
In this blog, David details Excelerate’s key differentiators and the role of hybrid connectivity for the emergency services.
What sets us apart
Excelerate is a unique organisation that combines the roles of developer, integrator, maintainer, and network operator. It is unusual for a single business to encompass all these functions, but it is precisely this combination that allows Excelerate to create innovative technology for emergency services and other industries.
At its core, Excelerate is in the business of developing solutions that customers say they need. This requires a deep understanding of the needs of emergency service providers, and an ability to work closely with them to create solutions that are both effective and user-friendly.
Innovation through collaboration
One of the challenges we face at Excelerate is that many of the requests we receive from our customers involve entirely new and unfamiliar concepts. This is where our development expertise comes into play. In recent years, we have dedicated ourselves to making our technology more accessible and user-friendly, particularly for the everyday heroes who work in emergency services. Our goal is to ensure that paramedics, police officers, firefighters, and others can easily utilise our technology without needing specialised IT knowledge. By utilising customer feedback, combined with our technical expertise we have successfully delivered a range of products and solutions that are fit for purpose and easy to operate with iPhone-like simplicity.
As well as involving our customers early on in the design and build process, we regularly host Technology and Innovation Workshops. Workshops like these play a crucial role in sharing knowledge, fostering collaboration, and inspiring further innovation. By providing emergency responders and other organisations with the latest tools and knowledge, we believe that we can create a safer and more connected world.
From space to the front line
Satellite offers a reliable means of communication that can function without relying on terrestrial infrastructure. This is crucial, especially during an emergency when terrestrial networks are prone to being overwhelmed or if an incident occurs in a remote location where terrestrial coverage is patchy or unavailable. While many emergency services already use satellite technology as a backup, we believe that satellite should play a more prominent role.
Satellite services are rapidly becoming less expensive and more widely available to the point where they are literally available pole-to-pole. This means that soon there will be no place on the planet where broadband service cannot be accessed, with some of it being provided by satellite, some by 5G, and other means.
Taking the hybrid approach
With the rise of LEO (low earth orbit) satellite’s and 5G coverage becoming more widely accessible, we recognise that emergency services will require true resilience, and that hybrid connectivity will play a critical role in achieving this. By creating new technologies that incorporate and bond multiple different connections as a core feature, we have created a more resilient and higher quality network for emergency response.
Our latest innovation, the Hybrid Edge Appliance is a solution that harnesses the power of multiple satellite and cellular networks to ensure that you always have a backup plan in place. This device can bond all your different networks together, combining all the speeds and improving your broadband significantly. You might only use the most cost-effective network or the one with the strongest signal, but you always have a backup plan in place.
This is particularly important for the emergency services. For example, if you’re in an ambulance transporting a critical patient and you’re monitoring their condition through medical apparatus while also conferring with a surgeon via video, a lost connection could be catastrophic. With the Hybrid Edge Appliance, you’ll never have to worry about losing your connection or interrupting the care of your patient.
Solving real-world problems
At Excelerate, we are dedicated to developing innovative technology. Our unique ability to respond to market requirements quickly and effectively has allows us to create new technologies that meet the needs of organisations operating in complex environments, while also making these technologies accessible and user-friendly for end users. This includes world-leading specialist vehicles, wearable, portable, and fleet-based technologies that are now in every-day use.
