UTC

UTC 2018 is coming up at the beginning of May in Palm Springs, California, with the usual mix of workshops, technical education sessions and summits from thought leaders throughout the utilities industry. Simoco Wireless Solutions is exhibiting, and we can’t wait to share our mission-critical communications solutions with decision makers and delegates across the sector.

(more…)

RF Propagation

How do you create a radio communications network? All projects begin with the same foundational building block: a careful understanding of radio frequency, or RF propagation.

Simply put, RF propagation is about predicting the pathway that radio waves will take across the terrain or environment in question – whether that environment is as small as an office or as big as a country. It’s about establishing where those waves are likely to be disrupted or distorted, whether because of obstacles, environmental features, building materials or rugged terrain – and then finding ways of working around those disruptions, to ensure a powerful and reliable signal throughout. If you want to end up with comprehensive and resilient coverage (which is, of course, our guarantee on every project), then you need to begin with a thorough RF propagation phase.

(more…)

Staying on top of standards

LTE

Careful readers of the business pages might have noticed this story in recent weeks: the news that SoftBank, the Japanese mobile technology giant has backed what looks like a bid to create a new mobile network in the UK.

As industry insiders point out, the bid is unlikely to be a serious threat to the country’s four main mobile operators – Vodafone, O2, Three and EE – but it does shed light on a crucial auction due to take place in the coming weeks. Ofcom is releasing more airwaves in a so-called ‘spectrum auction’, for which six companies are registered to bid. As the above article explains, ‘the auction will include 40 MHz of 2.3 GHz band, which is already supported by existing devices, and 150 MHz of 3.4 GHz band which will allow 5G to be rolled out.’

(more…)

Oil-and-Gas

With news that the USA is ‘forging ahead with a plans to boost oil and gas exports’, the country is set to become the world’s biggest oil producer this year.

The sudden jump in production has been largely driven by the process of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, whereby pressured liquids are used to extract oil and gas from shale rocks.

(more…)

IWCE 2018

The countdown is on to the International Wireless Communications Expo (IWCE) 2018, which takes place from March 5th to 9th in Orlando, Florida. We’re looking forward to packing up our exhibition materials and travelling out to the Sunshine State – especially as we have a raft of exciting new technologies to share with delegates.

(more…)

How to ensure your communications infrastructure can combat all conditions

Winter 2017/18 has seen some extremely challenging weather condition; from heavy snowfall cutting off Alpine ski resorts and generating avalanche warnings, to storm after storm battering both Europe and the US.

But what does this mean from a critical communications perspective?

(more…)

Emergency Services Network

The Emergency Services Network (ESN) is an ongoing project to create a truly next-generation communications system for the UK’s police, fire and rescue, and ambulance services. It’s going to be a unified, integrated Long-Term Evolution (LTE) network that can carry critical data applications and broadband services as well as voice communications, and will be more resilient, reliable and secure than the current, disparate networks. It will enable the three emergency services to communicate and collaborate with each other, ultimately working more effectively and saving more lives. In short, it is intended to carry the UK’s emergency services into the future.

(more…)

Critical Communications

January is a month for fresh starts, and looking to the year ahead. With this in mind what will the coming twelve months hold for the world of critical communications? Here are our key ideas…

(more…)

Confined Space Engineering

When implementing a unified critical communications network in any environment, there are always issues and challenges to be overcome.  However, when implementing one in a confined space those challenges are augmented, and an entirely new set of difficulties is presented.

Developing a comprehensive communications network that can perform in adverse environments such as road or rail tunnels, or more industrial settings such as mines is not only important to delivering operational success either. Having reliable communications infrastructure in place is a must in order to ensure the safety of any members of staff or the public who may be using the space too. Operators need systems and technologies that can withstand challenging conditions and provide reliable and safe links for those in the confined environment.

(more…)

LCNI 2017

Simoco Wireless Solutions took a trip to Telford recently for this year’s Low Carbon Networks & Innovation Conference (LCNI).

Aimed at organisations working in the energy sector, the conference looked at driving innovations and efficiencies that can power a low carbon future – one of today’s most important global priorities.

(more…)