Getting fire and rescue services people and equipment to the right place at the right time demands reliable radio communications. And when it comes to supplying the right tools for the job, a new approach to procurement--Firelink puts the needs of the Fire and Rescue Service first.

The rules are simple: the technology must do the job. Firelink aims to:

* buy-in and install a national radio system that will meet wide-area communications needs, including delivering national roaming and the agreed interoperability requirements of the three primary emergency services, and resilience by the end of 2007;

* improve national roaming of existing radio systems until the new system goes live; and

* advise and assist fire authorities to keep current systems 'live' until they can be replaced.

Firelink is funded and managed by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) to ensure that meeting the Fire and Rescue Service's needs is the top priority for radio system providers when they develop commercial solutions. Installation of replacement high-risk items of equipment in existing systems is already under way.

System update

All proposals for solutions (received at the end of October from pre-qualified suppliers) have now been evaluated and procurement is in the negotiation phase.

Firelink's sub-project, Operational Continuity, continues to make good progress in safeguarding the performance of existing radio communications systems during the interim period. The reprogramming of existing AM and FM radios has been completed.

For more information visit the Firelink website at: www.firelink.org.uk

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