New association for digital mobile radio

Several of the world’s device and network suppliers in digital radio services have launched the Digital Mobile Radio (DMR) Association.

Created by founding members of the DMR MOU Association, which focused on helping establish the standard, this new organisation is designed to take DMR to the next level: encouraging interoperability and new product/service development to establish DMR as a preferred choice for professional users of conventional and trunked digital radio.

The association will concentrate on removing barriers to interoperability by establishing best practices for testing and validation of the DMR standard.

The organisation will also focus heavily on creating and promoting a common industry view on DMR, as well as a variety of services to grow the market for all companies in the value chain.

This includes developing educational programs and tools such as the DMR Association certification program to identify equipment meeting the DMR standard.

In addition, the group will seek to work with other standards bodies to ensure wider recognition of DMR standards and encourage broader interoperability of new products and services.

“Our goal is to make DMR the most widely supported 21st century digital radio standard for business, and certified interoperability is the key to creating that demand,” said Mario Micheli (of Selex Communications - a Finmeccaninca company, Italy), DMR Association chairman.

The association has already begun to establish its testing and validation benchmarks. Members Motorola and Selex Communications supplied fully interoperable DMR communications equipment for the security operations at the recent G8 Summit in Italy.

Tom Mockridge (of Motorola, UK), the association technical chairman, says that “DMR testing will range from laboratory work to real-life field trials and deployments, to ensure precertified equipment is put through its paces. Association members and end users will be able to rely on and trust our certification.”

In addition to equipment and system compliance, the association has a marketing committee dedicated to demonstrating why DMR is the major international value digital radio standard available today in professional markets.

One of the first marketing initiatives was the launch of the association's website at www.dmrassociation.org. The site will serve as the association’s key materials repository and communications channel, featuring: technical materials such as the upcoming Certification Guidelines; news and information and upcoming events; and email addresses to provide potential members and interested parties with an outlet to ask questions.