Pilot area launched for NZ PSN's LMR network

The New Zealand Government has welcomed the launch of a new pilot area for the country’s new land mobile radio (LMR) network — part of the national Public Safety Network (PSN) — which will provide emergency services with the modern, resilient, secure radio technology they need to strengthen their critical communications and keep New Zealand communities safe.

The PSN is a significant infrastructure project, investing NZ$1.4 billion over 10 years to build and operate the new networks and services and to roll out new devices to emergency services staff, stations and vehicles. It is being delivered by Next Generation Critical Communications (NGCC) on behalf of New Zealand Police, Fire and Emergency New Zealand, Hato Hone St John and Wellington Free Ambulance.

Sitting at the heart of the PSN, the digital LMR network will have sufficient resilience for emergency services to rely on it as a network of last resort. It will support push-to-talk communications (which are used extensively by the emergency services), provide location services and enable increased communications between the emergency services by offering common communication channels.

“Reliable, secure, modern communications are vital to frontline responders,” said NZ Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell. “The new land mobile radio network will help coordinate these services, for the safety, wellbeing and prosperity of all New Zealanders.”

The network will also be fully encrypted, meaning only emergency services personnel can access transmissions. Mitchell noted, “Eliminating outside disruption will be a game changer for our emergency services, ensuring greater safety of frontline staff and for the security of the information they are sharing.”

Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden said she is excited about the benefits the new network will bring to fire and emergency personnel in terms of safety, operational efficiency and productivity, as they respond to members of the community in need.

“For the first time in New Zealand’s history, the four emergency services agencies will share the same radio network,” she said. “This will enable greater interoperability between the organisations, bring improved efficiencies and safety for frontline staff and, ultimately, benefit the communities they serve.”

With the LMR network set to have more than 400 radio sites and involve new handheld radios and mobile vehicle devices, it is critical that the solution will work when it goes live. That’s why Tait Communications subsidiary Tait Systems NZ –— which holds the contract to build and maintain the digital LMR network — has deployed the new pilot area in South Canterbury.

The small-scale digital LMR network will enable the emergency services to try out new radios and devices using different operational scenarios by connecting to eight digital radio sites. A Tait Systems NZ Service Management Centre will be in place to provide support to the emergency services and check the technology is working and information is flowing.

“For us, delivering the Public Safety Network is about playing our part in the communities we call home,” said Tait Communications CEO Yoram Benit. “It’s a privilege to be helping our emergency services keep New Zealand safe and serve our communities.”

South Canterbury is an ideal location for the pilot area as its geography hosts many of the features found across the country, meaning the radio sites, signals and equipment can be efficiently tested across multiple terrains and scenarios to help prepare for the national deployment. Lessons learned during the testing period will help ensure the regional rollout of the LMR network across the country is effective and efficient, supporting frontline responders to do their jobs and stay safe.

The LMR will sit alongside the second component of the PSN, Cellular Services. Cellular Roaming (live since July 2023) now has 14,000 emergency services users who can roam across Spark and One NZ networks, and Cellular Priority will be live in late 2024. The third element of the PSN involves the modernisation of personal alerting technology, available to Fire and Emergency NZ and Hato Hone St John (including their volunteer workforce).

“We’re proud to be part of a world-leading project of this nature,” Benit said. “When complete, the network will include around 500 sites — one of the largest P25 multi-agency radio networks in the world. It’ll provide capability on par with many other emergency services across the world.”

Delivery of the LMR network will start in Canterbury, Wellington and Auckland in 2025, followed by the project’s remaining eight regions throughout 2025 and 2026.

Representatives from NGCC and Tait Communications will be taking part in conference sessions at Comms Connect Melbourne.

Image caption: NZ Police Constable Josh Yeoman and his dog, Gusto; Hato Hone St John Senior Ambulance Officer Chris Laufale; NZ Minister of Police and Emergency Services Mark Mitchell; NZ Police Senior Sergeant Paul Furguson; and Fire and Emergency NZ Senior Firefighter Geoff Powell. Photo courtesy of NGCC.