Various projects popping up in Europe indicate the TETRA two-way radio standard is becoming an operational reality.
In Germany, dominant cellular carrier T-Mobil has teamed up with equipment providers Motorola Inc. and Nokia Corp. to operate trials of the digital Trans European Trunked Radio. Motorola will provide equipment for one site, and Nokia for another.
In addition to that alliance, three other equipment makers have allied to market TETRA and compete with Motorola. Simoco International Ltd. of the United Kingdom and Germany-based De Te We and Rhode & Schwarz Bick will combine their distribution and product strength under the name Tetracom.
TETRA is a new digital European radio standard that has not been commercially deployed to date. European nations have selected it as a common standard, to enable interoperability across borders.
The Finnish electric company, Helsinki Energy, is trialing a TETRA data program, with the help of Nokia Corp. Electric officials selected TETRA rather than Global System for Mobile communications technology because of TETRA’s “reliability in exceptional circumstances,” according to the TETRA MoU Group. Exceptional circumstances for an energy company involve severe weather problems or massive electrical system breakdowns.
The geography of Finland also required a robust system, since the country is surrounded by water and filled with numerous stone buildings.
The Dutch Police also have begun testing TETRA, along with the Tele Danmark research and development division and the Technical University of Twente. The results of the project, according to the MoU Group, will be used when the Netherlands’ C2000 project is launched. C2000 is a nationwide TETRA network for 50,000 public safety officers from 45 organizations.
One base station is operating, and four are expected to be running by the middle of the year. The Dutch police also are testing terminals from different manufacturers. Tele Danmark is acting as a consultant, providing test laboratory facilities and computer simulations.
The energy company of Norway, Oslo Energi Tele, has signed an agreement for a complete TETRA system, including switching center with telephone and data interface stations for tunnel coverage, dispatchers and network management. Delivery is expected to begin in December, according to the MoU Group.
