Public safety adoption of FirstNet rises—learn to make the most of it at IACP 2018

4 minutes

The recent devastation of Hurricane Florence is just the latest of what is turning out to be a terrible year for natural disasters. Hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, wildfires, volcanic eruptions—we’ve seen them all. Natural disasters and even large events with big crowds require a large-scale emergency response and coordination of multiple first responders and other organizations for rescue, recovery and security.

Keeping people safe and saving lives requires coordination and collaboration. That’s why all 50 states and the District of Columbia have opted into FirstNet, an AT&T operated nationwide broadband network that ensures quick and effective communication, no matter where emergency responders are located. With this network, emergency communications in the form of video, data, images and text messages take priority over commercial users on the network with full reliability and security. The result is better situational awareness and higher degrees of collaboration.

Finding hardware to support FirstNet

Making the most of FirstNet requires three types of technology in addition to the broadband network itself:

Secure and reliable connectivity via wireless routers for in-vehicle
IoT and station connections, which consist of applications that enable everything from live-streaming video to geo-fencing, GPS positional awareness and advanced analytics
The right rugged mobile computing devices

Most first responders and law enforcement personnel rely on rugged devices in the form of notebooks, tablets or handhelds because of their reliability, long battery life, resistance to extreme temperatures, dirt and moisture, and shock resistance.

Panasonic rugged devices can be a perfect fit for FirstNet. With an AT&T SIM card on a FirstNet rate plan or a FirstNet SIM card, users can get the security, priority and pre-emption features necessary for effective emergency communications. This includes:

First-in-line network access during times of network congestion
Auto-provisioning of the proper IMS services after SIM install
Support for High Priority Access, which provides three levels of priority based on user roles
National Institute of Standards and Technology compliance

Is your Panasonic device FirstNet ready?

Panasonic's team is available to help you determine whether your Toughbook devices are FirstNet capable or FirstNet ready. Panasonic hardware is aligned with the FirstNet rollout: we integrate wireless modules in Toughbook products, submit them for carrier certification and use only approved FirstNet firmware.

In addition to the AT&T commercial LTE band, the new FirstNet-exclusive Band 14 is a high-performing spectrum the FCC has allocated to AT&T to enhance its FirstNet services and provide first responders with additional capacity. During an emergency, the Band 14 spectrum becomes available exclusively to first responders.

Panasonic is partnering with Sierra Wireless to integrate a Band 14 module into Toughbook models. And as part of the FirstNet Dealer program, Panasonic is dedicated to providing public safety personnel with the most up-to-date FirstNet capable tools and technologies.

Learn how to make the most of FirstNet at IACP 2018

Find out more about FirstNet and why Panasonic rugged mobile devices are ideal for first responders leveraging FirstNet. Stop by booths #1521 and #327 at International Association of Chiefs of Police Conference from October 7-9 to chat with our experts.

Authors

Dominick Passanante - VP of Sales, Panasonic Mobility Systems