By Andrew Winkler, Thunderbolt Solutions The use of UxVs (aka Drones) is growing exponentially. Their value is undeniable. For many applications, a formation or group of drones is warranted and can provide unparalleled value and moves towards valueSQUARED. Today's market is platform centric. More capability means more payload which drives the hard choice between bigger platform or less endurance. Bigger platforms mean more complex operations and regulatory...
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BlueforceMOBILE Command Kit enables emergency communications, adaptive edge ICS services, and inter-agency coordination at the incident scene NEWBURYPORT, Mass., March 29, 2023 (Newswire.com) -Â A senior leader at an "NFL city" police department recently shared that a major mass casualty event had 1000+ first responders swarm a hastily formed command post proximate to the scene, which was largely relying on butcher paper duct-taped to a wall for...
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By Morgan Greene and India Sayer Open-source software (OSS) refers to software whose source code is freely available for anyone to view, modify, and distribute. Open-source software has gained popularity over the years due to its purported benefits. However, as with any technology, it presents challenges to consider prior to adoption. One of the most touted benefits of open-source software is that it’s “freeâ€. Organizations can download,...
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During complex emergencies, such as natural disasters, civil unrest, or mass migration, radio communication is often a critical tool for coordinating response efforts, providing information to affected populations, and maintaining public safety. During large or complex incidents, radio traffic can become congested due to high demand, making it difficult for incident command to transmit and receive messages effectively. As well, given the crush of responding...
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Incidents and the subsequent emergency responses can be chaotic, especially when they involve multiple agencies and organizations that need to work together to respond to the crisis. In such situations, there may be confusion about roles and responsibilities, communication breakdowns, and a lack of coordination. Shortly after 9/11, the U.S. government commissioned programs that ultimately led to the National Incident Management (NIMS) framework which defines...
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After Action Reports (AAR) may be one of the most important tools in emergency management and counter-terrorism operations. When used as a critical component of an agency's tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTP), AAR's can be an important litmus test which questions our assumptions about threats, which ultimately impacts training, mitigation, and response. Blueforce was used extensively over the entire Macys Thanksgiving Day parade route and...
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SIX capabilities, powered by Blueforce’s edge IoT technology, that deliver immense capability to our National Security Operators and Organizations. Pervasive sensor technology presents the opportunity for operators to extend their capabilities, share information horizontally, and swarm faster than their adversaries, by communicating with devices that are installed at fixed locations, carried, mounted on manned and unmanned systems, or worn on the body, the latter of which...
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Complex emergency management is fundamentally a lesson in organized chaos where accountability is a core foundational element of shared situational awareness. Knowing where to find what you need can be as chaotic given that response assets — the vehicles, equipment, autonomous platforms — are rarely in one place and scattered throughout an area of operation. Asset inventory coupled with resources and capability on a "single...
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For decades now, public safety Land Mobile Radio (LMR) systems have provided a reliable, albeit geographically limited, communications backbone and baseline for related command and control systems for public safety agencies. These legacy LMR systems are often limited to the geographic areas of the agency/agencies being served and, in many cases, there may be multiple public safety LMR systems in the same geographic area using...
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The intelligence community has been warning for some time about “home made†explosive and chemical weapons, many of which can be fashioned from materials bought at Home Depot or the local pool supply store. Fast forward to Saturday March 14, 2015 when leaders in the semi-autonomous Kurdish region in Iraq provided the Reuters news organization with soil and clothing samples taken by the peshmerga from...
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The 2022 Blueforce Texas Road Show gives you hands-on access to the latest in Public Safety, Safe Campus, and Autonomous Platform technologies. The Road Show kicks off Tuesday October 11, 2022 in Houston. For more information, click here…
