Keeping pace with growth in DubaiWith Nedaa’s secure radio network

Dubai – landmark projects pepper the landscape, from Ski Dubai to the towering Burj Khalifa to new projects like the Al Maktoum international airport.

Dubai has the largest population in the UAE with 2,106,177 inhabitants and the second largest land territory with 4,114km2. To secure the safety of a huge growing city like Dubai, the municipal was looking for a stable, reliable and efficient communication system for maintenance, security and operational staff.

ChallengesThe Emirate’s TETRA public safety network serves 17,000 users, growing at 10% each year.Keeping pace with this growth while maintaining its target 99,9% availability is a challenge for the Dubai Government’s TETRA operator Nedaa.

The network also has to cover the whole Dubai area including emergency coverage in Dubai’s remotest regions.

SolutionAirbus DS has delivered Emirate’s TETRA public safety network including:- DXT switches- More than 100 base stations-Satellite linked Cell on Wheels system- TETRA IP technologies and equipment.

92% user satisfaction

For the Emirate’s TETRA public safety network, keeping pace with the 10% annual growth while maintaining its target 99.9% availability is a challenge, admits Mansoor Juma Buosaiba, Deputy Chief Executive Director at the Dubai Government's TETRA Operator Nedaa. “We aim for 99.9% availability of the network anytime, anywhere in Dubai despite the many ongoing projects to expand the network. Maintaining this resilience means we have to build in redundancy and other preventative measures, such as off-grid power generation, so we are ready for any circumstances.”

Catering for 17,000 users, rising at 10% per year, the network delivers radio coverage across the Dubai area. Its major users include the Dubai government, the police, ambulance services, civil defence, airports and seaports. The network also covers the entire metro system, which is partially underground. The list of user types is growing too, with commercial enterprises such as major hotels joining the network.

Rapid deployment of coverage

One of the most recent additions to Nedaa’s capabilities is a satellite linked Cell on Wheels (CoW) system. “We saw a need to provide emergency coverage in Dubai’s remotest regions to support public safety in a crisis. The CoW will provide coverage that can be deployed quickly, as well additional capacity at major events. Although it has yet to be deployed, it is ready,” says Buosaiba.

Such forward planning and investment by Nedaa is one of the reasons the TETRA network enjoys a 92% satisfaction rating by its users, as revealed by regular user surveys. Public safety organisations benefit from high availability and from the ability to coordinate different agencies’ operations over the network. This was not possible with their previous disparate networks.

“Safety is the ultimate benefit, with faster response time to incidents. The network has proven its capabilities, not least at major events over the years such as the 2013 New Year celebrations that saw around 1,000,000 spectators around the Burj Khalifa,” says Buosaiba.

Long life for TETRA

Nedaa is already looking at the future needs of users, in particular broadband communications to enable efficient applications like video links and the widespread use of biometrics. “Although we are in the early stages of studying how LTE networks might meet these advanced public safety needs, it is clear that TETRA will remain in place for many years for voice and some data applications.

The network’s ongoing develop-ment is supported by Atlas Telecom, the local UAE agent to Airbus DS.

“We get excellent support from Atlas Telecom and while we are open to using different infra-structure and procure through a tendering process, we use Airbus DS systems exclusively,” concludes Buosaiba.

03/2

014

Cop

yrig

ht©

2014

Airb

usD

efen

cean

dS

pace

.All

right

sre

serv

ed.T

his

docu

men

tis

notc

ontra

ctua

l.S

ubje

ctto

chan

gew

ithou

tnot

ice.

Pro

duct

and

com

pany

nam

esm

entio

ned

here

inm

aybe

trade

mar

ksor

trade

nam

esof

thei

rres

pect

ive

owne

rs.

Keeping pace with growth in DubaiWith Nedaa’s secure radio networkWith 17,000 users, growing at 10% annually, Dubai’s TETRA network is benefiting from continued investment by its operator Nedaa.

For more information please contactAirbus Defence and Space / Landshuter Str.26 / 85716 Unterschleissheim / Germany / T: +49 (0) 89.3179-0 / F: +49 (0) 3179-4640Airbus Defence and Space / MetaPole / 1, bld Jean Moulin / CS 40001 / 78996 Elancourt Cedex / France / T: +33 (0)1 61 38 50 00Airbus Defence and Space / Hiomotie 32 / 00380 Helsinki / Finland / T: +358 10 4080 000 / e-mail: securenetworks@cassidian.com