TETRA critical comms interoperability milestone

The 750th TETRA interoperability test certificate has been issued by the TCCA, marking the 15th year of the process.

What is claimed to be the world’s most dominant mission-critical mobile communications standard has further cemented its success. The 750th TETRA interoperability test certificate has been issued by the TETRA & Critical Communications Association (TCCA) test and certification body, marking the 15th year of the process that has driven the global adoption of the TETRA standard. Each certificate issued is for a specific infrastructure-radio terminal combination. There are currently some three million TETRA terminals in use worldwide.

The TETRA Interoperability (IOP) Certification Process is claimed to be the most rigorous of its kind in the critical communications world. TCCA says the process is a strict, independent and tightly controlled testing program, developed to ensure a truly open and competitive multi-vendor market.

“There is no doubt that the TETRA IOP has been a critical enabler for the highly successful multi-vendor TETRA market," said Phil Kidner, CEO of the TCCA. "Although other PMR technologies have followed the TETRA lead and instigated their own interoperability testing programs, none is as comprehensive as the TETRA IOP.”

The TETRA IOP process is managed by the Technical Forum, a TCCA Working Group, and is conducted by the independent testing house Istituto Superiore delle Comunicazioni e delle Tecnologie dell'Informazione (ISCOM [http://www.isticom.it/]), an organisation of the Italian Ministry of Economic Development.

Although IOP testing is a voluntary process, its value is such that all 20 manufacturers of TETRA terminals and infrastructure participate in the program. Potential customers can see all the IOP certificates on the TCCA website for reassurance that the devices are proven to work on and across all TETRA networks. With that knowledge, users can concentrate on choosing the terminal that best suits their needs in terms of design, form factor, features, price and particular requirements such as covert or intrinsically safe.

Millions of people around the world rely on TETRA technology for critical communications, working in: public safety; utilities; government; military and paramilitary; oil and mining; transportation; hospitality and leisure; major event management, and many other sectors.