Project Fire are taking our innovative solutions on the road and will be showcasing our latests developments at INTERSCHUTZ 2022.
INTERSCHUTZ 2022 is dedicated to the connected world of safety, protection and rescue. Connected by innovative digital technologies and by networks of collaboration across multiple sectors much like we did at our Safe for Life event back in 2018. Come and visit us on our stand, hall 13, stand G42.
“Teams, Tactics, Technology – Connected for Protection and Rescue.” is the theme for INTERSCHUTZ 2022, the world’s leading trade fair for the fire and rescue services, civil protection, safety and security. It focuses on two key aspects of connectedness that are shaping the sector: the use of innovative digital solutions and increased collaboration among stakeholder organisations and institutions.
DIGITISATION
The world as we know it is changing rapidly as a result of the ongoing digitisation of all aspects of our lives. The Internet, mobile communications and, increasingly, the Internet of Things are fundamentally transforming how we live and work, and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Needless to say, this megatrend is bringing major change to the organisations, institutions and collaborative networks that make up the world’s fire, rescue, disaster relief, civil protection and safety services.
New technologies are opening up myriad new preventive options and ways of coping with crises and hazards.
BIG CHALLENGES
However, these new technology capabilities are just part of the picture. They need to be deployed in a well-coordinated, appropriate fashion. They also need to be human-centric, because the fire and rescue services, civil protection, safety and security are all about people. That is not to say that the tasks faced by people and organisations who serve in emergency and hazard situations are not changing. They are. But digitisation is only one of the causes of the change. Others include growing urban density, budgetary constraints and new and more complex hazard situations.
CONNECTION AND INTEGRATION
Amid these challenges, modern software and data processing infrastructure make a big difference to government agencies, fire departments, rescue services and aid agencies in the field. One thing that is standing in the way of making these technology solutions even more useful in the field is a lack of unified standards. At the moment, different agencies and organisations have different technology systems that don’t always ‘talk’ to each other very effectively. Similar things can be said of the different people, policies and organisational structures involved. In short, what inter-disciplinary and organisational emergency responses need is connection, integration and interfaces – between people and between technologies.
Of course, increased interconnectedness and integration goes hand in hand with increased dependence on technology infrastructures, which can make societies more prone to instability and crisis. If this is so, then what is the best way to enable societies to deal with modern crisis situations? These are among the questions that will be addressed in depth at INTERSCHUTZ 2022. Part of the answer is to raise public awareness of the potential threats and implement resilience-enhancing measures.
The other part relates to connection and integration. The individuals and organisations involved in emergency management and disaster relief need to work together in a connected, integrated fashion both before and during crises. Integrated communication is a key part of this. In crisis and emergency situations, it is no use the organisations involved having the latest technology solutions if they can’t communicate with each other effectively or if they have incompatible organisational structures.