Rescue 42 launches miniCRD deployable for FirstNet

Rescue 42 yesterday announced the launch of its miniCRD (mCRD) for FirstNet, which provides much of the functionality of the company’s Compact Rapid Deployable at a much lower cost.and in an even more portable form factor—two ruggedized cases that are about the size of checked luggage.

Rescue 42 CEO Tim O’Connell said the mCRD (pictured above, right, next to a CRD) was developed in collaboration with AT&T to work on the FirstNet nationwide public-safety broadband network (NPSBN) and was designed to be a deployable asset that agencies can own, so their responders can “bring the network with them” to the scene of an incident. It also represents an evolution of deployable technologies, including the leveraging of Starlink broadband connectivity via its LEO satellite constellation.

“The CRD was created with the best technology that was available a couple of years ago to produce a regional-coverage device for supporting agencies,” O’Connell said during an interview with IWCE’s Urgent Communications. “With the improvements in satellite backhaul and technology, we’re now able to put tis same solution in a Pelican-case-style

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“That opens up the capability of agencies and customers to own their own cell tower at a much lower price and with a much easier deployment model, which is a game-changer again. So, what we did two years ago [with the CRD introduction], which flipped everything on its ear, we’re now flipping on the other ear.”

Like the CRD, it also is designed to be deployed quickly and simply, without the need for users to have engineering skills, O’Connell said.

“They have to be able to roll two Pelican cases outside, lay them on the ground, open the lids and push four buttons,” O’Connell said. “Within five minutes, they will have produced a high-speed Internet network—two Wi-Fi hotspots—and a true Band 14 FirstNet cell site with a range of about a half mile and 1 square mile of coverage.”

In addition to being easily deployed, the mCRD is an ideal solution for agile responders who may need to move the mCRD cell site quickly as circumstances change, according to O’Connell.

“It literally takes 30 seconds to break the system down and leave,” he said. “You turn off four buttons, close the two lids and put them back in your vehicle—that’s it.

“I can actually leave these two things in the bed of my pickup or on the roof of my fire truck, and—if I’ve got to go—I can just drive away. The satellite piece will keep working; the CRD [cell site] will turn itself off until you stop.”

Although smaller than the CRD, the mCRD can support even higher data-throughput speeds, because it leverages the Starlink LEO constellation, O’Connell said. This satellite backhaul provides speeds up to 220 Mbps, with less than 99 milliseconds of latency, according to a Rescue 42 press release.

Rescue 42 plans to begin shipping the mCRD in April, according to O’Connell. Sold through the FirstNet, Built with AT&T sales channel, the list price of the mCRD is $35,000—half the cost of a CRD.

O’Connell said the mCRD also can offer users greater financial flexibility, because the satellite service—and associated bills—can be turned off when not in use. This could be attractive to agencies that have a predictable time when mCRD deployable would be needed, such as during a hurricane season.

“You can leave them off until you need them,” O’Connell said.

Rescue 42 believes the CRD will continue to be a popular option for first-responder agencies, even with the availability of the mCRD, O’Connell said. The CRD has some key characteristics—its own power source, more stable GEO connectivity, and 12 times the coverage footprint—that make it a more attractive deployable option in some circumstances, he said.

“The CRD is still a frontline product and absolutely has its place, based on everything it does,” O’Connell said. “These are symbiotic products.

“There are a ton of agencies that need the big coverage [that a CRD provides], but now they can run out tactically or have little spot deployments with this [mCRD]. They can set it up in five minutes, get the work done, hit four buttons and—30 seconds later—they put it back in the vehicle and drive away.”

Jeff Johnson, executive director of the Western Fire Chiefs Association and former vice chairman of the FirstNet Authority, applauded the development of the mCRD deployable solution.

“Rescue 42 has done it again,” Johnson said in a prepared statement. “The Compact Rapid Deployable (CRD) sent shockwaves through the emergency response community with its ‘FirstNet anywhere-in-an-instant’ capabilities, Now, the launch of the miniCRD will broaden wireless functionality into a grab-and-go tactical asset. Rescue 42 is leading the way in demonstrating the full capabilities of what FirstNet is and what it will evolve to be.”