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 Dear ARCIA Members,
As we finish off 2015, I would like to thank you all for your support over the past 12 months. We took on a very big agenda this year and, for the most part, we achieved the goals that we set for the Association. Of course, there is a long way to go and we will get straight back into the swing of things in January representing ARCIA's interests to the Department of Communications in Canberra.
It is very pleasing to see the diverse membership within ARCIA getting actively involved across Australia and there are many great stories to be told. Make sure you tell everyone that the LMR industry is alive and well and you are proud to be part of it!
I particularly would like to thank ARCIA's Executive Director, Ian Miller, for his incredible passion and determination to make ARCIA work on so many levels. There is no such expression as "overtime" in Ian’s vocabulary, and as an Association we are very lucky to have him and all our volunteer committee members who contribute to the Association's growth.
From the President’s desk, we wish everyone a happy and safe festive season and look forward to 2015.
Hamish Duff
ARCIA President
Adelaide Event
On Thursday 13th November 2014, the South Australian members of ARCIA hosted another excellent networking event. Held at the prestigious National Wine Centre, the events started with a briefing on the ARCIA economics report early in the afternoon for our members only.
This was followed by a series of educational seminars during the afternoon. The seminars covered topics such as Un-manned Aerial Vehicles, LTE for Public Safety and resources applications, Software developments for digital radio technologies and an overview of the ARCIA Training & Education plans.
Immediately following the seminars the function moved into one of the major events galleries at the NWC and networking drinks were available ahead of the popular Adelaide Regional Dinner. As always the food, drinks and friendly atmosphere were all excellent and most enjoyable. Our guest speaker Professor Alex Grant, presented information on the developments in ‘wireless systems for vehicle safety which was very well received.
As an indication of the amount people enjoyed the evening, the venue ended up pushing the final guests out of the doors after midnight, nobody wanted to go home. Thanks to Tetracom for sponsoring the night and to our partners for their ongoing support. Tetracom provided a bottle of Penfolds Grange as a lucky ticket prize and the winner was Simon Lardner from Challenge Networks, one of the afternoon presenters.
The South Australians always present a fabulous evening and we appreciate the high degree of involvement from the locals, plus the support of those who traveled to be there.
Senator Anne Ruston Releases the Austraian Radio Communication Industry Association (ARCIA) Report
It is imperative to recognise the importance of maintaining a strong two-way and associated wireless radio communications industry in Australia. Two-way radio is an indispensable input for emergency and essential service providers.
The national economic benefit of the two-way radio spectrum is estimated to be between $2 billion and $3.5 billion per annum. The report indicates that the social benefit from the spectrum is 10 times greater than the benefit that would be achieved if the spectrum were allocated to the next best possible use.
Users are adamant that there are presently no viable alternatives to two-way radio for immediacy of urgent communications and shared situational awareness, particularly critical for emergency services. Public safety users have no viable alternatives that enable urgent one-to-many communications that save lives in emergency situations. Two-way radio is also used extensively within major resource projects, security, transport, local Government and utilities to give efficiency gains and added productivity in these and other industry segments.
The release of this study by Windsor Place Consulting into the economic benefits of the radiofrequency spectrum for land mobile radio use is an important step forward for the industry.
The report was released on Wednesday 26th November 2014 at Parliament House, Canberra and is available for download here.
Visiting Delegations
During October ARCIA were invited to present to a delegation of Chinese visitors who were looking at how industry integrates with the Government and regulator (ACMA). Several of our committee members attended the session where over twenty visitors appreciated our presentation and asked many questions. Having to work through an interpreter made it a little more difficult, however, the meanings translated well and there was much interest in our Association and how we function.
Early in December we were also invited to speak with a group of Indonesian visitors from the Spectrum Regulators office in Jakarta. They were very interested in how our Association functions and explained that their industry is very much like ours, with all technology being imported and not a high level of support from the importers towards improving conditions for those who work in the industry. These delegations are offering an opportunity for our Association to have a higher level of visibility and over time could lead to stronger international working arrangements.
ACMA Meeting
On the 3rd December members of the ARCIA Executive met with ACMA representatives in Sydney. The meeting was hosted by Giles Tanner, General Manager Communications and Infrastructure Division of the ACMA and there were several ACMA Senior Managers participating through video-links from Melbourne and Canberra.
The meeting canvassed a range of subjects including the 400MHz band review, the 800/900 MHz band review, private band management, LTE spectrum for private systems, opportunity cost pricing, equipment standards and how the ACMA interacts with stakeholders.
Discussion was open and frank with opposing points put forward several times, however, the general outcome of the meeting was very positive and the ARCIA team appreciated the respect accorded to them and the topics raised for discussion.
Response to Spectrum Review Discussion Paper
The Department of Communications Discussion Paper on the Spectrum Review sought responses by early December and ARCIA has responded on behalf of our members. There are many positive items to come out of this review, however, as always there will be some that may not seem as positive for some stakeholders.
The ARCIA response will be posted on our web site shortly for general access and we would strongly recommend that members should read both the discussion paper and the ARCIA response. This response has been prepared and presented on your behalf so you should at least read it and let us know if you have concerns.
Partners' Day & Planning Days 11 - 12 February 2015
The ARCIA committee have again decided to hold some consultative sessions in February. On Wednesday 11thFebruary 2015, we will have a half-day session in Melbourne to give our Partners the opportunity to discuss with the Executive their thoughts on progress of the Association, what we have achieved, what we can do better and any options we may have for increasing the value of the Association and benefits to the industry.
The following day we will have our entire committee travel to Melbourne for a review and planning day, this will review the past twelve months and set our main goals for the coming year. If any members have thoughts on what we should be looking towards for the next year, or comments on how we have done during the past year, then please let s know. ARCIA is your Association and as our members we do like your feedback, both positive and negative.
Perth Regional Events 26th March 2015
More exciting information will follow soon about the Perth events, but save the day and evening of Thursday 26th March 2015 for the Perth events.
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