Critical industries in areas such as defence, emergency services and transportation are seeing broader adoption of digital technologies.

Previously more hesitant than traditional enterprise, the use of digital technologies like AI, video analytics, automated workflow software, IoT and even drones, are making an impact for these industries. Long time providers of critical radio systems like Motorola, Tait and Thales are now evolving software and video solutions.

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Critical industries go digital

Meanwhile, newer digitally focused providers like Orion Labs and Streamwide are targeting critical industries with solutions around digital platforms and automation, competing on ability to deliver creative integrations with partners to unlock new use cases. However, this shift towards digital will also require a shift in the underlying infrastructure to deliver critical services.

One example from the traditional stalwarts is Motorola Solutions. The company has provided radio systems to emergency services for nearly 100 years in the US and at least five decades in many international markets. The company, however, is shifting with a strategic focus on the growth of software and services. The company recently reported that quarterly software and services revenues surpassed $1bn for the first time in Q3 2024.

Growth has come as Motorola is focused on driving video analytics, workflow automation and integrated command centre platform solutions to critical industries globally. In Australia the company recently leveraged its PSCore solutions, which provides integration between mobile applications, computer aided dispatch and records management systems, to digitise the workflow for Main Roads Western Australia. The solution allows road inspectors to be automatically notified when vehicles that are high risk for heavy-vehicle violations are caught traversing 115 different cameras in the state, using license plate detection and centralised database to flag the vehicles for intercept.

The system has reduced time to intercept by 60% and reduced unnecessary stops. While Motorola’s core is radio, the solution represents workflow automation, video analytics and integration capabilities.

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Digital critical communications

From the other side, a company focused on digital critical communications from the start is Streamwide. The company develops and publishes communications and workflow management applications centred around text, voice, and video communications, including push to talk and unified communications. Additionally, it provides customisable software widgets to help enterprise develop digital workflows and automate repetitive tasks.

In addition to communications and field service management, the company offers integration with IoT platforms, third party ERP systems and provides an SDK for further customisation of their platform. The company focuses on integrating its core VoIP communications platform with richer services like multi-party video chats, multi-casting (one to many video) and drone and IoT integrations, for richer context.

The company has seen take up of its platforms by critical infrastructure and defence operators like Thales and the French Armed Forces. These companies deploy Streamwide software platform either in the cloud, in central offices, or in some cases on infrastructure in the field.

In some cases the company partners with traditional critical communications companies to provide radio and connectivity infrastructure, while they focus on the software functionality and optimisation. This represents where the market is headed overall, where there is opportunity for both competition and partnership between the same sets of organisations.

Further growth and a need for increased scrutiny

As critical industries adopt technologies that rely on video, analytics and cloud delivered software solutions, there will also need to be increased scrutiny on the quality of broadband infrastructure and the privacy and security of the platforms supporting the collection of critical data.

There is room for the ecosystem to grow further. Cloud platform providers are seeking to develop sovereign and secure facilities that can help critical industries that typically operate on-premise due to security concerns take advantage of the cost and flexibility benefits of the cloud.

Telco operators can explore the potential of 5G to support more mission critical broadband services, looking at areas like 5G network slicing or implementation of the new mission critical protocols included in the latest 3GPP standards.

Exploration of mobile edge compute as a way to deploy digital solutions could be another area of collaboration. This can help foster stronger acceptance of digital solutions by critical industry and open up partnership and new routes to market with both traditional and digitally focused critical comms providers.