Paul Bremner's Omdia Crit Comms Circle podcast is a series of engaging discussions with people making a difference in critical communications. While all his episodes are worth the listen, Episode 26 is a must-listen.

Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Services invested in a significant control room modernization that proved essential during massive wildfires of summer 2022. In this episode, Assistant Chief Fire Officer Alison Kibblewhite and Area Commander Jason Tai review how the technology transformation made a vital difference. But they also offer caution about the limits of technology when applied to fire operations. The expertise in Bedfordshire is well worth absorbing.

Some technology elements that stood out to me:

• The value of a cloud-hosted control room: The Motorola Solutions Command Central control room solution used by Bedfordshire provides an integrated voice, data, and multimedia communications hub. Motorola's partner 3tc Software supplied the integrated CAD solution for a new mobilization system. The agility the agency gained enabled the rapid addition of temporary fire appliances to the command and control system. Check out Motorola Solutions suppling Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service cloud-based control room solutions.

• The value of removable tablet computers in fire apparatus: At 10 minutes, 10 seconds into the podcast, Jason Tai describes why the @Airbus Defence and Space SAFECommand application running on these tablets is important. The crews have access to site plans, Road Traffic Crash (RTC) vehicle data, HAZMAT chemical data, and more. Check out Airbus SAFEcommand Mobile Data and Incident Command System at Bedfordshire.

• The value of video: Bedfordshire control room operators used the GoodSAM "show me what you see" video from calling parties reporting fire incidents at a time when resources were stretched thin or exhausted. At 21 minutes, 10 seconds, Jason describes how the control room supervisors used this GoodSAM live video to determine that a particular incident called for a much larger response assignment than usual. Check out GoodSAM Instant Help capability.

Congratulations to the Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Services leadership on a job well done during a very trying time.