Mutualink Brings Interoperable Emergency Communications to Brazil Ahead of 2014 World Cup
Wallingford, Conn., December 3, 2012 Mutualink, Inc., specializing in advanced interoperable communications solutions for public safety, emergency management and defense agencies, today announced its first installations in the Brazilian market. Mutualink¹s platform will facilitate the region¹s emergency preparedness and response planning in advance of the major spectator events coming to Brazil, including the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics. The Mutualink system has already been installed in nine locations throughout Brazil, with eight additional installations expected by the end of this year.
The Mutualink system enables secure interoperable communications across jurisdictions, allowing voice, data and video to be shared between state and federal police and private enterprise. The system¹s plug-and-play design allows each agency to participate with minimal investment and installation, gaining secure network access quickly and cost-effectively. Mutualink¹s system is currently deployed by hundreds of public safety and private security entities worldwide, including homeland security and defense installations, NATO Special Operations Forces, police and fire departments, transit authorities, hospitals, shopping malls, casinos, and more.
Mutualink has partnered with COMTEX SA, a Brazil-based company specializing in solutions for public safety, to deliver these capabilities to South America¹s largest market. COMTEX SA chose Mutualink because of its unique ability to enable each agency to maintain sovereignty over their assets while communicating important information in real time to affiliated and affected parties. This will be an important feature for managing these monumental sporting events.
“The current security levels imposed by the visibility of Brazil because of its economic position in the world, and most notably in view of the major events that will be held in major cities in Brazil have forced this country’s authorities to seek a solution that would integrate all existing radio communication systems, data and video with low cost, high efficiency and most importantly maintaining the autonomy of the various agencies involved,² said Sergio Nercessian, CEO of COMTEX SA. ³We have been analyzing the global market in search of the best solution, and we have selected Mutualink to serve this highly diversified market. Mutualink has been lauded for its high performance and low cost of deployment, making it the choice of the Brazilian authorities as the most viable solution.”
The Mutualink system is already in an advanced stage of testing in Brazil, and was selected to integrate communications systems for the largest and perhaps most critical Command and Control center in Brazil. Located in the city of Rio de Janeiro, this crisis control center will be responsible for managing the communication systems that involve the major international events with the highest public attendance: the Olympics and the World Cup. The Mutualink system has also been presented to several federal agencies including the Brazilian armed forces.
Benchmark-Brazil, located in Campinas, SP, will manufacture Mutualink¹s patented interoperability platform beginning in early 2013. This production is specifically for the Brazilian market and other MERCOSUL countries, which are seeking to upgrade their communications and resource sharing capabilities in anticipation of upcoming world events. Benchmark will manufacture Mutualink¹s newly-redesigned hardware, which offers the same advanced functionality but in one-third of the rack space required.
³Our technology will help Brazilian law enforcement agencies and private entities meet the needs of their growing infrastructure in anticipation of the major sporting events they¹ll be hosting,² said Mark Hatten, CEO of Mutualink. ³We also anticipate sizeable growth and activity in Brazil¹s burgeoning defense and public safety sectors in the coming years, and working locally with Benchmark-Brazil, we have the infrastructure in place to support that growth.²
About Mutualink
Mutualink, Inc. has developed an interoperable communications platform that enables community-wide multimedia sharing of radio, voice, text, video, data files and telephone communications in a secure environment. Mutualink¹s system is currently deployed by hundreds of public and private entities worldwide, including homeland security and defense installations, NATO Special Operations Forces, police and fire departments, transit authorities, hospitals, shopping malls, casinos, and more. Mutualink is a privately-held company headquartered in Wallingford, Conn., with R&D facilities in Westford, Mass. and Mayagüez, PR.