Provision of an integrated communications platform for the Metropolitan Police Service

Report: 21
Date: 18 April 2002
By: Commissioner

Summary

This report outlines the requirements for the provision of an Integrated Communications Platform.

A. Recommendations

1. Members are asked to note the contents of this report.
2. Members are asked to approve the request for tender action for a contract in the linked exempt report.

B. Supporting information

1. The Receiver for the Metropolitan Police District contracted in March 2000 to take delivery of the core service of the Airwave radio communications system supplied by British Telecommunications plc (who have now transferred the business to Airwave O2 Ltd., a subsidiary of mmO2 plc). This contract and its associated liabilities were transferred to the Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA) vide the Greater London Authority Act 1999.

2. The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) has a requirement to provide the desktop console equipment to deliver the Airwave service into the C3i centres as well as the 29 other specialist control rooms around the Metropolitan Police District (MPD) as well as selected control rooms outside the MPD. Current estimates indicate that the MPS requires some 530 desktop consoles.

3. The present MetRadio system is delivered into approximately 420 consoles around the MPD through Motorola dispatcher terminals. However, the dispatcher terminals are product specific to the MetRadio system and therefore cannot be reused to connect to the Airwave system. In addition they do not have the required functionality as well as not supporting the C3i proposed business processes.

4. The Directorate of Information (DoI) has evolved a concept known as an integrated communications platform (ICP) for the delivery of the Airwave service, special radio systems, telephony and CCTV to the desktop for the C3i centres. The ICP will also provide for the delivery of the Airwave service, special radio systems, telephony and other special systems to the specialist control rooms.

5. The DoI has commissioned an independent study of the proposed technical solution and topology, which concluded that the proposed approach is achievable with manageable associated risks. The risk mainly centre around the sizing of the requirement.

6. There is now a need for the requirement to be advertised via Official Journal of the European Commission (OJEC) notice in order to ensure that a new contract is in place in time to allow for the detailed design, manufacture and testing to be concluded by the time when the Airwave service is available to the MPS on 14 December 2003.

7. As this contract has an estimated value over the EC threshold of £154,477 for the provision of services, an advertisement is to be placed in the official journal requesting expressions of interest. The expressions of interest will be sifted and tenders issued to qualified companies. Tenders, when received, will be opened under formal purchasing rules and are split for separate commercial and technical evaluations. The recommendation for award of contract will be placed before the committee in due course.

C. Financial implications

Financial details of the contract for the provision of an ICP are contained in a separate linked 'exempt report', to be considered at this meeting.

D. Background papers

None.

E. Contact details

Report author: Paul Oatway of Department of Information, MPS.

For information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

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