Press Release

Wuppertal March 15, 2023

Zurich’s Protection and Rescue Division Equips State-of-the-Art Command Vehicle With Riedel Comms System

“Schutz & Rettung guarantees the best possible protection and safety for the population, both in everyday life and during major incidents,” said Thomas Hauert, Staff Officer and Chief Situation and Command Support, SRZ. “But in order for front-line emergency forces to manage events in the best possible way, we are dependent on operational resources that provide an overall view of the situation as quickly as possible. Thanks to Riedel’s assistance over the past few years — not only in the extensive concept and planning phase but also in the implementation — SRZ has a command vehicle worthy of the latest generation.”

As a service division of Zürich’s Security Department, SRZ unites the fire brigade, ambulance service, civil defense, operations control center, and fire police under one roof. SRZ responds to major incidents with a potentially high number of injured persons, such as bus, train, or plane accidents; major fires and storms; and operations involving biological or chemical substances. In addition, the rescue organisations of Zürich Airport are integrated with SRZ’s operational areas and services. Measuring 10.25 meters by 2.55 meters with a 6 meter slide-out, SRZ’s imposing command vehicle is designed to support the management of a major incident. When fully expanded, the vehicle accommodates a report room, a separate work room, and a command support room.

Riedel’s Artist proved to be the most convincing system capable of integrating with the Polycom digital radio system SRZ uses to exchange real-time information about emergency events. The Riedel solution deployed in the SRZ command vehicle makes radio, telephony, and intercom communications readily accessible via easy-to-use, six-button Bolero beltpack devices, each with a long battery life of 17 hours. Consolidating all of SRZ’s voice applications on one system, this model relieves the officer-in-charge from the stress of monitoring multiple emergency communication sources. Volunteer members of the rescue team find the Bolero beltpack easy to use not just for making calls but also for monitoring and responding to the two digital Polycom radio channels.

“For SRZ, everything must absolutely work 100% reliably in the event of a crisis,” said Erwin Engel, Sales Manager Switzerland. “We are happy to help SRZ and, ultimately, the people in the city and canton of Zürich, by equipping them with the communications equipment they need to respond to any major incident.”