Primetech and Kinetic Special Vehicles join forces with the British Transport Police

Primetech has joined forces with Kinetic Special Vehicles to develop a mobile Command and Control Unit (CCU) for the British Transport Police (BTP).

With the onset of the Olympic Games in 2012, BTP had identified the need for a new, bespoke vehicle that could meet their exacting requirements.

The CCU was the first to be designed for the BTP in 10 years, and was developed in partnership with a team comprising of personnel from the Central Operations Unit, Vehicle Fleet Management Department, and IT and Communications Department within BTP.

The brief was to provide two tactical Silver Command units which would be able to handle all civil contingencies and could be easily deployed at large scale public events, beginning with the New Year’s Eve celebrations in London.

“To enhance ground-level communications and ensure that Silver Command can direct from the scene, we needed communications that could be relied upon wherever the vehicle was stationed,” said Graham Tillett, BTP fleet manager. “We wanted a mobile office in the truest sense of the word.”

Mark Catley, sales and marketing director of Kinetic Special Vehicles, explained: “Our work has given us an understanding of the unique emergency environments in which our clients operate.

“We develop our techniques and services to take account of new technologies and the evolving demands of our clients. In this case, mobility, reliability and the maximisation of internal space were key requirements. ”

An Iveco provided the basis of the conversion. Kinetic then developed a robust vehicle structure which would house Primetech’s latest technology.

“Integrated communications technology is crucial for delivering interoperability,” said Henry Walker, director of Primetech. “There needs to be a reliable flow of critical information to and from different tiers of command, multiple agencies, and at regional, national and international levels.”