The Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB) has procured a 5G core network from Ericsson to develop the Rakel G2 critical communications network for public safety and emergency services, including defense purposes.
Led by a Director General appointed by the Swedish government, the MSB is responsible for helping Swedish society prepare for the consequences of major accidents, crises and wars. Approximately 1,200 employees work in Karlstad, Christinehamn, Stockholm, Sand, Levinge and Rothersberg.
The MSB’s powers include matters related to civil protection, public safety, emergency management, and civil defense, unless other authorities are responsible for them. Responsibility refers to actions taken before, during, and after an emergency or crisis.
The organization works in partnership with local authorities, county councils, other authorities, the private sector and various organizations through knowledge improvement, support, training, exercise, regulation, supervision and its own operations.
MSB’s new dual-mode 5G core network by Ericsson will be a key part of Sweden’s next-generation Civil Protection and Disaster Relief (PPDR) mission-critical mobile network, called Rakel G2. Ericsson’s 5G core network will initially complement MSB’s existing national radio communications system, Rakel, based on the Tetra standard.
Rakel is used by over 650 organizations across a variety of authorities including police, customs, military defense, coast guard, rescue services and medical healthcare.
“A prerequisite for cooperation in our national defense is access to robust, modern, and dedicated communications systems,” said Ronnie Harp, director of Rakel and Command Operating Systems at MSB. “Investing in systems like this not only strengthens Sweden’s ability to collaborate on a daily basis and lead mission-critical operations, but also during potential large-scale crises.”
Ericsson believes that in such emergency situations, especially when multiple stakeholder agencies are involved, the ability to communicate securely with guaranteed high quality can be a key factor in saving lives. I think there is. Ericsson said that through the use of the 5G core network, which is scheduled to start rolling out in 2024, police, fire brigades, emergency medical services and military organizations will be able to become more effective with enhanced situational awareness through a secure and rapid shared method. He said that it will be possible to collaborate with voice, data, images and video.
“By providing Ericsson’s latest 5G core technology, we are supporting MSB’s mission to strengthen Sweden’s nationally critical networks,” said Jenny Lind, head of market area Europe and Latin America at Ericsson. Kvist added. “5G is the most versatile and capable technology available to meet these stringent requirements for secure and effective communications through voice, data, images and video.”
