Catalyst has been an innovator and leading technology proponent to the critical communications market space for over 20 years and more evidence of that position is represented by our contributions to the leading technical and professional organizations that serve our industry. Some Catalyst employees are members of IEEE -the world’s largest technical professional organization for the advancement of technology – and take advantage of the technical and educational opportunities offered by this worldwide organization.
Catalyst has been a member of PTIG – the Project 25 Interest Group, for many years. The purpose of the group is to promote the P25 standard and educate interested parties about the benefits of the standard. In addition to Catalyst’s wide portfolio of P25 standard products, we participate with PTIG during seminars and trade shows where PTIG has a presence.
Another influential standards creating body is TIA – the Telecommunications Industry Association. TIA is accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) as a standards developing organization (SDO). TIA’s engineering committees create standards and technical documents based on guidelines established by the ANSI Essential Requirements. Catalyst participates in the TR8.18 Wireline systems (ISSI) Working group to keep our customers current with standards for that LMR interface.
ATIS – The Alliance for Telecommunications Standards – is another professional organization with Catalyst Association. We sit in on the JLMRLTE meetings (In North America, the ATIS (Alliance for Telecommunications
Industry Solutions) TIA (Telecommunications Industry Association) TR-8.8 (Broadband Data Solutions) Joint Project Committee (JLMRLTE) is defining the LMR interface for Interworking. At its core, the organization exists to support a competitive, interoperable market. Their work creates the critical common base upon which our members can further their own innovation. Catalyst observes in working group meetings to further interoperability between different vendor radio systems.
NPSTC – the National Public Safety Telecommunications Council – is a federation of organizations whose mission is to improve public safety communications and interoperability through collaborative leadership. NPSTC regularly submits comments, ex parte communications, and filings to the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) via the Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC) and to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and speaks as a voice for it’s community to FirstNet(tm). NPSTC produces reports that are developed by the cumulative efforts of many volunteers’ time, energy, and knowledge to benefit the public safety communications community. Catalyst participates in working group meetings that help craft the positions that NPSTC takes on behalf of its community.
Catalyst has developed a number of interfaces to the Digital Mobile Radio standard and are members of the Digital Mobile Radio Association – DMRA. The Association works with members, worldwide, to ensure that DMR Digital Mobile Radio is the most widely supported digital business radio standard. Members are companies, organisations and individuals who use or build DMR products professionally or those working to support the DMR standard in other ways.
While many individuals contribute to, and take advantage of, the information flow back and forth between Catalyst and these professional organizations, the effort is led by IEEE member Jerry Adams, Catalyst’s solution engineer. Jerry’s ability to synthesize volumes of data, and to represent Catalyst’s position on competing ideas put forth for standards consideration, help insure that Catalyst customers are at the leading edge of technology developments in the critical communications industry.
