• New state-of-the-art vehicle commissioning centre for North Wales Police
• 80 specialist vehicles to be commissioned over a 12-month period
• Full team of dedicated Arqiva technicians to be based at Deeside Commissioning Centre

Arqiva today announced a joint venture with North Wales Police (NWP) to provide a new state-of-the-art specialist vehicle commissioning centre in Deeside, North Wales.  Over 80 specialist vehicles will be commissioned in the first 12 months at the dedicated service centre and Arqiva, which provides a wide range of managed services to NWP, has worked closely with the Welsh Force to create the advanced facility.

As well as providing installation services, Arqiva will also procure and manage the equipment supply and logistics, leaving NWP to concentrate on operational issues. Specialist vehicle commissioning is a critical process in any Police Force and by having a dedicated commissioning centre; NWP is guaranteed a high level of service and reassurance that vehicles will be ready as and when required.

The availability of the dedicated commissioning centre means that NWP can send a newly purchased vehicle straight to Deeside for full commissioning.  Arriving as a standard civilian vehicle, on departure the cars, motorbikes and vans are fully operational and ready for use by NWP.  The specialist vehicle commissioning, which began at Deeside in January 2008, typically involves a vast range of equipment including siren systems, mobile data equipment, internal and external lighting, Incident Data and Journey Data Recorders, traffic enforcement equipment, and Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras.

Arqiva is providing a dedicated team of technicians, based at the commissioning centre on a full-time basis. Whilst this ensures local man-power on a day-to-day basis, it also guarantees that additional support can be bought in from Arqiva's nationwide team if needed during a busy period, holidays or sickness.

Tony Duffy, Transport Manager at NWP, said: "The installation process that police vehicles go through is in-depth and complex. Not only that, but the equipment which kits out the fleet is vital for effective policing, and we need to know that everything is being done by the book, with use of the most appropriate technology available and within best practice and safety guidelines.

"Arqiva has been providing us with a full range of managed services for several years so we are very happy to progress with the team on this project. The technical expertise and advice we have already received has been invaluable and we are confident in the team's recommendations for ongoing installation procedures and processes as well as proposed new technologies for the future."

Steve Mace, Sales Director for Arqiva's Public Safety division, added: "Providing radio installation and maintenance communications is at the heart of Arqiva's business and working on a project like this is a great opportunity to really put to use the knowledge and understanding we have of the field. We are delighted to extend our relationship with NWP and believe that the new centre is the most effective way for it to handle its fleet commissioning needs on an ongoing basis."

Arqiva's Vehicle Installation Centre of Excellence, which provides consultancy and technical advice to all of the emergency services on vehicle installations, played a significant role in assisting NWP with the selection of equipment for the Deeside Commissioning Centre. Arqiva has been working with the UK's emergency services for many years and has a full understanding of the technology involved and the issues faced in commissioning specialist vehicles as well as a documented vehicle installation design process.

Arqiva ensures that all vehicle installations are carried out under the full guidance of recognised industry standards such as MPT1362 Code of Practice and the NAPFM Code of Practice as well as the recommendations of its own Vehicle Installation Centre of Excellence.

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