SPOT FOR BUSINESS

GE Wind Energy

In late 2016, General Electric decided to deploy SPOT Gen3 to track and protect GE Wind Energy workers at installations across EMEA and Asia. GE crews in Pakistan, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, across Africa, Central Europe and the Balkans will all be safer thanks to SPOT. GE considered many alternatives before choosing SPOT Gen3 for its reliability, reach, and in particular, its one-touch SOS button. GE was already using sister product SPOT Trace in Spain, Sweden, Ireland and UK to track and protect personnel and contractors in transit between wind-power sites, accommodation and airports. Carlos Chivite Trincado, Onshore Wind Energy Environment Health and Safety Leader at GE Wind Energy, said: "Our installations can be in the middle of the desert, or high in the mountains or on the coast, all areas where GSM might not reach." "Staff sometimes face very challenging circumstances; wherever they are, we need to know they are safe and connected. SPOT is an important part of our commitment to providing the best possible safety for our valuable crews." he added.

Lebanese Red Cross

In November 2015, the Lebanese Red Cross, the sole provider of emergency medical services in Lebanon, deployed 125 handheld SPOT Gen3 safety devices to enhance the safety of its workers.

The Lebanese Red Cross use SPOT Gen3 to track the location of its volunteers and search and rescue teams as they respond to critical emergencies. In such situations, volunteers can simply press an SOS button to send their coordinates over the Globalstar satellite network.

Red Cross managers can also install the SPOT app on their smartphones and tablets to read messages and see where each volunteer is located using SPOT Mapping.

SPOT Gen3's small size and long battery life make it ideal for remote volunteers in Lebanon's remote areas and mountains to keep in touch.

According to Rodney Eid, Assistant Director for Crisis Management at Red Cross Lebanon, "Our volunteers and staff are working in some of the most difficult environments across the country. With SPOT Gen3 we will have the reassurance that our hard working team is safe and, if they are in life-threatening situations, they can press a single button and we can quickly respond and work with other emergency services to rescue them."

Northumbrian Water Group

In January 2016, SPOT Gen3 safety devices were deployed by major UK water provider Northumbrian Water Group (NWG) to track and protect lone and remote workers.

The well-being and safety of NWG's employees is a top priority and the initial deployment of over 300 SPOT Gen3 devices enhances the safety of 1,500 employees who carry out checks on reservoirs in remote areas, where GSM signal can be unreliable or non-existent. A "low-risk" category of occasional lone workers, either in offices or in the field, have access to a bespoke smartphone app for summoning help as part of a unique solution developed by Globalstar's specialist partner, Lone Worker Solutions™, who spearheaded the agreement.

Northumbrian Water Group conducted a lengthy and rigorous competitive selection process involving 46 technology providers before selecting staff security specialists Lone Worker Solutions to provide a hybrid satellite and smartphone solution based around Globalstar's competitively priced SPOT Gen3. This hybrid approach results in better operational efficiency and the affordability of both the device and subscription fees helps to optimise return on investment.

Northumbrian Water - Health, Safety and Environment Consultant Team Leader Diane Somerville commented: "Ensuring the safety and well-being of our staff is an extremely high priority for Northumbrian Water Group and it helps us attract and retain skilled employees. Feedback from staff on the new solution and SPOT has already been overwhelmingly positive. Our employees are telling us that the system is easy to use and we are delighted that we are delivering on our ongoing commitment to constantly ensure that our people are safe while at work while they provide vital services to our customers."

Scottish Water

In December 2019 Scottish Water deployed over 250 SPOT Gen3 satellite messengers to safeguard employees who work on their own in areas with unreliable or non-existent mobile coverage.

Hundreds of Scottish Water employees work in remote parts of the country, often solo, managing assets including the reservoirs that supply water to over 2.54 million households and 152,000 businesses. While 49 remote-working teams are already using SPOT, Scottish Water is also offering devices to all other employees who are registered as lone workers. These employees now have a communications lifeline wherever they are, with small, robust SPOT Gen3 devices that communicate reliably over Globalstar’s Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite network.

Scottish Water has pre-configured the SPOT Gen3 devices with two services: if an employee has an emergency, they can press SPOT’s one-touch SOS button; there is also a help button for non-life-threatening situations, such as a flat tyre. Pressing either button automatically transmits the user’s precise GPS location to Scottish Water’s internal communications centre (ICC). The ICC either contacts the emergency services or locates a nearby Scottish Water team who can help their colleague.

Scottish Water chose SPOT Gen3 because of its ease of use, its robustness and the accuracy of its GPS transmissions. Before deploying SPOT earlier in 2019, Scottish Water relied solely on a system where employees registered their planned movements by phone then, if they did not call back by an agreed time, the issue would be escalated through their line managers.

“With winter around the corner we expect SPOT to come into its own as an important part of our health and safety strategy,” said Kes Juskowiak, Water Operations General Manager at Scottish Water. “With reliable satellite communications, we can get help to our employees whenever it is needed and wherever they might be. SPOT is a lifeline providing reassurance to families and colleagues that each lone worker is in safe hands.”
 

Spanish Forest Firefighters

In July 2015, SPOT Gen3 safety device was selected to track and protect teams of firefighters as they battle against forest fire and wildfires in the vast expanse of Castilla La Mancha in central Spain.

Junta de Castilla La Mancha, the administrative authority whose responsibilities include forest and wildfire management for this region, selected wildfire solutions specialist Technosylva to provide 250 SPOT Gen3 devices in order to safely track its forest fire and wildfire response teams and vehicles. Fire is a major problem in the dry and often hot region, and some 2,000 response personnel are always on standby to help keep forest and wildfire at bay.

Technosylva provides sophisticated fire behaviour analysis and management software. Joaquin Ramirez Cisneros, Principal Consultant at Technosylva, explains why Globalstar's SPOT Gen3 was chosen to be an integral part of his company's Wildfire Management System: "To keep our crews safe, it is critical to track where the firefighters are at all times, in relation to the engine and equipment resources, and how far away they are from the heart of the fire. Providing these professional teams with the communications and support they need in the extremely dangerous situation of wildfire is an absolute must." Ramirez Cisneros points to the SPOT Gen3's integrated sensors that report when the device is moving, and its ability to be powered by USB as particular major benefits to firefighters.

With SPOT, emergency services can precisely track fire fighting team's location, via a user-friendly display of GPS positions in near real-time via the Technosylva fiResponse™ platform, a wildfire decision support system based in ESRI™ technology. If a firefighter needs help urgently, with the single press of a button, emergency services will be alerted, their GPS coordinates will be transmitted, and their rescue operation be initiated.

UK Forestry Commission

In February 2016, Global Telesat Communications (GTC), a leading value added reseller of Mobile Satellite Solutions (MSS) announced that the Forestry Commission in England and Scotland chose to deploy Globalstar's SPOT Gen3 messengers under a new sales and support contract with GTC. With the deployment of the new SPOT Gen3 devices, the Forestry Commission improved the safety of its staff when working in areas with unreliable mobile phone and radio communications.

The Forestry Commission chose SPOT because of its small size and ease-of-use as well as its long battery life and affordability. The Commission intends to deploy approximately 550 units between 2016 and 2017.

"In an emergency situation, particularly if a person is in danger of going into shock, having a device that is quick and easy to use is paramount. We wanted something small enough to fit in a pocket, yet able to provide a lifeline in critical situations," said a spokesperson for the Forestry Commission. "Many members of our team work in the most remote parts of the UK which are unreachable by radio and mobile phones. With the SPOT Gen3, they have a satellite-based device that brings peace of mind."

Yorkshire Wildlife Trust

YORKSHIRE WILDLIFE TRUST SELECTS GLOBALSTAR TO PROVIDE TRACKING AND SAFETY FOR ENVIRONMENT RESEARCHERS AND LAND MANAGERS

Yorkshire Peat Partnership, led by Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, selected SPOT Gen4 satellite GPS messengers to track and safeguard scientists and surveyors working across Yorkshire’s remote upland moors.

Established in 2009, Yorkshire Peat Partnership works to restore and conserve upland peat in the Yorkshire Dales, North York Moors and parts of the South Pennines. This requires restoration officers to travel extensively across the county’s most remote and hilly areas – comprising nearly 94,760 hectares of upland peat soil – always on foot since there are few paths and tracks.

“We spend a huge amount of time in these landscapes as we do our surveying, and by their very nature, they’re wild, remote and rugged,” explains Beth Thomas, Peatland Restoration Officer. “We could be driving along a rough track in our 4x4 for half an hour, then it’s a trek across a moor for several kilometres, spending hours crossing demanding terrain where there’s erratic or no mobile signal.”

In May 2021, the Partnership began to provide its teams with SPOT Gen4s to protect them as they carry out their important work in these physically challenging and inaccessible regions. In addition to SPOT’s reliable connectivity – enabled by Globalstar’s satellite fleet in low-Earth-Orbit – ease-of-use, and economical price compared with alternatives were influencing factors.

The pandemic also played a role in YPP’s decision-making, Thomas shares. Some local rescue agencies have been extensively involved in supporting rural communities with Covid patients, and helping residents get vaccinated. YPP managers were eager for their teams to have emergency back-up, enabled by SPOT, just in case local first responder groups are stretched when a team member needed help. To date, SPOT devices are credited with over 7,700 rescues worldwide.

“We are working in remote, difficult terrain in all kinds of weather and so our SPOT Gen4 devices are an investment in our team’s safety; this is something we cannot compromise on,“ said Dr. Tim Thom, Peat Programme Manager, Yorkshire Wildlife Trust.

The buttons on easy-to-use SPOT Gen4 can be flexibly configured to send pre-programmed messages, with options for transmission types. The Partnership’s researchers check in with colleagues in the YPP office base via the OK button and have other non-emergency email communications using the Help button.

They use SPOT’s tracking function every day; this helps managers to always know where the researchers are, and it also helps with record-keeping of survey activities.

With just one press of SPOT’s SOS button, an alert is instantly transmitted to SPOT's 24/7 worldwide search and rescue service, along with the user’s GPS location coordinates. Emergency communications and incident investigation protocols are carried out immediately, and local emergency services are engaged to dispatch help to precisely where it’s needed.

Restoration officers at YPP set out in teams of two or more, but once they leave their vehicle and spread out to survey the land, an individual might be working a half-kilometre away from their nearest colleague. YPP has a radio-based communications system, but Thomas points out: “if we’re on opposite sides of a hill, for example, we simply can’t rely on radio.”