RAYNET exists primarily to provide emergency/disaster communications support to the User Services; we do this by putting our radio communications experience, expertise, and equipment, at their disposal.
To maintain a high level of operating skills and procedures, we lend our full assistance, when required, to the User Services for non-emergency/disaster communications as well; such events as the London Marathon are a regular fixture in our training and operating calender.
Please note that we are required, under the terms of our Amateur Radio Licences, to be contacted by one of the User Services in writing, before being able to operate our equipment for you; a less than exhaustive list is shown below; your best course of action, though, is to contact us. Here's the list:
We may well be able to help you, too. If your organisation is planning an event and you think we can help, please contact us.
The core function of Raynet is to pass your messages over our radio systems and networks, thus either lightening or removing your need for possessing your own trained cadre of Radio Operators - in may other organisations, this need to have your own Radio Operators can have a detrimental effect on other, more essential, budgetary requirements. Since RAYNET is made up of licenced, trained, Radio Operators and technicians, it makes sense to make use of us.
There are, however, limitations on what we may, and may not, do. For instance, we can not take over your checkpoints, plan your events, and so on. What we can do, is provide Radio Communications, to support your events.
Put simply, we assign radio operators to several of your key event personnel (we call these Radio Operators 'Shadows', as they're always with your personnel); These Key personnal then use their 'Shadows' to send and receive messages to and from your other key personnel.
By way of example, in the 2001 London Marathon, where we were requested by the St. John Ambulance Service, we used no less than twenty (20) Radio Operators (of which five were 'Shadows', and one was fully mobile with the end of the line of Wheelchair 'runners'), and four (4) Radio Net controllers, to assist Disability Sport England, in maintaining overall management and monitoring of the London Wheelchair Marathon.
In order to have our side of this huge the event run smoothly, many months before the day of the Marathon, we liased with St. John Ambulance officers, Race Organisers, Disability Sport England officials, and local and regional RAYNET groups, to form an Operational Plan that worked on our experience, technical ability, and operational capabilities, to produce high-quality assistance for the event. Such is our commitment, that we've been providing such assistance since the early days of the Wheelchair London Marathon element of the actual London Marathon!
The siting of our Operators is highly flexible, and tailored to both the terrain, and event, concerned. For example, look over the chart below. It give some ideas that we regularly use.
Static position |
Mobile (vehicle) |
Mobile (On foot) |
|
Emergency or Exercise Control |
Local Authority control room, a local Hall, a Community Rest Centre, etc. |
In the Operators own car, on a Motor Cycle, in a bus, police car, Fire Engine, Ambulance, etc. |
With search teams, medical staff, etc. |
Event |
Your event control centre, at a Checkpoint or carpark, etc. |
In a minibus, to pick up retired walkers; Monitoring the route of your event, etc. |
At a stage checkpoint; with a 'sweep team'; or 'Shadowing' your Key personnel, etc. |
OK, to take these points in order, then.
Telephones cost money to make a call (there goes your budget again), and have the annoying habit, in the case of mobile (cell) phones, or 'dropping out', just when you don't want to lose communications. This can also be caused be network demands, natural weather conditions, and so on (it's like the railways, with their 'wrong sort of snow' excuses!).
Other forms of radio, such as Citizen's Band Radio, require licences (we are already licenced for our Amatuer Radio equipment - did we mention that already?), and are prone to idiots (who think it's funny to jam urgent radio communications) jamming the limited number of channels available to CB, and to range limitations.
For Licence-exempt (PMR446, or 'Easywave') radios, the range is typically less than one Kilometre in built-up areas, and only two and a half Kilometres in open areas.
With our Amateur Radio equipment, reliable contacts over the length and breadth of the country are not unusual; Jamming is almost unheard-of (and punishable under law, as well); thus your local event will present very few problems for us to manage communications on your behalf.
Here's a table of some of the benefits of using RAYNET communications services:
Emergency and Exercise |
Event |
Can communicate over difficult terrain |
|
Can work without a mains electricity supply |
|
Free the Users (Ambulance chief, Marshall, etc.) from worrying about communications |
|
If radio traffic becomes excessive, Raynet operators are experienced at prioritising messages |
|
Radio Amateurs pass a technical examination and can often make running repairs in the field |
|
Can provide a service if your normal system fails (e.g. mast down in a storm, mains failure) |
No telephone charges |
Can provide direct communications between different User Services (e.g. Police, Coastguard, Fire and Ambulance Services, local authorities, Utilities, etc) who may have incompatible radios |
Can communicate more reliably and over far further distances than CB or licence-free radios |
Provide additional radio channels if traffic is heavy (Raynet does not use your radio bands) |
Can provide communications at remote checkpoints even where there is no mobile phone service |
Not affected by telephone exchanges or mobile phone channels becoming over-used and jammed |
Can pass messages about walkers or runners who are lost, overdue, have missed previous checkpoints, etc. |
Can go into a new area and implement a communications infrastructure within hours (control, outstations, repeaters on buildings/hills, etc.) |
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Since we may only pass messages for certain organisations (as explained above), you will need to tell us which of these is calling us out. In an Emergency or Exercise, you will probably be one of these organisations. For an Event, it might (for instance) be the local Police, Red Cross or St. John Ambulance (or even all three - it's not unusual!). If you are not sure what is appropriate, ask us. We will need a letter stating who it is, though of course for an Emergency we would not expect this.
No. Raynet members buy their own equipment and do not charge for their time. Some User Services make a suitable donation, however, to help Greater London RAYNET buy group equipment, and pay for overheads such as postage.
It's easy to contact us; your first point of contact is our Zone Coordinator, at:
E-mail: |
|
Post: |
Mr Phil Williams, G6AQP, |
Telephone: |
079-7350-8590 |
He will then contact you and, following this, will arrange for the appropriate Group Controller(s) to get involved.