LTE MANAGED SERVICES: CLOUD CORE OWNED VS. HOSTED CORE: A PUBLIC SAFETY COMPARISON THE CASE FOR CHOOSING A HOSTED CORE SOLUTION FOR AN LTE PUBLIC SAFETY NETWORK.
COMMUNICATIONS ARE THE LIFEBLOOD OF EVERY PUBLIC SAFETY AGENCY. You need to be able to get the right information to the right people at the right time, which is usually right away. That means being able to send up-to-the-minute mission-critical information to first responders in the field it means being able to send that information in a variety of media. Today s information systems draw upon more data sources and provide more actionable information than ever before. Streaming video from surveillance cameras gives police officers enhanced situational awareness prior to responding to a call. Instant database access tells an officer the owner of the car she s just pulled over for speeding has an outstanding warrant for armed robbery. Immediate downloads of building plans give firefighters crucial inside information on the building they are entering. PAGE 2
More and more public safety agencies are making the decision to explore the potential of a Long Term Evolution (LTE) broadband network to complement and enhance their mission-critical Land Mobile Radio (LMR) voice systems. But even as LTE adoption grows, a great many communities need to balance the impact of a modern, mission-critical LTE broadband network with the needs of the entire community. LTE CONNECTIVITY LTE is a powerful technology for public safety, integrating the mission-critical core with a wealth of new high-speed broadband capabilities. LTE provides significantly greater bandwidth than other mobile data solutions. A private LTE system enables voice, data and video to be available for the exclusive use of public safety instead of competing for bandwidth in a shared public network. LTE allows you to deliver solutions like video, database access, telemetry, analytics and much more to police officers, firefighters, EMTs and other first responders, keeping them safer and enabling them to be more productive and efficient. Motorola s public safety LTE solution is a reliable next generation public safety solution. THE DECISION AFTER THE DECISION LTE deployment and implementation is often a decision that relates to the size of the community and number of public safety users. In most cases, large agencies are choosing to build, implement and operate their own public safety networks. There are also larger municipalities that have chosen to make the investment in core technology. But many communities especially those with fewer than 2,000 public safety users are considering a different route: having a trusted partner deploy and manage the public safety core in a hosted solution. A HOST OF REASONS There are many reasons behind opting for a hosted public safety network solution. Focus is a major driver. Municipalities want to maintain control of communications while staying within their budget. For many small and medium sized networks, a hosted core solution can significantly reduce upfront capital investment and provide consistent and predictable ongoing expenses that align with the budget. In addition, a hosted solution allows you to concentrate on doing what you do best: using the network to improve public safety. You don t have to worry about any LTE core issues because the core is operated and maintained by Motorola experienced professionals who are exclusively focused on the network management, monitoring and troubleshooting of the hosted LTE core solution. REDUCED RISK An important benefit of selecting an LTE hosted core public safety solution is significant risk reduction. With a hosted core, there is a business model that is clearly defined from the outset; there can be detailed service level agreements; there are no unknowns. Expenses are clearly defined, including resource expenses and equipment refresh and evolution expenses. In addition, you have the ability to extend the network as your needs evolve, and the capability to move to a stand-alone core, if necessary, in the future. COMPLETE FLEXIBILITY Mission-critical public safety networks must have the flexibility to change as the agency s needs evolve. With a hosted core network, you have exceptional flexibility. You can expand to new coverage areas. You can add new applications and capabilities. You can add new devices. You can expand to add new agencies and jurisdictions to the network. And you can expand to add new information sharing capabilities. FOR MANY SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZED NETWORKS, A HOSTED CORE SOLUTION CAN SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE UPFRONT CAPITAL INVEST- MENT AND PROVIDE CONSISTENT AND PREDICTABLE ONGOING EXPENSES THAT ALIGN WITH THE BUDGET PAGE 3
TCO IMPACT Hosted core solutions deliver the same priority setting services, applications and availability as an owned solution, but for small and medium size networks, at a lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) over the life of the network. A comparison of the costs involved with building and owning your own network versus having a trusted partner host the core is illuminating. It reveals significant savings in a number of areas. One key factor to keep in mind is that government grants are usually reserved for capital equipment expenses and not for the operational expenses associated with operating a core network. When evaluating costs, it s critical to consider both initial costs and evolutionary costs, and evaluate them over a five- or ten-year period. A hosted solution provides a stable, predictable annual expense that changes only when you add new applications, sites and users. Savings areas include: Equipment. With a hosted network, significantly lower up-front capital expenses can enable agencies to migrate to LTE sooner rather than later. Just as important, there will be no additional investment required for core technology refresh and equipment upgrades. If you have a grant, you can prioritize funds for enodeb base stations and devices. There is also no need for acquiring, inventorying and storing spare or replacement core equipment. Maintenance. Network maintenance costs are also controlled. Since all software upgrades, certification and troubleshooting are handled by Motorola, as your network management partner, there are no additional maintenance expenses. Similarly, there are no additional costs for licensing fees, and you eliminate or greatly reduce costs for security, network facilities and a ssociated utilities and maintenance. Personnel. You can accrue savings by increasing the use and efficiency of internal staffing resources. With fewer personnel needed for maintaining, managing and monitoring the network, you ll be able to achieve savings by reducing technical training time and expenses. Most important, you have the flexibility to redeploy these resources in other more effective, more productive ways. Budget Management. In today s volatile economy, you also save by having predictable operating expenses in the form of consistent annual fees over the life of the system. MID SIZE AND SMALL COMMUNITIES ARE FINDING THAT HOSTED CORE SOLUTIONS DELIVER THE SAME PRIORITY SETTING SERVICES, APPLICATIONS AND AVAILABILITY AS AN OWNED SOLUTION BUT AT A LOWER TOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIP (TCO) OVER THE LIFE OF THE NETWORK UNDERSTANDING THE TOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIP FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZED NETWORKS YEAR 1 YEARS 1 10 YEARS 1 10 YEAR 5 OWNED CORE SOLUTION INITIAL HARDWARE ANNUAL STAFFING COST ANNUAL MAINTENANCE TECHNOLOGY REFRESH HOSTED CORE SOLUTION INCLUDED INITIAL HARDWARE ANNUAL STAFFING COST ANNUAL MAINTENANCE TECHNOLOGY REFRESH PAGE 4
SECONDARY COSTS In evaluating whether to choose a hosted core network, it s easy to identify the major expenses that are affected: network infrastructure, equipment, maintenance and personnel costs. But equally important are the expenses that may not always be top-of-mind but add extra expense to an owned and operated network, while being absorbed as part of a hosted solution. These secondary expenses include hardware costs, such as database servers, disk storage and uninterruptible power systems. They also include software costs like licenses, backups and management, software monitoring tools and third-party licenses. Especially crucial are security costs that include security management, password and access control and security compliance audits. A hosted solution can also lower secondary personnel expenses, lowering the costs of staffing a network operations center and reducing the need for highly-trained technical staff such as network and database administrators as well as network designers and planners. Additionally, a hosted core network can substantially reduce ongoing operational cost activities, including monitoring and management, fault management, network configuration, preventive maintenance, infrastructure site maintenance and repair, database administration, reporting and training. TCO COMPARISON FOR SMALL AND MID-SIZE NETWORKS Looking at the big picture, it s evident where and how a hosted core network can provide significant savings for a INITIAL COST EVOLUTION COST CORE TECHNOLOGY REFRESH TOTAL COST CUSTOMER OWNED CORE HIGH: equipment, infrastructure, training and management HIGH: investigate, test and deploy new capabilities over a relatively small user base HIGH: investigate, test and deploy new capabilities HIGH: at front end and at reinvestment/refresh cycle periods; difficult to forecast HOSTED CORE LOW: core equipment and skills provided by provider/partner LOW: technology testing and integration included LOW: provider/partner performs technology refresh functions LOW: consistently low cost, and able to be budgeted as new technologies are selected THE MOTOROLA TCO CALCULATOR TOOL Motorola has developed a TCO calculator, which allows you to preview the parameters to consider as you evaluate the suitability of a hosted network for your public safety agency. To access the calculator, please contact your Motorola representative. PAGE 5
EVALUATING POTENTIAL SAVINGS How do you quantify the potential savings of a hosted core solution over your own owned and operated system? A good way to start is to use a TCO calculation tool to help you determine potential savings both initially and over the effective life of the network. In the following charts, based on a Motorola-developed TCO calculator, you can preview the parameters to consider as you evaluate the suitability of a hosted network for your public safety agency. In this example, consider a community with a population of hundreds of thousands of residents, and about 200- to-300 sworn officers, firefighters, EMTs and other public safety users. The community wants and needs new safety capabilities but also has considerable budget constraints. The department is struggling with what is the best, most cost-effective way of deploying a new LTE network. One of the best ways to make the right decision is to examine and compare the costs of an owned core network solution versus a hosted one. The following chart provides a sample comparison of the costs of an owned network versus a hosted network in a community. COMPARISON OF COSTS OVER 10-YEAR PERIOD FOR SMALL AND MID-SIZE NETWORKS OWNED CORE SOLUTION TOTAL 10-YEAR COST YEAR 5: SOFTWARE REFRESH COST HOSTED CORE SOLUTION TOTAL 10-YEAR COST CONTACT YOUR MOTOROLA SALES PERSON FOR A VIEW OF YOUR CONFIGURATION USING THE TCO MODEL YEAR 1: INITIAL HARDWARE COST STEADY YEARLY COST In this example, the costs of owning a network and the costs of a hosted network are compared over a 10-year period. Costs include initial hardware maintenance costs, personnel costs and technology refresh costs at five-year intervals. PAGE 6
BEYOND SAVINGS In the long run, public safety networks are not primarily about saving money. They re about safety. It s not surprising, then, that some agencies may be reluctant to consider a hosted core solution. It s fairly certain that the partner they choose will be an expert in network technology. But public safety networks are different. Some CIOs may be uncomfortable with the idea of a network manager that doesn t understand the special, mission-critical needs of public safety operations. At Motorola, we know both networks and public safety. We are an industry leader in design, implementation, support and optimization of LTE wireless broadband MOTOROLA SERVICES We are a responsive, worldclass services provider for enterprise, government and public safety organizations delivering strategic nextgeneration networks that enable true mobility and integrated data-voice-andvideo communications. Our services portfolio, deep technical expertise, industryleading solutions and worldwide partner network combine to help you achieve greater cost efficiencies, tighter security and a fullyoptimized infrastructure that supplies the advanced communications network your users need to be their best in the moments that matter. CHOOSE VALUE Should you choose to own and operate your public safety network, or should you choose a hosted solution? While selecting between a customer-owned core and a hosted solution is an organizations preference, Motorola can help provide the tools and professional insight to finding the perfect configuration for your needs. More than anything, you should be concentrating on choosing the core network solution that brings the most value to you and your community. Not just in saving money, but in saving lives. For help in evaluating how best to deploy and manage your community s LTE public safety core network, talk with your Motorola representative, or visit motorolasolutions.com/hostedlte MOTOROLA, MOTO, MOTOROLA SOLUTIONS and the Stylized M Logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Motorola Trademark Holdings, LLC and are used under license. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. 2011 Motorola Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved. GO-21-173