Fern Communications Ltd is a
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
-based supplier of
two-way radio
A two-way radio is a radio transceiver (a radio that can both transmit and receive radio waves), which is used for bidirectional person-to-person voice communication with other users with similar radios, in contrast to a broadcast receiver, whi ...
communications equipment. It specialises in the design and manufacture of communications systems for the international upstream oil and gas industry, the emergency services sector and the Offshore Wind sector. With its primary headquarters in
Suffolk
Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, the company also operates from a facility in
Aberdeen
Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...
,
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
.
Overview
As a developer and supplier of two-way radio communications equipment, Fern produces systems that maintain continuous radio communication, regardless of location. Every field trial conducted with FRX-1 and FRW-1 systems has resulted in significant improvement in maintaining a continuous radio signal. For example, successful trials were conducted for Technip in the Gulf of Mexico, QServ in the North Sea, and Qatargas offshore Qatar.
To provide a means of communicating in tunnels greater than one kilometre long, the company began developing the FRW-XB Crossband Repeater. The system is currently in the final phases of testing, and is scheduled for release in 2012.
History
Established in 2002, the company was co-founded by Managing Director Jennifer Cushion, an Australian electronics engineer, and Technical Director Clive Cushion, a British industrial product designer.
In 2007, Fern Communications introduced the oil and gas industry to the FRX-1 ATEX portable radio repeater, its flagship communications system, The FRX-1 provides consistent, uninterrupted radio communication, which is critical to the safe and efficient delivery of well services, especially offshore. Unfortunately, standard radio systems are extremely vulnerable to ‘black spots.’ Typically, these are solid structures that make up the platform and block radio signals, making it impossible for the targeted receiving radio to receive the signal. The upshot is that radio communications consistently break down in certain areas. In an effort to solve this problem, Fern Communications developed the FRX-1 radio repeater. It remains the only system of its kind that effectively bends the radio signal around a solid structure so that it reaches its target destination: the receiving radio located on the other side of the structure. The FRX-1 provides reliable two-way radio communication, which improves productivity, and enhances health and safety standards.
The FRX-1 is exported for use offshore to oil services companies operating in the United States,
Qatar,
Norway,
Kazakhstan, Iran, Sweden, The Netherlands, Nigeria, Angola, Belgium, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Poland, Brunei and Hong Kong, amongst others.
Having established itself in the oil and gas industry, in 2009 Fern Communications identified the emergency services sector as a niche market for its radio communications systems.
The company began conducting a number of field trials for fire and rescue organisations in mountain tunnels, subsea bunkers, rail tunnels
and high rise buildings in Taiwan,
England
and Norway. Each trial conducted was a success, with every rescue organisation reporting that for the first time they experienced no breakdown in radio communications.
Later that year, the company introduced the FRW-1, the all-weather, waterproof version of the FRX-1.
The system is now a standard component of radio communications equipment for a number of emergency services organisations and oil services companies in Taiwan,
See also
* List of oilfield service companies
This is a list of oilfield service companies – which provide services to the petroleum exploration and production industry but do not typically produce petroleum. In the list, notable subsidiary companies and divisions are listed as sub-lists o ...
References
External links
Official website
{{Petroleum industry
Oilfield services companies
Companies established in 2002
2002 establishments in the United Kingdom
Radio communications
Electronics companies of the United Kingdom