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Chartis Federal: Engineering Mission Critical Systems for Federal Organizations

Chris Knight, CDO

Persistent systems availability and responsive engineering support are of the utmost importance for organizations executing mission critical operations. A failure or interruption can seriously impact these operations and potentially put lives at risk. Chartis Federal, a Virginia-based company, offers holistic engineering services for government agencies to enhance the availability, resiliency, and security of their mission critical systems.

Chartis is particularly known for its work with federal law enforcement, public safety, and homeland security organizations. With over 100 professionals in 17 states, the company helps plan, design, deploy, and sustain nationwide wireless communications systems and infrastructure that enable coordinated field operations. For example, Chartis modernizes legacy Land Mobile Radio (LMR) systems and improves the way these systems help different federal, state, and local agencies work together during daily activities, planned events, and emergency situations. “We have been actively involved in the transformation of the federal wireless communications landscape over the last decade,” says Brian Creswick, Chief Operating Officer at Chartis. “This has included the modernization of analog LMR systems to Project 25 (P25) digital platforms; implementation of Radio over Internet Protocol (RoIP); and introduction of public safety broadband. This has also included new methods for system acquisition and ownership through enterprise contracts, interagency agreements, and commercial Infrastructure-as-a-Service with consumption-based pricing,” Creswick adds.

To demonstrate its commitment towards technology evaluation and innovation, Chartis established an Emerging Technologies Laboratory (ETL) at its headquarters in Virginia. “The company is focused on bringing down costs for our clients while improving the capabilities, security, and performance of their communications systems,” says Chris Knight, Chief Delivery Officer at Chartis.

The company is focused on bringing down costs for our clients while improving the capabilities, security, and performance of their communications systems

“We use the ETL to perform engineering assessments that cover the ongoing maintenance of existing systems, the introduction of new and emerging technologies, and associated cyber security testing and resolution,” adds Knight. He cites an instance in which the company was able to bring about cost reductions in excess of a million dollars per year for one client by helping them implement cutting-edge remote monitoring tools.

Chartis has also spent significant effort developing and demonstrating multi-platform, integrated solutions that are non-proprietary in nature. Their standards-based engineering approach uses best practice guidance from industry organizations such as the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International, National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (NPSTC), American National Standards Institute (ANSI), Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The company’s goal is to give clients the flexibility to consider different vendors and platforms based on their specific requirements. This minimizes the use of proprietary solutions that may create long-term vendor lock-in and resulting cost challenges.

“Moving forward, we will maintain our commitment to federal law enforcement, public safety, and homeland security communities,” says Nick McCarter, Chief Executive Officer at Chartis. “At the same time, we look to leverage our experiences and staff expertise to expand our engineering services into other agencies and missions in the federal government,” McCarter adds. He noted that the company also continues to grow and invest in other corporate offerings including federal IT services and program management support.

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