Can commercial innovation transform control rooms?

Compared to the corporate world and other parts of the public sector, cloud adoption got off to a slow start in policing: the National Policing Digital Strategy estimates that £590m will be spent in 2025-2026 to maintain on-premise systems. This reflects not a lack of ambition but rather the scale of the challenge. When the systems you rely on are of critical importance every second of every day, change cannot be rushed. But I do think it could be easier.

Cloud technologies have already transformed the software market, shortening the buying process for consumers and companies alike. Readers of this article probably have around 20 SaaS products on their phones. But unlike police forces, I doubt they had to spend 12 months choosing them.

Too big to fail

Ten years ago, forces were issuing tenders for the development of large, bespoke control room systems. They may have taken a year to specify, a year to procure and a further year to deploy, making it no surprise that some are still here today. When something has been built for you, to your design, it creates the illusion of control; in reality, most forces aren’t using half of the kit that seemed so important and so costly to build.

Moving these systems to the cloud can deliver improvements to efficiency and cyber security, but if the kit is hard to uncouple, you take the inefficiency with you. That’s one of the reasons why a modular, cloud-first approach is the way forward; where each component can be added or removed from the core without disrupting the service.

Pay as you go

Solid control room systems need robust data, a good user experience and secure connections to communication networks and wider national and force systems. Specifying this open and scalable ‘core’ is easier, faster and cheaper too: extra functionality can be switched on to meet emerging needs. It could allow forces to ‘try as they buy’, embedding best practice over time and avoiding locking themselves in to something that doesn’t give them the return they expected.

Of course, this requires technology partners to change their approach too. We’re used to long, fixed contracts with a single client and we need to embrace a more agile, connected, innovation-driven market.

Built to be shared

As forces explore more flexible purchasing models, the ability to share and scale systems across regions becomes increasingly important. Control room systems that enable secure and easy data sharing between multiple partner agencies will hold the key to the future. Were the 43 police forces in England and Wales to become 12, for example, it would make the process of merging and upgrading far simpler.

Regardless of the size of the force, we know they will span diverse communities and a mix of urban and rural areas. Focusing on the interoperability of the core system makes it easier to share data while also targeting added functionality in the right places, allowing local forces to address local needs when necessary whilst still maintaining collaboration with partners. This could deliver better outcomes for communities while keeping licensing costs to a minimum.

Shaping the market

We develop our software in partnership with our clients, delivering improvements identified in user groups or submitted through our Ideas Portal. We also look ahead to more complex enhancements that could improve the outcomes in control rooms, including greater use of automation and AI. That’s why we’re confident that our R&D processes, scale and delivery record are more than a match for shorter, easier-to-end, innovation-led contracts.

The rapid evolution of cloud computing has led some to speculate about a future without software – where AI agents directly access data to perform tasks, bypassing traditional workflows.

While this idea is intriguing, it falls short when applied to real-world scenarios. In today’s control rooms, operators make split-second, life-or-death decisions. These environments demand speed, reliability, and transparency – qualities that go beyond raw automation. To truly unlock innovation in control room technology, we must rethink not only the tools we use, but also how we design, procure, and share them.

To find out more, visit Control Room Software | NEC Software Solutions.

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