Faster ambulance response times and lower costs for satellite services are the goals of two projects funded by Precarn Incorporated, a not-for-profit consortium of corporations, research institutes and government partners supporting the development of intelligent information and communications technology.

Ottawa-based Greenley & Associates and the Ottawa Paramedic Service will work on an intelligent system to support the command and control systems used by emergency response services. The outcome should be better control and faster response times to emergencies. Other partners on the project include CAE Inc. of Saint-Laurent, Quebec, Vancouver-based Actenum Corp., McGill University in Montréal, and Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia.

Telesat Canada, EION Inc., Carleton University and Algonquin College will work on a project that provides advanced communications signals between satellites and ground stations. The project will develop an intelligent system to monitor and optimize signals between ground stations and satellites. The result should be a reduction in the cost of satellite services, lowering another barrier to the provision of advanced telecommunications services to remote and under-served communities.

The two projects are among six being funded by Precarn, which will invest $4.9 million of its own money, which will be augmented by $7.4 million from other sources.