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Fire service gets smarter maps

How Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service deployed Blue Light Maps.

In numbers

40
Specialist vehicles deployed to
1.45 million
Residents covered
2
Live data overlay types
OS
Base map building data
DG
Daniel Grew
OPERATIONAL TECHNOLOGY MANAGER · DORSET & WILTSHIRE FIRE AND RESCUE SERVICE

"It has made a positive difference in reaching incidents more quickly and effectively."

The Challenge

Every second counts on the way to an incident. With increased use of fire coverage tools, crews are often rotated to cover areas they don’t know well.

That means they not only need the fastest blue light route – they also need access to vital information like hydrant locations and risk data.

Traditionally, getting up-to-date data into the hands of frontline firefighters has been slow and expensive.

The Solution

Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service has deployed Blue Light Maps to the existing in-vehicle tablets of all frontline fire appliances.

Through a simple data admin panel, the team can upload fire hydrant and risk data in their existing formats.

It’s then immediately made available to all frontline crews as an overlay to the base map, alongside comprehensive building data from Ordnance Survey.

Hydrant and risk-data overlays shown on the base map in Blue Light Maps

The Impact

Daniel Grew, Operational Communications Technology Manager, explained how the app helps:

What’s next?

Dorset & Wiltshire are now exploring opportunities to further expand the use of the Blue Light Maps solution, by also providing access to all responding officers — ensuring every responder benefits from smarter routing, critical data overlays, and improved situational awareness.

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Summary

This case study describes how Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service deployed Blue Light Maps to improve emergency response. The solution provides real-time data overlays and building information to frontline crews, covering 1.45 million residents with 40 vehicles. The service plans to expand usage to all responding officers.

Key Facts

Frequently Asked Questions

What results did Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service achieve?

The service deployed Blue Light Maps to all frontline fire appliances, covering 1.45 million residents with 40 specialist vehicles, and integrated 2 live data overlay types.

How long did the project take?

The page does not specify the duration of the project.

What was the approach used?

Blue Light Maps was deployed to existing in-vehicle tablets, with a data admin panel for uploading hydrant and risk data, which is then overlaid on Ordnance Survey base maps.

What challenges were overcome?

The challenge of getting up-to-date data to frontline firefighters was overcome by using a simple data admin panel and immediate availability of overlays.

Related Entities

People
Daniel Grew
Companies
Blue Light Maps, Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service, Ordnance Survey
Products
Blue Light Maps
Locations
Dorset, Wiltshire
Technologies
data admin panel, in-vehicle tablets