Thales Communications Inc.'s Liberty Multiband Land Mobile Radio (LMR) has been certified to the Factory Mutual (FM) Approval Standard 3610:1988 for Intrinsic Safe equipment, meaning it can be operated in an explosive environment and will not trigger ignition in the presence of flammable or combustible material, the company announced.

The Liberty LMR is a software-defined, portable LMR that enables emergency responders to communicate with partner agencies, regardless of radio frequency band. It operates across all the public safety bands (136-174 MHz, 380-520 MHz, 700 MHz, and 800 MHz) and in Project 25 (P25) conventional, P25 trunked, and legacy analog modes. The Liberty LMR is capable of Output Feedback Data Encryption Standard (OFB DES) and AES encryption with Over-The-Air-Rekey (OTAR) for secure communications. It is Mil Spec rugged and submersible to two meters.

"Agencies now have an Intrinsic Safe option available in a full-spectrum multiband," according to Mike Sheehan, Thales' president and CEO. "Successful completion of the testing further illustrates Thales's dedication to providing interoperability to all users, including those working in hazardous environments."

Intrinsic Safe certification complies with the requirements of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate for their Multiband Radio Project.

The Liberty LMR is manufactured at Thales's Clarksburg, Md., facilities. The products are available for purchase through GSA Schedule GS-35L-0001L and DOI contract GS-TFMG-BPA-09-0012.