When words can mean life or death

Yet another new client this month, thanks to a kind referral from The Partners. Airwave is the company - until recently part of O2 - that runs the emergency services' dedicated communications network.

As tragic experience has shown, public networks are often overloaded in the wake of major emergencies like 7/7 or the recent floods. And even in the normal day-to-day, emergency teams need a network more resilient and reliable than the standard public services.

That's what Airwave provides. A lot of the detail is secret, and I'd have to eat my laptop if I wrote it here (or something). But suffice to say that the Airwave network is impressively sophisticated, and there's an extraordinary amount going on behind the scenes to make sure it stays reliable in even the toughest conditions.

All of which is very reassuring for me as a member of the public, and rather fascinating to talk about as a copywriter.

I've been drafted in to help implement The Partners' new identity for Airwave (above). That process began, as it must, with tying down the brand's tone of voice, and I've just completed the first of a little mountain of product brochures. Then there's the website and a corporate brochure to do. So that lot should keep me out of mischief for a while.