Large Area Wi-Fi trial supports connectivity at 2026 NSW Surf Life Saving Country Championships
The Connectivity Innovation Network and Pivotel deployed the Rapidly Deployable Large Area Wi-Fi system (LAWIFI) at the 2026 NSW Surf Life Saving Country Championships in South West Rocks, trialling how large-area connectivity can support coastal operations during major events.
Working in collaboration with Surf Life Saving NSW, the deployment took place from 23 to 26 January and provided a valuable real-world setting to assess LAWIFI in a live, high-demand coastal environment, where reliable connectivity is critical to coordination, operations and safety.
A live test in a demanding coastal environment
The four-day event brought together more than 1,100 competitors, supported by officials, safety teams and event staff across multiple surf and beach disciplines. For a regional coastal community like South West Rocks, the temporary increase in population placed additional pressure on existing mobile networks, which are typically designed for everyday use rather than large, short-duration events.
With the support of Surf Life Saving NSW, CIN and Pivotel trialled LAWIFI in an environment closely aligned with its intended use: an open coastal setting with limited fixed infrastructure and a clear need for dependable, wide-area connectivity to support operational activity.
The LAWIFI system supported a range of operational systems on a single network, including event operations, safety services, RFID scanning and competitor tracking.
Advancing the LAWIFI antenna design
A key focus of the deployment was the trial of a new omnidirectional antenna developed through the Telecommunications Disaster Resilience Innovation (TDRI) program. The antenna forms part of a more compact and rapidly deployable LAWIFI configuration, designed to provide consistent 360-degree coverage across the beach precinct while supporting faster setup and pack-down.
From research to real-world application
The South West Rocks deployment builds on earlier LAWIFI trials by testing system performance under real event conditions. Insights from the deployment are helping bridge the gap between research, field trials and practical use, informing ongoing refinement of system design and deployment approaches.
What’s next
Findings from the Country Championships will contribute to the final stages of LAWIFI’s development under the TDRI program. These insights will help refine antenna design, deployment processes and performance expectations, supporting future applications in emergency response, disaster resilience and other temporary, high-demand environments.
