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By
Joe
Schmelzer
Dropped calls and/or poor voice
quality can happen in any room, in
any size building – the boardroom,
the sales office, hallways, eleva-
tors and storage areas. It is not
uncommon to have bad coverage
in places you would expect it to be
good, such as the edge of a build-
ing with glass sides.
There may be physical and en-
vironmental issues that impact cel-
lular coverage. Depending on the
business location (e.g. in a low-ly-
ing area surrounded by hills or in a
remote region), workers may not be
able to get any kind of reliable sig-
nal at all. Building materials could
also interfere with cellular transmis-
sions. Treatment rooms in hospitals
or industrial zones often block or
interfere with in-building signals.
Some environmentally friendly tech-
niques to reduce energy costs in a
building also can adversely affect
cellular performance.
So when that customer call comes
through, what are your options for
tackling poor cellular reception?
For years, solutions for solving
the cellular coverage needs of the
small and middle-sized enterprise
space (15,000 to 200,000 sq. ft.)
have been limited. Many are either
too complex or costly to install for
a medium-sized business or limited
in their capability because they are
designed for residential rather than
robust business environments.
The good news for integrators
is there is a growing number of op-
tions that improve in-building cellu-
lar coverage for medium-sized busi-
nesses. However, choosing the best
solution that meets the exact busi-
ness and construction requirements
of each venue can be difficult, even
for an experienced integrator. There
are many issues to consider, such
as backhaul (if any), coverage
footprint and potential interference
with other networks. Design and
Designs
Interior
T
he odds are pretty good that a business customer
has asked about help for a problem with the cellular
reception inside their building.
Options for SMB customers with poor
cellular connections in the office
Mobile & Wireless
Channel
Vision
|
March - April, 2017
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