What’s The Frequency?

Cell phone coverage in our new building has proven to be quite a challenge.  It would appear that big steel buildings such as ours do not permit easy wireless transmission.  I have noticed issues with sending 802.11 G and N signals as well the signals that make our phones work.  The overhead wireless network was set up with a few more draft N access points to compensate for the signal troubles.  Unfortunately we can’t install a few more cell phone towers around the property to improve the signal.

Since I have been working at the new building for several months ahead of the rest of the staff I am acutely aware of the cell phone trouble.  I remember fondly having to run outside several times to make quick phone calls over the course of troubleshooting an issue.  The problem isn’t that I don’t want to fix it.  The problem is that there simply aren’t very many available options.  I called AT&T, Sprint/Nextel and Verizon to discuss the problem.  I discovered that both Verizon and Sprint/Nextel offer corporate level IT solutions for repeating their wireless network signal through a facility such as ours (approx. 35,000 sq. ft.).  AT&T, unfortunately, has no similar solution.

After discussing this internally we determined that since the majority of our staff are Verizon subscribers we would go with the Verizon solution first.  The only system that is rated to work with Verizon’s towers is the Juni JR-20 Plus.  This system has two antennas that will each cover approx. 20,000 sq. ft.  Once that system has been installed we can review its effectiveness and determine where to go from there.

Juni JR-20 Plus

On a related note, both Verizon and Sprint/Nextel use CDMA networks.  My hope is that Sprint/Nextel subscribers can roam off of these repeaters while they are inside the building.  If that works out then we won’t have to look at investing in any more major equipment purchases.  This stuff ain’t cheap!

To further complicate things, AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM.  These two different protocols do not mix.  There are smaller wireless range extenders available from AT&T but they are primarily designed for home usage.  As such, they are not well suited for use in a facility our size.  I’ll keep posting updates as my research progresses and will let you know how the installation goes.