I met Steve at the NEDAS show and got to know him afterwards. He is an easy guy to talk to about wireless, we all love wireless. The groups he works with are really something. They are all there to help inform you, the wireless worker, about the wireless industry. DAS, Small Cells, and all things wireless. Your knowledge is growing well beyond what travels through the airwaves, now you have to know networking as well as the hardware and antennas to get it out there. Steve goes into how he saw the evolution of the networks go from having coverage to having bandwidth connectivity.
Steve is a founding board member of NEDAS, the Northeast DAS and Small Cells Association. They just had a conference that I went to, links here and here, that cover DAS and Small Cell issues and solutions. I am a big fan of NEDAS because you have a group of people that cover real world problems for DAS and Small Cell integrators. The system integrators are doing all that they can to install and implement these systems cost effectively and efficiently. That is no easy task when you have so many obstacles like permitting and aesthetics.
Steve is also a board member of the MD DC Wireless Association, MDDCWA. This wireless group gets together to keep the wireless leaders in the MD DC area stay informed. Pretty impressive.
He is also a founding member of Dense Networks, a group that is covering the consolidation of wireless, big data, and broadband. This group is helping the wireless industry understand the convergence of all the data formats into one seamless network. This is where you learn all that you can about where broadband is headed. Very impressive.
He is a smart guy, over 15 years of experience in distribution and emerging technologies, over 10 years at Tessco, and an Executive MBA degree from Loyola.
In this interview he tells us not only about the evolution of the wireless business but where it seems to be heading. Steve forming Dense Networks shows us how the convergence of Big Data & Analytics with Mobile Internet and the Internet of Things along with using the cloud will change the way we do business. Not only that but in wireless integration the system integrator will need to think differently about how to design and build the networks. The HetNet is going to be taken very seriously moving forward.
Wireless innovation is something that we often talk about but we don’t always worry about because most system integrators are worried about the immediate need for systems. They are trying to put together something that can be used right now. Technology is changing rapidly but we need to make the systems that are out there today work and be reliable. This is not easy task. While we want to focus on what’s next, we need to make today’s technology work the best we can for today’s customer. We also have to make plans to expand and improve for the future. It all becomes b=part of the formula. Steve is pretty good at explaining this.
This is a long interview, almost 50 minutes, so make some time to learn what makes the industry move forward with this innovator.
I would like to thank Steve for taking the time on a Saturday morning to talk to me. Once again, it shows his commitment to the wireless industry when this is the only opening for an interview. Most wireless innovators know it takes a deep commitment to not only be innovative, but to inspire the rest of us to learn and become better at this craft. Thank you Steve.
Once again the FCC is working to improve broadband access in the USA. For that, I say thank you. This time they had a workshop to understand what DAS is and what small cells do. Hey, the FCC is busy trying to improve this wireless world for you!
So what did we learn? We learned that this is a great way to promote your company. Sorry, but that’s what many people did However, I did learn a lot from this.
Distributed Antenna System, DAS, is mostly associate with indoor coverage. Although, there is outdoor DAS where they deploy radio heads like they would small cells.
Small cells are really small cellular BTS systems that offer a low power, small foot print unit that can be deployed indoors or outdoors.
This workshop was a showcase of studies showing how the DAS and small cell solutions can provide a multitude of solutions for public safety and carriers.
For public safety, DAS provides first responders with indoor coverage so that the communications are reliable for anyone entering a building in an emergency situation can remain in contact with their teams. In today’s world this is absolutely critical. The desired signal for first responders is above -95dB. This should allow fire rescue, police, and emergency responders to maintain RF coverage in all cases. The way this is done in today’s buildings is to put the antenna and signal boosters inside the building. Critical communications are not cheap, but they are necessary if you value life. DAS creates this reliability and level of safety.
I am shocked that most municipalities don’t have written requirement for this. When I look around some states have taken this seriously while others don’t’ want to be bothered. Even after a major incident happens, the government doesn’t seem to react soon enough. If they make the requirements then they know that building owners will put it in because an inspector, usually the local fire department, could go out and approve this. An example of the sprinkler system was brought up and how they are in every large building now. It was a great analogy.
Carrier coverage is different. We all rely on our smart phones in today world for work and convenience. However, the carriers are no longer going to pay for the indoor coverage unless they see a large payback. They will only do it for large customers. The carriers say that broadband is a utility. So the carriers should be regulated like utilities, right? Sorry, just a quick dig there.
So the carriers want to have the building owners and businesses pay for their own small cells and DAS systems. I am fine with that but they need to find a way for these units to be deployed inside building with their support, but the way it is now they want to control it. That may change soon with the deployment of LTE-U.
Qualcomm’s MulteFire was mentioned several times. It seems like this may be the way that small cell coverage for multi carrier requirements may be the wave of the near future. MulteFire is a LTE-U format where it can run LTE in unlicensed spectrum without the licensed support. Apparently many companies are relying on this to move ahead.
One more thing that was covered extensively is the stealth deployment to make the municipalities happy. For outdoor, or even indoor, antennas have to be hidden to make people feel safe and make the companies look good.
I brought up the note that broadband is becoming a utility and that people expect it. Yet it was brought up again and again how when new buildings go up, broadband is generally an afterthought, not in the original plans. I believe they should replace the telco rooms with data rooms and allow for wireless and fiber access to buildings at the same time they plan electric and water access.
This wasn’t just all about public safety and carrier class. Wi-Fi was also brought up several times. Broadband is part of our life. It is more than a convenience. If you don’t believe me, then tell me how many of you don’t have Wi-Fi in your homes? If I drive through my neighborhood I see so many Wi-Fi hotspots because everyone around me has a Wi-Fi router in their house! Do you?
I also noticed how many people talked about outdoor small cells. Stealth is a huge topic. Power access is another issue that came up again and again. These are all things that make small cells expensive to deploy.
The expense was brought up again and again. Remember that no matter what you deploy you need to worry about zoning and permitting, power, looks, and backhaul.
If this subject interests you, then look at what the FCC put together. This is a great opportunity to learn from what they did. It can be a workshop for all of us.
In my last post I spoke ofDay 1, which was the shorter day, here is day 2. Like I said, great show and I made so many connections and met so many great people.
The videos of this can be found here, this way you can see the people that I have met!
This was my opportunity to learn from the best. NYC is one of the toughest markets to do business and one that you should not tackle unless you talk to these people first. It will help you break into the other markets and learn what to do and what not to so.
I want to personally thank all the people that worked so hard at the show and thank them for having me speak. I want to thank Ilissa, Amy, Jennifer, and Nikki for working so hard to make this happen. They did an outstanding job to make this a fabulous event!
The first session I saw was with moderated by Berge Ayvazian of Wireless 20/20 called “Digitizing Our Arenas”. His panel included Ihab Labib of JMA Wireless, Jay Maciejewski of PC Tel, Marc Patterson of Boingo Wireless, and Matthew Thompson of Cobham Wireless. They brought up some great points and challenges of working with the larger venues. They also pointed out that you don’t just build it but it constantly needs upgrades and modifications and additional equipment, just because its built doesn’t mean that it’s final. There is so much you have to worry about, growth, improvements, new spectrum, new formats. It really is an ongoing job.
Next was “Capacity Planning, Technology Developments” moderated by Jordan Fry of Snyder and Snyder, LLP. This panel had Chris Pleibel of Perfect-10 Wireless, David Evans of AT&T and IEEE, Dean Fresonke of ClearSky Technologies, Mark Parr of Bandwidth Logic, and Russ Hamm of Rainbow Broadband. This group covered the need for more bandwidth and how many companies constantly grow and the upgrading of the systems is never-ending. Again, none of this is an easy process as you need to anticipate the growth and do the best you can. You also need to make sure that the supply chain is in place and things keep moving so that the integration of systems keeps moving.
Session 3: Fiber to the X, trends, challenges, and solutions to meet the wireless demand. This session was moderated by Stephen Banks of KMB Design Group, LLC. This roundtable had Art Malierdirk of INOC, Craig Doyle of CommScope, Ken Strandfeld of SOLiD, and Ray LaChance of ZenFi. They talked about the fiber solutions for customers and how fiber is needed as the backbone for wireless solutions. We need the backbone to be solid and reliable whether we are going to the core or connecting to another site. Reliability of the fiber is a key ingredient to making the wireless work a success.
Next there was a presentation, The Edge, Where the end-user resides, by Doug Wiest of EdgeConnex which I thought was done very well to because Doug pointed out the connection possibilities of indoor and outdoor small cells and DAS systems. Doug talked about the growth of the wireless network and what it is today in such a short period of time. From wireline to wireless to the edge. Pittsburg in 2019 will use as much as DC does today. The growth is phenomenal! Well done Doug!
Steve Yapsuga of Tessco led us into the “Integrator Solutions: How and integrator works on an End-User’s behalf. This group was done as a fireside chat and had Douglas Fishman of SQUAN, Edward Donelan of Telecom Infrastructure Corp, Raymond duTremblay of Building Technology Systems, and Tom Chamberlain of Westell had a roundtable on integration issues and ways to overcome them. I found it to be informative and based on real world experience.
Then Mike Sapien of OVUM gave a special report, “Search for a Seamless Enterprise Experience” which covered the coverage that the enterprise users expect and what they really get. It seems that they rely heavily on Wi-Fi because it’s readily available and easy to install. They want carrier coverage, but carriers won’t support them. He also brought up the public safety aspect where people rely on indoor coverage that is reliable and seamless for work and public safety.
Next, Ken Sandfeld of SOLiD talked about “The MiddlePrise: They’re not too big and not too small but aren’t just right.” He spoke of the edge and how all the services were moving there. NFV is taking over! The edge could be the tier 1 carrier or the rural end-user, especially in today’s IOT environment. He estimates this market will be over $20 Billion in the near future.
Persistent Telecom talked about how the systems of today have very different needs of the systems of years gone by. For instance, their case studies show that. Lori talked about how the network is more than a convenience but many people rely on this network to keep their businesses afloat. Everyone in that room relies on their devices to stay on top of their business. Chris has a study of a stadium where a stadium not only put DAS in but they had to continuously do upgrades to keep up with technology. He brought up the Wi-Fi systems and their upgrades. While his study was for a high-rise he said it applies to the enterprise. Robin talked more about the public safety aspect of carrier systems and how mission critical relies on their phones as much as anyone even when things go bad. They need to stay live regardless of the disaster. Scope of Work Tutorial.
Then Phil Lawson of EdgeConnex did a talk on “The Edge part 2” which covered the evolution of technology and how quickly things are progressing within the last 20 years. It’s like on steroids! Can we keep up with the demand for change? Costs are dropping and demands are rising in technology. Now Social Media is making the demands, it is no longer a convenience but a necessity.
After that came my session, Developments in Mobile Antenna Technology, hosted by Mike Sapian of OVUM with Art King of SpiderCloud, Gregg Toback of Anritsu, Bob Langston of Advanced RF Technology, and me! We talked more about the technology of not only antennas but the system from beginning to end. Greg brought up how the testing is essential and if you miss the important steps of testing then you could have so many time-consuming problems that will eat into your bottom line. I have seen it, grounding and testing are better to be done up front! Bob brought up the amazing RF issues that you could run into and he had real live examples of the problems that you could have with the antennas and aesthetics. This is a show stopper and if you need to replace the antenna then you need a new RF design and not only that but it will eat into the budget. Then Art spoke about small cell market for the carriers which is a game changer because this product can all be Ethernet attached and the MIMO antennas connect the people in the building with low power. He spoke of what he did for Verizon Wireless and the demands that they made. He also talked about the interfacing they could do with Cisco that made installation quick and easy. I talked about deployment of course and all the potential problems you could run into. We discussed design considerations and potential problems and ways to avoid issues. We also talked about real world problems and what can be done to prevent them next time.
The final roundtable was the “Carrier Conundrum” where Joshua Broder of Tilson headed off the session of Dominick Vileco of V-Comm, LLC, Maureen Hopkins of Tilson, Steve Weiss of Verizon Wireless, and Robert Gaudioso of Snyder and Snyder spoke about the wireless right of way, ROW, and what to look for. For one, these are all very smart people with in-depth real world experience and legal expertise speaking of the ROW deployments for small cells and all the obstacles that deployments run into. The municipalities could delay things for a very long time, literally years, if you don’t do things the right way up front. If you think you can push an installation through, going around the municipality, guess again. This session covered the major issues that have prevented outdoor small cells from taking off. For one, you have no idea how much time these people have to put in to get things moving ahead. Most municipalities have no interest in letting them install nor do they care. They also spoke of utility pole installations, very interesting. They also spoke of how important the site survey was to see what is really there, this is something I always bring up and yet it’s something that the carriers often want to cut out to save cost. Do it right the first time!
The last presentation was the “Investor Insights” where we heard from Richard Lukaj from Bank Street who spoke of how the IOT would really propel the business because data distribution is becoming critical He spoke of the growth trends in the industry as we head into the 5G era where the industry will continue to grow.
Remember that they have many upcoming events, you can see them all at www.nedas.com, but to list a few, July 3rd they will be in Boston, September 21 they will be in Washington DC, and in October they will be in Toronto. Go to www.nedas.com to see them all. If you want to know more about small cells and DAS and learn from the best, I suggest attending these events!
Deploy with the Wireless Deployment Handbook eBook that covers professional carrier end to end deployment of LTE small cells, CRAN, and DAS to show you the proper way to plan for deployment then execute without the mistakes.
I attended and spoke at the NEDAS show in New York City this year. What a great show! I got to hear the experts talk about new technology and real world problems. I was there for both days, attending all the sessions. Let me tell you, if you think that new technology will solve all the problems, then wake up. What you get from this is to hear what the people out in the field are really dealing with and some ideas to avoid the mistakes and problems that they have run into.
This was my opportunity to learn from the best. NYC is one of the toughest markets to do business and one that you should not tackle unless you talk to these people first. It will help you break into the other markets and learn what to do and what not to so.
I want to personally thank all the people that worked so hard at the show and thank them for having me speak. I want to thank Ilissa, Amy, Jennifer, and Nikki for working so hard to make this happen. They did an outstanding job to make this a fabulous event!
I got to attend the first day, April 5th, sessions that covered some great stuff. To me, a deployment guy hat installs DAS and small cell systems, I learned that a lot of people deal with the problems that I have seen. First off, shortcuts are great if they don’t cause you more problems. For instance, don’t forget to do the site survey of every floor when doing indoor DAS systems. Ed Donelan of Telecom Infrastructure Corp talked about how the site survey needs to be done properly and that you can’t take the word of the maintenance guy for what each floor is like. He mentioned how when one guy did a survey the landlord said all the floors were like the first one they looked at. What the landlord meant was the size and space. What the survey guy thought he meant was that there was a lowered ceiling on every floor. Needless to say, the ceilings on all the other floors were not lowered and it took the carrier years to properly run DAS through all of the floors because they had to find alternative routes. This was a real show stopper that took, the installation from taking months to taking years. A great lesson learned and the one thing that we need to so is plan ahead, measure twice cut once, however you want to look at it, the survey matters, a detailed survey. This is true in any aspect of wireless work.
Another talk was given by Tom Chamberlain of Westell. He brought up a real problem with indoor DAS called Near-Far. This problem arises when you have the outdoor signal bleeding into the indoor system and the device tries to lock onto it, making the device work harder and causing problems. This degrades performance and kills the battery. He showed real life examples of the problem and how Westell has a solution. It was a great representation of how to deal with problems that may be completely out of your control.
One of my favorite presentations was by Gerrard Carroll of Empirix, because they had the most amazing example of analytics that you could possibly use on any wireless systems. What it would do is take a sample of the system holistically. Why does this matter? If you have ever had to troubleshoot system problems, then you wouldn’t ask that question. There is no easy way to break it apart normally but now you can look at each segment of the network to identity a bottleneck or failure. What do you look for? Better question, what are you looking for? This package captures everything and you need to break out what you need to troubleshoot problems. that depends on what you want to see. The value this adds is immense because you can tell exactly where the problems could be in the system. If you have a throughput issue you can quickly determine whether it is on the backhaul, fronthaul, or over the air to the device. Don’t forget that some devices perform much better than others. We could learn if the DAS system is performing as it should be or if there is an issue elsewhere. It was a big data solution that will allow you to specify the specific analytics that you need, but it has the capability to collect everything, literally, on the system. I think this would be useful for any wireless system and I see great value in adding this. In fact, I spoke to people that want to investigate this solution. All I can say is, WOW!
Finally, for all of you fans of connecting through satellite, we a solution that Robin Gamble of Persistent Telecom had where he would be able to take the LTE system and cram it into one small box to avoid the problems you would have getting back to the core. This is an independent system that you could run a micro system in case you lose the connection to the core. He also had a satellite provider there to speak of how the satellite industry is putting amazing new birds into space with new antenna technology that will blow open the bandwidth that goes through them. It looks great and it is here now. They already can support LTE. They are also working with LEO satellite, not just the geo stationary birds to improve latency. It will be a game changer! I believe this may really help FirstNet and all remote providers here in North America, but they can cover the world! Really amazing stuff!
To get the picture you really had to be there, I recommend spending an extra day at these events where it is very intimate, you can talk to any of these people and get advice and guidance of how to move ahead through these common problems. Like when you readers asked me to write the Wireless Deployment Handbook for Small Cells, CRAN, and DAS, it was all about helping you avoid the mistakes that I have already made. Trust me, I made plenty.
Remember that they have many upcoming events, you can see them all at www.nedas.com, but to list a few, July 3rd they will be in Boston, September 21 they will be in Washington DC, and in October they will be in Toronto. Go to www.nedas.com to see them all. If you want to know more about small cells and DAS and learn from the best, I suggest attending these events!
Deploy with the Wireless Deployment Handbook eBook that covers professional carrier end to end deployment of LTE small cells, CRAN, and DAS to show you the proper way to plan for deployment then execute without the mistakes.
Verizon’s Enterprise unit started a Value Added Distributor, VAD, program. Now, this has little to do with wireless at this time because it includes, “Verizon’s RRR service includes forensics, cyber incident assessments and designated security experts from Verizon who can go out to customer sites to conduct IT investigations 24/7.” Per the story at CRN.com found here.
Why do we care in wireless? I will tell you why I care! This is the type of program the carriers could setup for small cell deployments! Not outdoor, but the indoor small cell deployment. It’s funny because the wireless carriers want to expand indoor coverage but don’t want to pay for it. Customers want better and they are willing to pay for it. If a VAD could do it then they wouldn’t need to call Verizon and complain, instead they could call Verizon and ask for the nearest installation and integration team. Problems solved! I feel that the carriers demand complete control when this program would help them improve coverage for minimal costs.
Why is this so hard for all of the carriers to understand? I get it, plug and play on the small cells isn’t quite there yet, they may have problems with the neighbor list or cause self-interference or mess up a handoff. Well, figure it out, expand the network and have the customers pay for it. Honestly, what are you waiting for? T-Mobile already is giving away home small cells, why not let businesses install their own? They already paid for large DAS systems.
Think of how this would change the coverage, it would improve so quickly when a building owner would be able to install small cells to improve coverage for less than a full blow DAS system! I get it, do they?
T-Mobile made it clear that traditional DAS was too expensive, so here is the best cost-effective way to do it.
I know so many companies that want to sign up for this, and yet the carriers won’t offer it because they think that it may cause network problems. Well here is a model where they can control who the OEM is and provide a solution for their customers as well as bring more work to the contractors out there doing DAS and indoor coverage. It could expand into LTE-U and Wi-Fi. I see it as a game changer and a quick way to expand coverage as well as add customers. Let’s do this!
Be smart, be safe, and pay attention!
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Deploy with the Wireless Deployment Handbook eBook that covers professional carrier end to end deployment of LTE small cells, CRAN, and DAS to show you the proper way to plan for deployment then execute without the mistakes.
I will be on a round table talking about indoor antenna design at the Northeast DAS and Small Cell 2016 Spring In Building Summitin New York City on April 6th, 2016. It is being put together by NEDAS. I am looking at it from a deployment perspective. Remember that in building installations have to be quick, efficient, and look really nice. The antenna has to work properly so that your design matches your test.
On the round table I will be joined by Anritsu and Spidercloud. We will all be talking about Developments in Mobile Antenna Technology. Mike Sapien of Ovum will be the moderator.
The team that is pulling this together is doing a great job and I would like to thank them for inviting me to go.
Just wanted to let you all know that the summit is happening next week. I have been so busy I didn’t get to talk about it much.
This is a great opportunity to learn more about DAS and small cell design for in building. Think of the growth that we expect to see. Between DAS and small cells we will really be taking off to densify the coverage in building and outside.
Deploy with the Wireless Deployment Handbook eBook that covers professional carrier end to end deployment of LTE small cells, CRAN, and DAS to show you the proper way to plan for deployment then execute without the mistakes.
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Thank you Sprint for making densification the new buzz word in the industry but the reality is that it’s been happening for years. Now we have the ability to put the cell w here the people are with small cells and CRAN. The concept is nothing new and yet Sprint is making it a buzzword, good job Sprint.
OSHA is asking for public comment on Safety and Management,click here.
Quick history lesson. First carriers built tower sites and building top sites. Lets call them the macro sites. In the early days they were built for the maximum coverage of real estate. They were usually high above ground level, (AGL), so that they could cover the most square miles, square meters, for coverage. Then along came DAS, so that we had great indoor coverage. Then systems went digital and the devices power got lower and lower. Cell sites had to cover smaller areas. More macro were sites built and DAS systems were being deployed. Then came the smartphone which changed the way people use their devices in the carriers ecosystem. Everything is going digital and LTE is taking over. Now you have a huge number of macro sites and DAS installations. What could help? Enter the small cell and CRAN systems bringing the signal as close to the user as possible for maximum data bandwidth.
Densification has been around for years but now we have the opportunity to change the landscape of deployment and coverage. Seriously, let me explain. In the past we were concerned with area coverage and RF penetration. We put in sites to get closer to where the people are. Then came DAS, where we could put systems inside buildings to cover more people. Coverage was key.
Now coverage isn’t good enough, is it? Now we need to provide bandwidth, which at first was OK, until the iPhone changed everything. That is why we migrated from GSM and CDMA to LTE. When you look at coverage and download speed we all look at LTE. The new format that the carriers hope will last 10 years or so. It is getting faster and faster by using upgraded radio heads, devices, and MIMO. So the radios are getting faster and faster.
Now we need to make sure the sites have plenty of backhaul, but the real solution is to control loading. Loading, or should I say we need to offload!,Since most people rely on their smartphone for everything, we need better indoor coverage. This could be a small cells, LTE-U, or Wi-Fi.
Say hello to my friend the HetNet. The carriers need to use all the tools available to handle the increasing data needs of the user. I say user because smartphone users are data users and most of them want one thing, more data. More data means more bandwidth and that means the best coverage possible. You also need backhaul where the people are using their devices. Backhaul growth is critical.
To do all of this we need to densify the network, add sites to offload. Oh, did I mention Quality of Experience, QoE? QoE needs to be taken into consideration. Keep the user happy!
Where did I start? Oh yeah, maximizing spectrum. Spectrum ain’t cheap, so let’s make the most of it. This is where Verizon and T-Mobile have really taken the lead because they know that the smaller the cell coverage the better re-use of spectrum they get. They can break it down to where spectrum can be re-used in a smaller area. So now they can get more users on that spectrum by adding small cell coverage areas. It does take more sites and it is more of an investment in the sites, but saves on the spectrum. That is why the oDAS using small cells and CRANmakes so much sense, which Verizon has been deploying successfully. This really helps QoE for the user. Carriers have more control doing it that way and they can break off the loading from the Macro sites by concentrating the spectrum where they need it. Thus, the smaller coverage area allows the spectrum reuse to go way up.
This is where the small cell and CRANreally help, by allowing carriers to get the most bandwidth for the buck in the spectrum they have without purchasing more. Carrier aggregation really helps, more on that here. It makes sense to break down the coverage so that loading and spectrum are more efficient. When they need more spectrum they can purchase it and start to overlay it where needed. It makes more sense at this stage of the game to overlay new spectrum, as long as the devices are ready to handle the new spectrum.
Quick note:
Small Cell is a stand alone cell site, could be a mini macro or a single sector cell site, a single eNodeB, but very low power
CRANis centralized Radio Access Network which means there is a BBU mounted in a central location connected to several remote radio heads nearby.
cRAN or C-RAN is Cloud RAN. This means that the core has the controller and the radio heads are remotely located at a site where there is only a router and a radio head. These are still being tested and built, timing is the issue.
There are also other strategies, like offloading to the unlicensed band. Look how we all rely on Wi-Fi for the data offloading. It really has been a great thing and it saves on our carrier bills. Now that Wi-Fi calling is happening maybe carrier Wi-Fi will become more popular. Just wait until LTE-U takes off, it will add so much more to the toolbox. Aggregation will work so well with LTE-U.
Scope of Work tutorial for the contractor.
I believe that LTE-U will also be exciting. It will really make the system run very well and it should maximize the unlicensed band while allowing a clean handoff from licensed to unlicensed. One more option that we will have and it’ something that the carriers seem very excited to work with. They didn’t exactly greet Wi-Fi with open arms until recently when LTE took over and it became a world of applications on the devices.
Sprint is going to adopt the densification philosophy with their new plan, the densification plan that Mobilitie has to execute. Sprint says that the 600MHz spectrum, article here, is not enough because they need bigger channels. Strange! Why? Because they decided not to bid at all, getting no spectrum, and use their 2.5GHz band for in band backhaul. That doesn’t align with the message, but hey, I don’t do marketing at Sprint, do I?
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The carriers will need to find a way to release the indoor small cell deployments to contractors so that enterprise coverage can grow, Article here. They don’t want to pay for more indoor coverage but they haven’t developed a system to let deployment teams sell direct. Get it together carriers! I’ll bet T-Mobile may do this first just to push the other carriers around and improve their coverage by getting customers to pay for it.
Give to the Hubble Foundation because if you don’t help these families, who will? Who supports Hubble? The wireless workers and the tower climbers, that’s who! With no support from the carriers or NATE, so it’s up to you!What if it were you? Would you want help? Who would help you if you were hurt? Who would help your family, your spouse, your children if something happened to you? Do you see the people who are hurt?
OK, so I thought it would be nice to see where we think the deployment industry will go in 2016. So I look at this as the Wireless Deployment Forecast, WD4Cast. What is happening with small cells, DAS, the carriers, FirstNet, and the deployment industry? I give you my views here, from a high level of course and this is my perspective. Keep in mind this is an educated guess based on what I see today. I sure don’t believe much of what AT&T says after they completely killed deployment in 2015, remember that? I am sure that MasTec does because they had to lay off a slew of people and watch their training facility fill with cobwebs.
600MHz Auction. I may bring up the 600 MHz in this but if the auction is this year then the carriers won’t have much until next year. They will wait for the OEMs to have a radio head before they can do much. Each carrier will have their own specifications. So I see 600MHz happening in 2017 but they may prepare for it in 2016. However, the broadcasters will have their hands full with the changes that are to come. Will they just decommission and retire? Will they move to a new band? Will they just merge with another carrier and share the digital channels. Let’s face it, more broadcast channels didn’t need the new channels that they got when they went digital, so why not share? It makes sense to me but I really don’t know what the FCC implications would be. It sounds like a great idea if a broadcaster could lease out the other channels they have for over the air, OTA, coverage. Or they could split the maintenance and lease costs with the new partner. Just a few suggestions.
Deployment will increase this year. We all expect so much but the carriers don’t want to spend more than they have to because they want to see an increase in revenue. While AT&T says that, look at the DirecTV acquisition, they want to grow new sources of revenue, so they stopped the wireless growth for a year. They also want to come up with a better way to deploy. They originally thought that they could put a car on top of a tower, or at least the equivalent of the weight of a car, but they had to rethink that. So maybe they are trying to figure out how to deploy properly. Whereas Verizon and T-Mobile decided to build more sites over the past 2 year and it seems to be working very well. They are getting the biggest bang for each dollar they spend on spectrum, how cool is that? By building more sites they can shrink the cell coverage, alleviate the loading, and improve customer experience. What a concept! Now that they figured it out maybe the other carriers will follow suit.
Let’s talk FirstNet. If you’re on a team that responds to RFPs, then you will be busy for most of 2016 with FirstNet because they will have everyone responding to the RFP coming out very soon. Other than that we won’t see any work from that until maybe mid 2017. The site acquisition teams and the site engineering teams may see it before that. In fact, if AT&T does respond to the offer like they said they would, then it will be all the AT&T contractors that will get the work because, in my opinion, AT&T is in the best position to win it. Remember that the FirstNet build is more than deployment. They need billing systems, device distribution, and more. They got nothing and need all the systems to be in place so that they can cover all public safety entities in the USA. Not something that most companies can do but a carrier is already setup to do this.
Verizon Wireless has been building with a steady plan, and I see them ramping up a bit in 2016 just because they will have more spectrum to deploy. “They won some in the previous auction and the equipment should be ready. One thing that all of the carriers will want to do is put as much in one radio head as possible to save on the tower rent. They don’t want to overload the tower but more importantly they want to cram as much as they can into a radio head. They want to see if one antenna can handle this and 600MHz so that they can add weight but no more units to the tower. Don’t worry, if you are working for them you will be replacing what they have and they will need to do structural on the tower for the additional weight. It will be more work on the tower connecting up more fiber, maybe, and more RF cables from the radio head to the antennas. Maybe even replacing the antennas.
AT&T will finally do some more field work. What choice do they have? They need to start growing again so that they can deploy the new spectrum. Deploy, deploy, deploy! They will expand the tower sites. I do believe they will develop a small cell or CRAN plan as well. While they said it was too expensive, Verizon helped drive the costs down because of their cutting edge thinking. AT&T just wanted to take over DirecTV, they didn’t have time to be creative. However, another plus with AT&T is that they plan to deploy the Wireless Local Loop, WLL, for broadband connectivity. This is awesome if they actually do it because t will compete with the cable companies for access to homes, if they can make it work! It is a big demand to offer that much wireless broadband to a home for video. Just because T-Mobile USA offers free video streaming doesn’t mean AT&T will.
T-Mobile is still growing and seeing the rewards of more customers, they well deserve them because they have been adding more sites and more spectrum! Way to go T-Mobile! I appreciate all the work you’re doing and I see you doing more, maybe 20% more in 2016. I hope so anyway because you have the opportunity to compete with the big boys and leave Sprint in the dust. This is great that you are deploying. T-Mobile USA has done some great things in 2015, with the growth of the system and the distribution of small cells to the home, the femto cells, and the marketing that they have in place to really propel their growth by leaps and bounds. I really have to give a lot of credit to Legere for all that he has done to grow and put his foot on Sprint. I would say that AT&T and Verizon see a real competitor in T-Mobile, a real threat.
Sprint may actually start the densification that they talked about for years. We all know Sprint. They will find the most cost-effective, (cheapest), way to do it. They went through a learning process, a bunch of RFPs to vendors, to eliminate any normal way of doing it and then they threw it in the lap of Mobilitie to make it happen. Good luck Sprint, the deployment teams will be happy for the work as long as they make money and don’t do it for free or at a loss. Remember, they want to earn a living, not work for nothing. Now, to be fair, Sprint isn’t actually doing the deployment management, it is actually Mobilitie who is making this happen. From what I hear Mobilitie is already moving ahead and laying out the plan for densification. They are working to deploy the mini macro, which is really a single sector cell site. That single sector will probably be an Omni antenna. It appears as though Sprint will deploy in-band backhaul where possible so they don’t have to run fiber anywhere or mount a panel, so this will maintain a low profile site, in theory. I am curious to see how that goes and if that 2.5GHz spectrum is more valuable as backhaul than fronthaul. If you were an investor and saw that spectrum as backhaul like 5.8GHz, how would you feel about it? Mobilitie is making a move and should have a lot of work for deployment teams this year. It appears their plan is innovative, or cheap depending on your perspective, by deploying on non tower company owned sites and using as much existing equipment taken from inventory and macro sites. Again, this is merely an observation, not sure if they will actually deploy this way.
LTE small cells, CRAN, and DAS. I love the HetNet! I will start with the outdoor deployments. I really think that this year, if the carriers deploy they will rely on deploying small cells and oDAS around town because, as Verizon has shown, this is the best way to utilize the spectrum that you already have. I think that T-Mobile will follow suit because they are smart and they intend to densify the heavily populated areas. I know that we all talk about the Sprint densification plan but all the carriers are doing this, they just call it a Het Net system, (Heterogeneous Network). The Het Net is where you deploy multiple Macro, small cell, and DAS. I would also include Wi-Fi and LTE-U in this network. Throw it all in there and you have a Het Net system. I am really excited about the 3.5GHz spectrum that the FCC will open up to LTE because of the new opportunities. If the FCC opens this up and gives out the spectrum it will be a beautiful thing when we can deploy on the lightly licensed spectrum for fronthaul and backhaul. WOW, it is really going to help smaller businesses deploy small cell as a service, (SCAAS), and I can’t wait!
Let’s look inside, indoor coverage. If you look around you will see that most people rely on Wi-Fi for most everything but voice. Am I right? There are still issues with handing off the call to Wi-Fi. I know we expected carrier Wi-Fi to pick up the slack but the only company I saw to make inroads on this was T-Mobile who did a great job with Wi-Fi calling, but it still doesn’t hand off to LTE very well, at least that is what I am told. So how will we improve indoor coverage? I know we will rely on DAS and Wi-Fi, but the carriers don’t want to pay for any more indoor coverage that doesn’t have a payback, I get it. What we need is to put small cells and Wi-Fi and LTE-U in as many buildings as we can. Who will pay? The landlords and the businesses in the buildings. Who will deploy? The deployment teams doing small cell and DAS
That’s all for this week, be smart, be safe, and pay attention.
Give to the Hubble Foundation because if you don’t help these families, who will? Who supports Hubble? The wireless workers and the tower climbers, that’s who! With no support from the carriers or NATE, so it’s up to you!What if it were you? Would you want help? Who would help you if you were hurt? Who would help your family, your spouse, your children if something happened to you? Do you see the people who are hurt?
For all of you that want do small cell installations for the carriers, this may help you along. Let’s start with a high level checklist to verify the steps before doing any installations. I have more detail in the podcast.
Here is where the hardware actually gets installed. Let’s look at what needs to be done.
The indoor small cell is usually 2 watts or less and could be 12 inches by 6 inches by 4 inches or less and generally will weigh 10 lbs or less. They could have a very small and light antenna on them for either Omni directional coverage or directional coverage. Indoor small cells could remind you of the Wi-Fi access point, unit but bigger.
If you’re installing an outdoor unit then it may be bigger and you have to weather proof the connections.
If it is a CRAN system then it could be DAS, or you may have a DAS system that may have receive antennas or a front end with a BBU.
Remember that we are doing a quality installation, I have seen some horrible Wi-Fi installations. This is a quality installation that will work great and look very nice or be hidden from the customer, get it?
Do you have the NTP, Notice to Proceed, from your customer?
Do you have permission from the landlord or tenant? If your customer has it then maybe you should have a copy.
Is the landlord/tenant expecting you?
Were you trained and certified by the OEM?
Do you know how to ground the unit properly?
Do you know how to clean and terminate fiber?
Do you know how to crimp and terminate CAT5 and CAT6?
Do you know how to mount the unit properly and permanently?
Do you know the antenna alignment? Do you know how to connect the antenna and weather proof it if needed?
Di d you document everything properly?
Do you know how to commission and test the unit?
Do you know the closeout package requirements of your customer so you do not need to return to the site?
Installation Preparation
Make sure you have all of your ducks lined up prior to the installation. I am talking about all the things that you may need on site.
Did you make an appointment with the landlord or tenant or manager?
Did you confirm?
Do you have a name and number of the on site contact?
Do you have the equipment you are installing or are expecting prior to the installation? Can you track it to see if it was shipped?
Did you record the serial number of the unit you are installing and document it?
Do you have any certification that are required to show anyone on site in case you are asked?
Did you or someone test the unit you are installing? Are you sure it will work?
Do you have all the stuff you need like cables, caulk, connectors, hardware, and anything else needed?
Did you review the site survey? Did it prepare you for the installation?
If it’s outside, do you need traffic control?
Will you be able to install at that particular time of day? A pole installation may require you to mount at night. While inside a building they may want you there at lunchtime when no one is in a particular office. Know your schedule ahead of time if possible.
Do you need to have a lease in place before mounting, is it in place?
Give to the Hubble Foundation because if you don’t help these families, who will? Who supports Hubble? The wireless workers and the tower climbers, that’s who! With no support from the carriers or NATE, so it’s up to you!What if it were you? Would you want help? Who would help you if you were hurt? Who would help your family, your spouse, your children if something happened to you? Do you see the people who are hurt?
What if I gave you a way to remove an obstacle in deploying DAS systems? When selling DAS, usually the price can be in the way, even though you offer your best price, you may need a way to help the customer pay for it. Maybe this will help you move ahead in your next DAS deployment. You all know that the carriers are not crazy about smaller shared DAS venues any more. T-Mobile made this very clear with their recent statements that they don’t want to pay for DAS systems. They are tired of paying for these systems and getting a limited return. They are not alone because Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint were already headed in that direction. Small cells are going to help drive the cost of DAS systems down and now that LTE is taking over, the new systems will be all digital. It also looks like they will be a mix of Wi-Fi and LTE-U. Here is a way to help the enterprise and real estate companies pay for the systems.
Before you start to panic, the large venues, like stadiums, will continue to be paid for by the carriers using a combination of LTE and Wi-Fi for content delivery. As you know everyone is using their phones and tablets to see the replays and the extended coverage at these games. The NFL gets it because they offer enhanced services in most stadiums for the people who pay to see these games. They want you to appreciate the game by seeing it live and seeing every possible angle on your device. That is really cool!
Back to the smaller venues. I just watched a presentation that Iain Gillott of IGR put together to show that most users of smart phone rely on it indoors. I would say in an enterprise environment. He sells the report here if you’re interested. This is a growing area of concern but the carriers no longer want to pay for any DAS systems. So the business or building owner will need to pick a carrier and then install. Now Wi-Fi makes it easy, if you install Wi-Fi then you offer them a data solution. But what if they need to make a call or if there is an emergency and 911 becomes an issue. If there is no voice coverage in the building then the problems compound. Many work places no longer rely on landlines, so the wireless coverage is crucial!
Voice still matters! If someone collapses do you text someone for help? Just like public safety coverage in large buildings. The first responders need to stay in touch with their crews on every floor, whether it’s the roof or the basement, everywhere in between is a critical area when there is an emergency. Lately there have been many emergencies here in the US such as fires, bombings, and shootings. What about a medical emergency? If you have a heart attack you want to make sure they can do what they can on the scene so you are stable for the ride to the hospital. That’s how I see it. First responders need to have seamless coverage.
First off, I would recommend that the carriers let go of their hold on the front end, it could be a small cell or the BTS, I wrote about it here, but they need to come up with a system to allow DAS to get installed so they stop being the bottle neck of the process. They say that they don’t want to pay then they won’t let anyone else install the system. Well, which is it Verizon and AT&T? Make up your mind to let the public do this so they can help your coverage. Public safety groups are so happy when someone offers to put in a system for them. They don’t push back, they say thank you!
This is where Sentry Financial can help. They will finance the DAS system for creditworthy customers so that the installers and vendors get paid. Then the owner can make reasonable payments over time and it will be a write off for them all the same. See the win-win? The vendors all get paid, the building or business owner meets the requirements without all the upfront costs.
I had a conversation with Jenn Faber (jfaber@sentryfinancial.com) of Sentry Financial Corporation, the director of business development, about financing these systems. I am interested because I plan to work with small cell and DAS side of the industry more and more. This is a segment that is booming. We just have to come up with ways to make it affordable.
So Jenn told me that financing is a great option for the larger DAS systems going in, why? Because it provides a model where the financing is taken care of ahead of time. Here are some questions I asked her.
What DAS systems would you finance?
All DAS systems for creditworthy end users. Financing may include passive or active equipment as well as design and installation.
Who would finance these systems? Would it be enterprise, building owners, government entities, utilities, small to medium businesses, installers, or who?
We will provide lease financing to all creditworthy end-users including enterprise, building owners, utilities and middle market companies (e.g., revenues >$50M and positive net income last 3 years, tangible net worth, and audited financials).
What price range would the DAS system be in?
Minimum project cost of $250,000, no maximum if the end-user’s credit supports the transaction.
What OEM do you see deployed the most often?
Primarily SOLiD, CommScope, TE Connectivity (now part of CommScope), Corning, and JMA in DAS.
Do you have a requirement for the integrators doing the DAS installation?
We typically work through the OEM or integrator partner and rely on their expertise for the installation. Nevertheless, the integrators must be experienced and reputable.
When financing, what would the payment terms be like for time, like 5 or 10 years?
For DAS the lease term generally ranges from 36 to 60 months depending on the business accounting, tax, and other objectives of the end-user. At the end of the lease term, the end-user had the option to: purchase the system, upgrade the system, or extend the lease term.
Do you work mostly with the DAS contractors or the end-user when finding the business?
We typically work through an OEM or integrator partner (DAS contractor) to enable them to offer the lease financing solution to the end-user customer. We have also worked directly with the end-user.
How would a potential customer go about getting financing with your group?
An OEM, integrator, or end-user may contact Sentry directly, information below. Sentry typically starts with a high level overview of the project, project costs, and financials of the end-user (3 full years and most recent interim financials). If the end-user is a public company, we can get their financials online. The creditworthiness of the end-user must support the transaction.
So there you have it, all you need to know about financing a DAS system. This is one more way you can deliver DAS to your customer, one less obstacle that the integrators have to contend with.
For more information about Sentry Financial Group contact the people below.
Jennifer Faber
Director, Business Development
(801) 303-1113
Bo White
Director, Business Development
(801) 303-1137
Scott Young
Chief Executive Officer
(801) 303-1111
So remember that wireless deployment will have challenges but here is a way for you to remove one of them.
Give to the Hubble Foundation because if you don’t help these families, who will? Who supports Hubble? The wireless workers and the tower climbers, that’s who! With no support from the carriers or NATE, so it’s up to you!What if it were you? Would you want help? Who would help you if you were hurt? Who would help your family, your spouse, your children if something happened to you? Do you see the people who are hurt?
I would like to thank Steve for taking the time on a Saturday morning to talk to me. Once again, it shows his commitment to the wireless industry when this is the only opening for an interview. Most wireless innovators know it takes a deep commitment to not only be innovative, but to inspire the rest of us to learn and become better at this craft. Thank you Steve.
toughest markets to do business and one that you should not tackle unless you talk to these people first. It will help you break into the other markets and learn what to do and what not to so.
