Critical business activities depend on the integrity of the performance and coverage of your wireless infrastructure, so you need to be sure you’ve got it covered. Because every business is different, with its own set of challenges and building characteristics, you can’t just throw up some Access Points and expect your wireless coverage to be flawless.
An active RF Site Survey (or Wireless Site Survey) can determine exactly how your wireless plan should be laid out.
BACKGROUND: WHAT IS A WIRELESS SITE SURVEY?
A wireless site survey is the process of planning and designing a wireless network to provide a wireless solution that will deliver the required wireless coverage, data rates, network capacity, roaming capability and Quality of Service (QoS).
A successful wireless system deployment will depend on several factors, including where your building is, what your connection requirements are, how many people will need access to the network, how close you are to other businesses with their own wireless networks, and so on.
WHAT’S INCLUDED IN A CORE WIRELESS SITE SURVEY?
During CORE’s wireless site surveys, we offer both pre and post site surveys. Here is a breakdown of why both these stages are necessary.
Pre-Site Wireless Site Survey
A Pre-Site Survey will help us determine whether there are any issues with your space before any work can be done on your site.
A pre-site survey consists of:
- Use of software tools (Ekahau or Air Magnet) to develop detailed heatmaps of the space
- Measurement of signal strength characteristics to determine any challenges
- Assessment of potential conflicts with nearby signals
- A detailed report as to the existing Signal to Noise Ratio for the space
- A detailed report that specifies the most effective placement of Access Points
Post-Site Wireless Site Survey
A Post-Site Survey ensures that the system is operating to its peak performance, and all coverage areas have sufficient Signal Strength as per the design. CORE’s post-site survey is a quality assurance procedure that allows us to completely confirm that your wireless installation was completed up to our quality standards.
A post-site survey consists of:
- Verification of our recommendations and our solution implementation
- An assessment of recommended solutions and results from the predictive analysis
- Another heatmap assessment (using Ekahau software) to ensure even coverage and reliability across the entire site
PREDICTIVE WIRELESS SITE SURVEYS
CORE can also conduct predictive wireless site surveys that simulate your network environment from a drawing or CAD software file. By gathering the pertinent details ahead of time, we can conduct an efficient predictive coverage model that will indicate the location and the number of APs required for your needs. Predictive wireless surveys can be handy when an in-person active site survey is not an option.
WHAT BUSINESS COULD BENEFIT FROM A WIRELESS INSTALLATION SITE SURVEY?
Businesses with complex, radio frequency-rich multi-story, multi-building, multi-campus environments such as warehouses, hospitals, industrial production facilities, retail and office complexes, freight-handling facilities and distribution centers offer particular challenges to the uninterrupted wireless flow of critical data. These types of facilities benefit from having wireless site surveys conducted, to ensure there will be even, consistent coverage across the entire site that will meet your required demand.
A CORE wireless site survey is a great way to gather critical information to avoid any shortcomings and ensure the installation of a system that will work for your needs today and well into the future. Contact CORE today to schedule a site survey and see how we can set you up with the ideal wireless network for your business.
Image provided by CORE partner Ekahau
