“One thing students aren’t leaving behind, regardless of
whether they live on or off campus, is their phones, and cell reception was
thus (not surprisingly) critical to student housing residents, 49 percent of
whom ranked reception with a 10 on a scale from one to 10 when asked how
critical cellular reception was in their selection of an apartment community
for college”...http://bit.ly/1cdpC5c.
That
statement applies to almost everyone on these days, but especially those in the
multifamily space. Every year clients seem to be more focused on the level of cell phone service at their new
projects. Prudent developers simply have
too much on the line to overlook cell phone service, because it definitely
impacts where people ultimately choose to live.
In 2013, I
worked on approximately 15+ new projects as well as several projects that
carried over from 2012. Proactive assessment
done during ground breaking in 2012 that projected problems turned out to be
very accurate. I was pleased to be able
to help clients requesting additional guidance with their needs.
In one case, I
worked with the key impacted service provider with marginal indoor service and
determined network improvements were in process very near their project. As a result of these efforts, I saved my client
hundreds of thousands of dollars in unnecessary equipment costs.
In another
case, I helped a client that had extremely limited funds for in-building
upgrades. I found a low-cost short-term
solution, while also learning the service provider could help improve things in
the intermediate term, at no cost to my client.
In another
instance, I helped a client manage the positioning of their property to
generate significant ancillary revenue from service provider leases by providing
some key situation analysis and then managing the service provider interface.
As we move into
2014, clients are asking for wider variety assessments. Proactive
assessments done at ground breaking to determine likely issues. Initial
site assessments with follow up assessments to track service levels. Confirming
assessments to understanding pre-move in/early move in conditions. Use
of existing assets combined with new baseline data to reduce costs.
Three
important trends to watch in 2014.
- Small
cells: Can they progress from primarily Cusumer
based to Enterprise scale?
- Boosters: What impact will the new FCC regulation have
on available solutions as well as how they are implemented?
- Public
Safety Radio: How can it be tied into a
broader in-building wireless approach?
