In today’s cellular world poor reception and/or network capacity constraints in office buildings, parking garages, government buildings and airports can lead to dropped/missed calls, poor quality of service, and also battery degradation. Mobile connectivity, whether voice or data, is critical to the commercial and private sectors and regarded as a necessity as with utility services provided, such as electric and water.

The Virtua team were awarded the opportunity to support Canary Wharf Group and Land Securities the owners of 20 Fenchurch Street in London, to implement a dedicated in-building cellular solution for the whole building, with the requisite of providing 2G (GSM), 3G (UMTS) and 4G (LTE) services from day one of the building opening.

Our design engineers surveyed the building during it’s construction phase. This aided the team with the production of the distributed antenna system (DAS) design, and ensured that the proposal would adequately cover the requested target areas.

The DAS architecture and system schematics were produced using industry leading design tools. 3D models of the building and each floor were constructed electronically to aid in the detailing of the proposed coverage. This information was backed up with on site RF testing later on when the building had acquired windows, internal walls, and other fixtures that determine how RF propagates through a building.

In conclusion; the proposed 254 antenna In-Building solution was developed to be a fully dimensioned multi-operator system capable of supporting all UK Cellular mobile operators and ensuring a good quality of service throughout. After landlord and network operator approvals, it was full steam ahead with the installation, commissioning, and integration.

In parallel to the main system implementation, Virtua conducted numerous trials to provide dedicated coverage to 12 lifts located within the building. Given the speed at which these lifts travel, the restrictions governing the installation of equipment inside the shaft and then adding to this the construction of the lift itself it was a difficult technical challenge. However, our engineers used their knowledge and experience to overcome these restrictions, and have been able to dimension a system that will provide continuous, seamless, and robust cellular coverage.