Case Study

Preserving This Newly Constructed LEED Building While Establishing Reliable Cell Coverage.

The Client

A medical device company headquartered west of Boston dedicated to improving the lives of people through innovations in drug delivery systems.

New Building. No Cell Coverage.

An innovative medical device company was moving to a newly constructed, LEED certified building west of Boston. The company was phasing the move, with sales being one of the first groups inhabit the new headquarters. The sales team quickly discovered there was limited or no cell coverage. The surroundings were beautiful, but not conducive to a productive sales team. They needed a solution – fast.

Phased Design and Installation

KTS performed multiple site surveys, including before window installation and post window installation, to confirm the glass was contributing to the lack of cell coverage. The KTS team planned and designed the solution to align with construction schedule and move-in dates.

Phase 1: Sales department and lobby
Phase 2: Executive office row and remaining office space
Phase 3: Clean Labs
Phase 4: WarehouseChallenges

Challenges

• New construction: phasing Cellular BDA design and installation with construction and move-in schedule.
• Building design: there are no drop ceilings in the lobby; this was an important consideration in designing and installing the Cellular BDAs for aesthetics, for future access for maintenance and for system functionality.
• Accounting for the large square footage and number of employees to ensure the system design would support simultaneous cell service consistently and reliably.
• Timing:
  • Phase 2 work was approved in early December. Executives were moving into their glass offices the second week of December. Planning and sequencing the work was critical.
  • Phase 3 work needed to be completed once the labs were finished, but before they were sealed and made sterile. Planning and coordinating the work were key to this phase of the project.
  • Phase 4 included installation of antennas in a newly constructed warehouse to provide cell coverage for warehouse, shipping and receiving associates. Antennas were installed 20 feet in the air to allow pallets to be stacked to the ceiling without damaging the newly installed antennas.

Summary of the Work

• A total of 6 Cellular BDAs were installed at the new facility.
• Planning, design and installation were completed to phase the work to enable a productive sales department, to support the move-in of the executive officers and to facilitate the sealing and sterilization of the clean labs.
• The system was designed to be cost-effective (e.g., strategic placement of antennas to align with cabling and splitting BDAs to point to separate cell towers).
• Craftsmanship is the hallmark of a KTS design: assessing the total system and its many components to plan, design and install a system that enables access points for future maintenance and that protects the design of this newly constructed facility.

Benefits/Impact

• Productivity. Employees and visitors can count on reliable cell coverage.
• Safety. In the event of an emergency, calls can be made and texts can be received.
• Aesthetics. The new construction aesthetics were protected and preserved.

See below Before & After LTE Cell Coverage