Case Study

Public Utility Company Enlists KTS to Improve Cell Service to Hooksett, NH Location

A New Hampshire electric power company had a building in Hookset that could not get cell reception, which affected the company’s day-to-day operations. They reached out to KTS to get help solving the problem.

The Work

This public utility location was in a building with interior and exterior cement block walls. This solid structure was a barrier that interrupted the cell signals everywhere in the building. Even the garage area, where utility trucks are serviced, struggled to get a signal.

Lack of cell service was most notable in their Command Center. During power outages, the Disaster Recovery Team gathers in the Command Center to communicate with the line teams doing repairs after an outage. The team was forced to rely on a limited number of landlines to run the operations because cell service was inaccessible from the room.

The lack of cellular reception was impacting productivity and safety daily and hampering the Disaster recovery team in emergency power outages.

KTS assessed the situation and recommended a cellular BDA (Bi-directional amplifier) to establish cell service to the building.

Challenges

Initially, KTS planned to direct the BDA toward the nearest cell tower, about a mile from the building. However, the closest tower didn’t give them the coverage they needed. Testing indicated that a tower nine miles away would offer a better signal based on the geography of the area and the building. KTS installed a long-range Yagi antenna directed toward the more distant cell tower, securing reliable cell coverage enabling everyone throughout the building to receive and make calls.

Benefits/Impact

The building, including the garage and the all-important command center, was fully covered by a cell signal. The Disaster Recovery Team is now able to make and receive calls from their Command Center, enabling them to provide consistent support and get accurate, real-time communication to and from the line teams during a power outage.

Additionally, everyone throughout the building now has reliable cell service, so they know they can make a 911 call if necessary and they have access to cell reception to get their jobs done.