Cheytec, Squan Team to Help Building Owners, Enterprises with IBW

By Don Bishop, Exec. Editor, Assoc. Publisher, AGL Magazine

May 23, 2018

At the Connectivity Expo, Connect (x) conducted by the Wireless Industry Association, executives of Cheytec and Squan spoke of the added value that their partnership provides building owners and enterprises seeking to invest in in-building wireless communications systems.

Cheytec has an extensive real estate portfolio and an ability to procure and license wireless carrier-certified RF signal source and base station equipment required to power in-building systems. Squan makes use of its network engineering and fiber construction know-how to solve complex and evolving telecommunications problems found in macro networks, small cells, distributed antenna systems, 5G wireless technology, the Internet of Things and smart cities for wireless, wireline and enterprise customers.

Ed Myers, regional vice president of sales and marketing at Cheytec, spoke about the future the company sees for in-building wireless systems. He said the company has seen a call for its services in all types of venues, from a single 30,000-square-foot office floor in Manhattan to large hotels with mixed-use retail space to new construction hospitals and apartment complexes to entertainment and theater venues.

“We remain focused on serving the enterprise customer,” Myers said. “We do this through multiple channels, but remain true to our value proposition of leveraging our unique OEM equipment distribution capabilities with Nokia and Ericsson and tight carrier programs to provide approved signal sources and wireless operator licensing to all of the projects we work on.”

Some say that building owners are receptive to paying for in-building wireless systems to attract and retain tenants, and some say the opposite: that the owners are not receptive because they view ownership turnover and tenant turnover as too short to warrant the expense. Myers explained Cheytec’s view.

“Building owners are coming around to the reality that they don’t have much of a choice when it comes to funding an in-building wireless system for increased coverage and capacity,” Myers said. “Not only is ubiquitous, high-quality wireless coverage a customer and tenant expectation — or in the case of public safety a legal requirement — but given the scope, scale and capital requirements of providing in-building coverage, wireless operators cannot do it alone. In the case of Cheytec, we work with the building owner to understand that there is both an acceptable return on investment analysis and an increase in overall building revenue and valuation associated with an in-building system deployment. We then engage our channels to design, build, and commission an indoor solution. Our programs for signal source and wireless operator participation allow owner-funded projects to retain more control over the timelines of the build and ensure carrier signal and service within a property.

The Cheytec program that Squan is joining is called Accelerate. In the program, Cheytec licenses small cell radio and signal source equipment to end-users for use in distributed antenna systems and other in-building cellular solutions. Myers said that during the past year, Cheytec has carefully selected the partners that are now part of its channel.

“We have several distributed antenna system vendors, national and regional systems integrators, and even a few smaller boutique shops that specialize in one or two verticals,” Myers said. “We will add a few more companies to the program this year. Bringing on a new partner is a bilateral commitment. The Accelerateprogram is bringing something to market that previously has not been available — owner-funded baseband units and carrier signal — in one package. There is extensive technical training, sales, operations and logistics, marketing and even legal support that goes along with program participation. As such, we are fairly selective about expanding the program too fast.

Keith Pennachio, executive vice president of Squan, said that the end users of in-building systems are the tenants, visitors, owners and maintenance workers, and the network operators provide the infrastructure. He said Crown Castle, American Tower and some emerging players are a surrogate for the network operator as it specifically relates to the fiber, conduit and ancillary support infrastructure
“Traditionally, network operators like AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon would fund the infrastructure design and construction,” Pennachio said. “Historically, the model would vary between neutral host (where others could join the infrastructure as a tenant) or dedicated network (where the design was exclusive to one network operator). The former would often seek capital contribution from the other carriers to offset costs of the design and construction, where the latter was often a strategic play to support a specific client under specific conditions. An example of specific conditions may be a scenario where a network operator sells 500 devices to company and commits to improving services in the form of a distributed antenna system.”

Pennachio said that in 2018, fewer carrier operators are willing to wholly support the design and construction of distributed antenna systems unless the economics make sense. He said this typically means that large venues like stadiums, airports, shopping malls and other large-scale, publicly accessible environments receive the attention in the form of budgetary dollars from the carriers. The network operators in these cases may look to companies such as Crown Castle or American Tower to build, own and operate the systems, although that may not always be ideal.

“With those design and construction dollars directed to these larger venues, it leaves a huge area of unsupported facilities, including office buildings; condominium, apartment and high-rise buildings; mixed use developments; and other environments whose occupants are becoming more and more demanding when it comes to wireless telecommunications as an amenity,” Pennachio said. “In turn, this has given rise to a mix of parties who are tired of waiting for the carriers to fund these types of projects.”

The Squan executive explained the nature of end-to-end wireless coverage solutions for enterprise clients. He said end-to-end wireless coverage starts from the fiber demarcation point in an enterprise facility, which feeds the signal source and head-end, which feeds strategically placed wireless componentry. This blankets a facility with wireless network coverage that is limited only to the quality of the design and the execution of the installation. Pennachio said that, at the end of the day, wireless coverage is wireless coverage. He said it is really more a matter of funding, design, installation and long-term operation of a system, which has become more of a fourth utility, along with water, electricity and natural gas as the other three.

“The user is defined as anyone who visits, lives, works, owns and maintains a building or facility,” Pennachio said. “If you consider that wireless coverage is an amenity akin to climate control, let’s say HVAC, the perception is more clearly aligned with a hierarchy of needs that is hyper-sensitive to the user experience. The moment some individual walks onto the premises of a facility, there is a minimum basic expectation that they will be able to use their mobile device with unimpeded access to their network provider.”

Pennachio gave what he said is an example of a defining scenario: “A new class A building is soliciting tenants in a vibrant part of town,” he said. “The lead partner in one of the biggest law firms in town views the top floor with her Realtor and realizes immediately that there is no reliable mobile coverage in the building. The owner of the building is now in jeopardy of losing that high-profile tenant to the nearly identical new building across the street, which will be completed in 30 days, and which has installed their own DAS that hosts all major carriers.”

Along with its other services, Cheytec also provides real estate and lease management services for wireless operators. Squan focuses on the evolution of communications networks for wireless and wireline communications and the componentry involved. Its services include backhaul, small cells, C-RAN, fiber, right of way, and the design, construction and technical installation services that support them.