A conversation about densification with Ben Cardwell, SVP and segment leader, CommScope Mobility Solutions
The below is only a summary. Download a transcript of the complete interview and the full report “Massively densified networks. Why we need them and how we can build them.”
Densification to expand coverage or increase capacity is nothing new in wireless networks. But the pace of densification and how it is achieved has changed. Operators increasingly target indoor locations in addition to those outdoors.
Ben Cardwell, SVP and segment leader at CommScope, sees an increased need for indoor coverage: “In the past, [operators] have focused mostly on public-access venues – big, big venues where lots of people go. Those have been done. Those are big buildings, big systems. Going forward, we will need to move into those second- and third-tier buildings that are more in the 200,000- to 500,000-square-foot size. These new systems will need to be much lower cost and be deployable by a different type of professional.”
To address this market, CommScope has developed OneCell “a cloud-RAN approach to in-building, giving maximum capacity utilization in a building,” Cardwell said.
In outdoor locations, concealment becomes very important in small-cell deployments, where the equipment is in plain sight.
“Site acquisition is the number one challenge,” he said. “It’s all about concealment and not creating an eyesore for the public. We are creating cabinets and concealment solutions that enclose small cells, antennas and all the infrastructure required for a small cell. Small cells may be placed either inside a pole, under a park bench, in something that may look like a vending machine – something where it’s really disguised from the public.”
We further discussed the topic of densification during our recent webinar. Download the webinar.
