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Walkie talkie and in‑building coverage for data centres

Every data hall, shaft and stairwell covered, with the work planned around a live site.

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Drawing: a repeater and OMU in the equipment room, with optical fibre out to an ORU and antennas in each block

The problem

A data centre is built to keep things out of the data halls, and radio signal is one of them. Thick walls, steel, raised floors and sealed doors all block it. Many sites are tall, with basements, or spread over more than one building. And nothing may disturb the live IT, fire, BMS or power systems, so every visit needs approval first.

What I check first

  • Every place people need to talk from: data halls, plant rooms, stairwells, basements and the way between buildings.
  • Whether spare single-mode fibre already runs between the buildings, because it can save new cabling.
  • Who needs to talk to whom, and how many talk groups that means.
  • The paperwork before work starts, such as the method statement and risk assessment.
  • How the old system keeps running while the new one goes in, with temporary radios and a fallback plan.
  • Certification: SIRIM approval for the repeater, the OMU and ORU, and the radios.

Equipment that often fits

FMTCS OMU Optical Master Unit (FMTCS-LRF/N)FMTCSFMTCS OMUData centres, campuses and tall buildings where one repeater has to cover several blocks or many floors.Specs and quoteFMTCS ORU Optical Remote Unit (FMTCS-LRF/F)FMTCSFMTCS ORUBlocks, floors and basements too far from the repeater for its signal to reach well.Specs and quoteMotorola MOTOTRBO SLR 5300 UHF repeaterMotorolaSLR 5300 UHFAnalogue and digitalMalls, hotels and mid-size buildings.Specs and quoteMotorola MOTOTRBO R5 UHF (LKP and NKP)MotorolaMOTOTRBO R5 UHFAnalogue and digitalHotels, plants and teams that need a radio to last for years.Specs and quote

Common questions

Why not just add a bigger repeater?

More power at one point still does not get through every wall and floor, and the repeater also has to hear the radios talking back. A fibre system carries the signal from one repeater to an ORU in each zone, so coverage is made where people actually work.

Can the work be done without downtime?

Most of it is planned that way: work in approved hours, the old system kept running, the move done in phases, and old equipment removed only after the new system is accepted. Some steps may need a short partial shutdown, approved in advance, and I tell you which ones before we start.

How is the coverage proven?

With a witnessed walk test at handover: agreed test points on every floor, test calls at each point, and fixes and a retest wherever a point fails. It is part of the site acceptance test (SAT).

Read this next

CoverageData centre coverage: when one repeater is not enoughHow I approach radio coverage in a data centre, what an OMU and ORU actually do, and what to ask before you sign.PlanningWalkie talkie channel planning: how many do you need?Plan channels around your teams, not the number on the box: what one licensed frequency gives you, group calls, and shared licence-free channels.

Tell me about your site

Where is it, how many people, and what keeps going wrong? I will reply with a recommendation.

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