Unlike structured cabling, Wi-Fi technology does not have a dedicated transmission medium, so it has to deal with phenomena such as interference, self-interference, and other complications. This means that at the "transmission" level there are significantly greater differences between different Wi-Fi access points than, for example, between Ethernet switches from different manufacturers.
A number of WiFi manufacturers have come and are still coming up with new technologies that not only aim to increase the transmission speed, but mainly to improve the reliability of data transmission in a wireless network, so that it is a reliable replacement for classic metallic cabling. In this effort, the producers of tablets and smartphones, which cannot be connected to the data network with a metal cable, are strongly supported.
Among other things, the technological leader in this area is Ruckus Wireless, which was the first to combine a software solution (based on the principle of interference of the phase shift of signals) with the unique BeamFlex HW technology. Although Ruckus Wireles was only founded in 2004, according to the latest Gartner findings, it is currently the third largest producer of WiFi products worldwide. Their products stand out with a combination of excellent transmission properties and low operating costs, or, in other words, satisfied users and low total costs of acquiring and operating a wireless network.
How to deploy a Wi-Fi network easily and well?
- Think carefully about what you want to use the Wi-Fi network for.
Typical applications are:
- Internet connection for guests.
- Data connectivity for internal applications (medication dispensing, mobile access to NIS/patient records, data transfer from temperature sensors, …).
- VoIP telephony.
- Paging within the hospital premises.
- Location of people and equipment.
- … and many others.
- Depending on what is the key parameter from your point of view, preliminarily choose a preferred (or possibly preferred) manufacturer, with whom you will get to know in more detail. Each manufacturer has some "key feature" that distinguishes it from others, it can be the prestige of the brand, security functions, robustness and resistance to failures, or something else. It is important to note that Wi-Fi is a standard, so access security is identical for all manufacturers. At the same time, it is advisable to remember that the more complex the solution you choose, the greater the operating costs for you, and it can very easily happen that the annual costs of Wi-Fi network technical support (your IT department) outweigh the Wi-Fi acquisition costs solution.
- Another key question is which areas you want covered (see point 1 – for VoIP you need coverage everywhere, for internet for patients you just need to cover the waiting rooms and the bed area, and localization is the most demanding on the quality of coverage). It is also important to consider the fact that individual access points need to be connected to structured cabling, and with an almost 100% probability you will need to supplement the network infrastructure with PoE switches.
- So – the manufacturer and the premises are selected, it is necessary to find out how many access points will be needed for functional coverage. You can try to estimate the number, but a reasonable solution is to carry out a so-called Site Survey. In short, it is a measurement in which you temporarily place access points in the premises (be careful, there are significant differences between individual manufacturers and individual products of the same manufacturer) and use specialized SW to measure coverage. It is not necessary to measure everything, it is usually true that the individual floors of a building are largely the same, so after measuring one floor you only check whether the other floors are similar. (We will be happy to help you with this phase, we have the necessary SW and technical equipment at our disposal.)
- You know what technology you want, how many APs you need, and thus it is possible to proceed to implementation.
A few notes:
- Don't forget support so that your solution's SW is up-to-date and any HW outages are resolved quickly enough.
- Don't forget the infrastructure - when choosing PoE switches, take into account not only the number of ports, but also the network topology (sometimes you have to put a 24-port switch where there are only 10 APs).
- Don't forget about structured cabling - will you implement the wiring yourself or will you "ask" someone? Do you have enough free space in the floor cabinets?
d-PROG offers assistance from mapping the current state to post-implementation operator training. The entire process of finding a solution is based on a detailed analysis of the customer's needs. The goal is not only to design the components of the future project, but also to calculate the return of the client's investment ROI (Return of Investment) and all costs associated with the TOC (Total Cost of Ownership) operation.
This method of analysis provides the client with, among other things, arguments about the advantages of the solution and qualified data about the return on investment and operating costs.