CONSTRUCTION & DESIGN
A Simple Guide to a WellDesigned Wi-Fi System
BY JOHN PRETTO
H
John Pretto is chief technology officer
of R66T (pronounced “Root 66”),
Digital Media (based in Hendersen,
Nevada). His e-mail is jpretto@
R66T.com. R66T is a new ARDA
member and one of the largest
providers of Internet/Wi-Fi services
and content to the U.S. hospitality
industry, currently offered in over 7,000
hotels and airports. The company also
owns OnSite Concierge and You Are
Here content portals, as well as various
other on-line media assets.
60 — Developments arda.org
aving a good Wi-Fi experience for
your guests can be the key differentiator between you and your
competition.
People depend on fast and reliable Wi-Fi
as a necessity and will demand it as a
mandatory ofering. hese days, timeshare
owners, renters, exchangers, and prospective owners expect Wi-Fi to be as reliable as
electricity or water. Moreover, the long-term
trend in public Wi-Fi systems is heading
toward a free model.
You may be asking yourself: “Can’t
people simply use their 3G or 4G service
from their telecom providers?” hat way
you don’t need to worry about installing a
Wi-Fisystem. Well, think again.
here are several advantages to installing a properly installed wireless network.
A good network can provide speed six to
ten times faster than 3G or 4G networks.
herefore, customers will attempt to connect to a fast reliable Wi-Fi network irst
before choosing a 3G or 4G network.
Our research shows that this type of technology will sustain its lead in bandwidth
speeds against the large telecom carrierbased wireless services for the foreseeable
future. Additionally, the Wi-Fi industry
continues to innovate faster because it is
costly and takes three to ive years for a
carrier to deploy newer standards into the
ield. Most importantly, Wi-Fi systems can
be a new medium to communicate to your
timeshare customers.
First, you must be aware that to install
and maintain a properly deployed Wi-Fi
system it requires a capital expenditure that
will have a quick ROI if done properly.
Here are the groundwork elements for a
well-designed system:
• Acquire enough bandwidth and having
ability to scale that bandwidth;
• Choose the right gateway device and
networking hardware;
• Get a professional radio frequency site
survey to deploy radios; and
• Have a professional to provide support for
the system.
he most common mistake that properties make is purchasing too little bandwidth
for a property. First, owners expect the same
if not more bandwidth than the service
they have at home. hen, if the bandwidth
on their 3G or 4G device is faster than the
Wi-Fi system, they will use that connection
instead.
The Wi-Fi industry
continues to
innovate faster
because it is costly
and takes three
to five years for a
carrier to deploy
newer standards into
the field.
Bandwidth Considerations
In terms of what we commonly recommend, each user should have at least half a
megabit per second of burstable bandwidth
minimum and double that (or one megabit
per second) for an optimal user experience.
Additionally, year-over-year consumption
will grow approximately 15 percent. Make
sure you purchase a circuit that can scale
up accordingly. he best way to optimize
your bandwidth then is to monitor your
bandwidth utilization over time and adjust
accordingly.
Router/Gateway
Creating an efective solution for your
property means choosing the proper
CONSTRUCTION & DESIGN
enterprise-grade gateway or router, as this is
the heart of your system. his means going
beyond residential-grade quality equipment
and looking for a device that will provide
system with tiers of service, a billing
gateway, enterprise-level security, and much
more. hese features have been widely
available within corporate enterprises for
years that are now afordable for resort
developers.
Key Equipment
here are several top-tier manufactures
that supply commercial radios and
controllers that are a necessity in any well
designed Wi-Fi system. Commercial radios
produced by Xirrus, Ruckus, Enterasys,
©
Aruba, and Cisco are a few in this group
that have proven designs that work for
commercial use.
Choose the proper
enterprise-grade
gateway or router, as
this is the heart of
your system.
system support to level I, or basic user
support, at very cost efective prices.
In the end, if your Wi-Fi system is done
right, it can turn from an expense line
item to a revenue-generating elements
that provides great value add to your guest
experience.
System Support
Today, there are third-party companies that
provide complete support of your Wi-Fi
system. hese companies will provide total
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62 — Developments arda.org