Background
Joseph Cyril Bamford Excavators Ltd. was founded by Joseph Cyril Bamford in October 1945 in England. In 1948, six people were working for the company, and it made the first hydraulic tipping trailer in Europe. By 1964, JCB had sold over 3,000 3C backhoe loaders. Today, they have 22 plants on four continents and more than 750 dealers around the world.
The Challenge
This JCB LYOMAT premises, in France, is used for sales and logistics. In particular, events are held here – the JCB Experience Tour. This show presents new products and allows professionals from all over the world to test the JCB’s. However, it became obvious very quickly that the lack of mobile signal inside the building was a real problem for staff and also for the large numbers of visitors who attend the factory tours. People had to leave the premises in order to take phone calls.
In addition, the staff at JCB had problems taking payments with the mobile VISA pay terminals. The management realised that this was unacceptable and contacted Topsat, a certified Stella Doradus Integrator located nearby, with many years of experience in solving mobile signal problems.
The Solution
JCB needed a solution that would enable staff and visitors to use their mobile phones inside the building, and also to ensure they could take mobile payments easily. It was important that the solution amplified all operators to cater for the large number of visitors.
The building is a modern build with zinc cladded, mass concrete walls and triple glazed windows – standard building materials in all modern commercial warehouses. These materials completely block all mobile signal from entering the building. The premises comprises of an office over 2 levels, a hanger for displaying the JCB’s and a shop.
This was a relatively simple, standard installation for Topsat, who have years of experience in solving mobile signal problems in such buildings. After surveying the building, Topsat could see that 4 internal antennas would be sufficient to cover the building. They decided that the Stella Office Repeater would be most suitable as it comes with 4 antennas, it amplifies all operators, and it amplifies voice and 3G / 4G data. 2 antennas were installed in the office (1 on each floor), a third antenna covered the hanger and a 4th covered the shop.
After doing a cell tower analysis, the best direction for the outdoor antenna was chosen that guaranteed good signal from the 4 French operators: Orange, SFR, Free and Bouygues Telecom.
Outdoor Yagi Antenna
TestTool Scan Results
The TestTool was used on site to gather information about the external RF environment. The signal up on the roof was very acceptable. This is a critical step to ensure the outdoor signal quality is good.
StellaPlanner Heatmaps
The StellaPlanner was used to design the sytem beforehand. This allowed for the most optimal placement of the antennas.
The equipment below was installed for this premises:
- 1 external Yagi antenna
- 1 repeater- StellaOffice-LG-4
- 2 internal omni-directional antennas
- 2 internal panel antennas
- 100m of SD400 cable
Installation time: 1 day with 2 people.
The Result
Simple and speedy installation
Management were delighted with how Topsat solved their communications problems so efficiently and quickly. With minimal disruption they now have full voice, and 3G/ 4G data in all areas of the building and can make clear calls and browse the internet.
Full mobile signal for unlimited numbers of users.
Due to the large numbers of visitors at the shows, it was very important that the system that JCB chose would not become congested with multiple users and they were very pleased that there is no limit to the number of simultaneous users with the Stella Office Solution.
Easy payment receipts
Efficiency of staff is greatly increased, as payments are quickly received with VISA pay terminals or ApplePay. This improves customer experience which is vital for this sales plant.
