Small Cell Forum launches advisory council to tackle enterprise coverage issues

The SCF says it has already begun a targeted engagement campaign with the hospitality sector, the first in a series of outreach programs targeting specific vertical markets. Image credit: William Perugini / Shutterstock.com

The Small Cell Forum (SCF) has announced the launch of its Enterprise Advisory Council (EAC), which is focused on deepening industry ties, and working alongside businesses and institutions to help solve the issue of poor cellular coverage.

The EAC is a collaborative effort to bring together the SCF’s cellular industry members and businesses to provoke discussion, articulate the benefits of digitized enterprise networks and drive small cell deployments.

Founding members of the EAC include commercial real estate services advisers Camden Livng and CBRE, General Motors, Grange Hotels, healthcare giant Kaiser Permanente, Marriott International, Texas A&M University and WeWork, a shared office provider.

The SCF says it has already begun a targeted engagement campaign with the hospitality sector, the first in a series of outreach programs targeting specific vertical markets. Research indicates that as many as two thirds of business travelers say they will not return to a hotel or venue with patchy or inadequate wireless access. The public take for granted that they can use their cellular devices wherever they go and become frustrated where there is poor coverage. Small cells offer a robust, secure and cost effective way to provide comprehensive high-speed indoor voice and data coverage that is as easy for venues to install and manage as Wi-Fi.

“With over 1,200,000 rooms in more than 6,200 properties worldwide, offering an exceptional mobile experience to our guests is critical to our success,” said Alex Ajdelsztajn of Marriott International. “We are delighted to be working with the Small Cell Forum and its members to ensure the industry continues to evolve with the customer experience in mind.”

“Whether it’s ‘not-spots’ frustrating guests on the upper levels of a hotel, or a lack of connectivity on factory floors, poor or patchy cellular coverage is a major issue across all enterprises, and increasingly this lack of access to reliable critical communications will directly impact organizations’ bottom lines,” said SCF chair David Orloff. “SCF is in a unique position to bring the cellular operator and vendor community together with major players from across the enterprise to work to resolve this issue to the benefit of everyone.”

SCF says it has identified case studies of small cells in enterprise delivering consistent, high quality mobile voice and data services with access to location-based services. Examples of successful deployments include hotels, resorts, airports, retail malls and commercial and industrial facilities.

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