The transcript follows for your interest (this has been gently edited to align the threads of the discussion. The original is at http://linkd.in/11S10VW)

 ForumOxford Free Friday chat – 10 May – Dr Simon Saunders joins us to discuss ‘Small Cells – Big Impact’ at 15:00 (UK) – 16:00 (CEST)

Join our eighth Free Friday chat group, featuring Dr Simon Saunders, Director – Technology, Real Wireless (http://www.realwireless.biz/).

Topic for discussion on Friday 10 May 2013 – ‘Small Cells – Big Impact’.

Subjects for this week:

- What are small cells?
– Classification of small cells (pico, metro etc)
– Why do mobile networks need small cells?
– Implications for small cells and LTE
– What are the technical innovations which have allowed small cells to emerge now?
– What is the state of the market?
– Prospects and challenges for the future?
– What does Cisco’s acquisition of Ubiquisys tell us about the state of the small cell market?
– What about inter-vendor interoperability?
– Small cells versus Wi-Fi?
– Backhaul?

About Dr Simon Saunders:

Simon is an independent specialist in the technology of wireless communications, with a technical and commercial background derived from senior appointments in both industry (including Philips and Motorola) and academia (University of Surrey). As co-founder of Real Wireless, he is responsible for overall technical capability and direction.

He is an author of over 150 articles, books and book chapters. He has acted as a consultant to companies including BAA, BBC, O2, Ofcom, BT, ntl, Mitsubishi and British Land and was CTO of Red-M and CEO of Cellular Design Services Ltd.

Simon speaks and chairs a wide range of international conferences and training courses and has invented over 15 patented wireless technologies. Particular expertise includes in-building wireless systems, radiowave propagation prediction, smart antenna design and mobile system analysis.

He has served on technical advisory boards of several companies, was Visiting Professor to the University of Surrey, member of the industrial advisory board at University College London and was founding chairman of Small Cell Forum (formerly Femto Forum), which he chaired from 2007-12.

He is currently a member of the Ofcom Spectrum Advisory Board and advisor to Quortus and Adjunct Professor at Trinity College Dublin.

It is our pleasure to have Simon with us on 10 May 2013.

Follow us on Twitter @ForumOxford – https://twitter.com/ForumOxford

Follow Real Wireless on Twitter @real_wireless – https://twitter.com/real_wireless

realwireless.biz realwireless.biz

Peter Holland • Ok – Good afternoon/evening or morning (as appropriate for your time zone) to everyone from the University of Oxford!

Welcome to ForumOxford’s FreeFriday chat on 10 May.

To those who are following the discussion, please feel free to post any questions during the discussion (refresh your screen regularly to see the latest comments)

Let’s begin. Ajit and Simon – over to you……

Ajit Jaokar • hi simon great to see you .. sorry linkedin was putting comments for review .. welcome!

Ajit Jaokar • ok lets start – first qs – Can you explain the basic ideas and motivation behind small cells

Simon Saunders • Thanks Ajit – great to be with you on one of my favourite wireless topics

Simon Saunders • For sure…small cells are something of a chameleon technology – all things to all people…

Simon Saunders • For some they are the best way to address a future ‘capacity crunch’ to meet the rising tide of mobile demand

Simon Saunders • …for others they are the best way to get great coverage to places macrocells cannot [economically] reach

Simon Saunders • For others still they are a tool for competition, to deliver enhanced quality of experience and a wider range of personalised services to their customers compared with their peers

Simon Saunders • There’s often confusion about what we do mean by small cells however. The short answer is – every base station in a mobile network which is not a macrocell.

Simon Saunders • Certainly including femtocells, picocells, and microcells in both their urban (metrocell) and rural (“meadowcell”?!) guises.

Ajit Jaokar • “every base station in a mobile network which is not a macrocell.” thats a good definition ..

Ajit Jaokar • so whats the difference between femtocells, picocells, microcells and metrocells? are these being used interchangably?

Simon Saunders • The terms aren’t interchangeable, but likewise they don’t have hard boundaries. Femtocells = typically home and small office/SoHo. Picocells = Enterprise, retal etc (mainly indoors), Metrocells = busy cities, outdoors, “Meadowcells” = rural outdoor application of metrocells.

Ajit Jaokar • medowcells! first I heard that!

Simon Saunders • And for some they also include access points in unlicenced/licence exempt spectrum – i.e. mainly Wi-Fi. For other still they include every tech which puts the antennas close to the users, i.e. Distributed Antennas Systems and Cloud/Centralised-Ran solutions. But not everyone agrees with that!

Ajit Jaokar • Re “Distributed Antennas Systems and Cloud/Centralised-Ran solutions. But not everyone agrees with that!” – why not? ie where is the disagreement in the industry wrt it?

Simon Saunders • The disagreement on DAS and C-RAN is really about where each solution fits best, and on where the processing intelligence sits.

Simon Saunders • The original concept of small cells is to make use of cheap silicon processing at the edge, and keep the high-rate processing off the backhaul.

Simon Saunders • C-RAN allows the same radio benefits – antennas close to users – but centralises the processing. This allows each antenna unit to be closely coordinated with all the others, enabling exciting processing opportunities such as CoMP, but puts a big load on the backhaul.

Ajit Jaokar • @simon – thanks re c-ran concept

Simon Saunders • A word on DAS: a great workhorse, and currently the solution of choice for the biggest public venues and the largest enterprises.

Ajit Jaokar • thanks Simon. yes thats a good distinction. so next question – “What does Cisco’s acquisition of Ubiquisys tell us about the state of the small cell market?”

Simon Saunders • Cisco’s acquisition of Ubiquisys is a great validation of several things:
– the value of small cells
– the opportunity for small cells in the Enterprise
– the role of the UK in wireless innovation and tech innovation generally.
Ubi were definitely one of the key pioneers in the field – but many others deserve honourable mention too!

Ajit Jaokar • so whats the benefit ffor cisco? enterprise?

Simon Saunders • I look forward to the day when enterprise IT system integrators are as skilled at designing and implementing 3G/4G systems as they are today at implementing enterprise LAN/Wi-Fi: and are as accepted at that jon by mobile operators as their current SIs in the DAS space.

Ajit Jaokar • ok next qs – do small cells and wifi complement each other? (or whats your view)

Simon Saunders • Great question – and the industry has changed on this point (small cells and Wi-Fi) over time.
2005-7: Some think femtocells could be the mobile competitive response to Wi-Fi…

Simon Saunders • 2007-2009: Femtocells and Wi-Fi complement each other: different characteristics, different devices, different places…
2010 – today: If we implement both small cells and Wi-Fi in a coordinated fashion it’s better for operators and consumers alike. And we need to use all the spectrum we can get!

Ajit Jaokar • @simon – thanks(re wifi) yes we need all spectrum

Dr John Kelliher IKC • Surely the concept of edge is somewhat of a misnomer – an artificial concept that should not be introduced or exist in cellular ? Well, why should it ?

Ajit Jaokar • we will take @John’s qs now re concept of edge?

Simon Saunders • @John:
The question of where is “the edge” is a good one. I was using it earlier to mean simply “close to the user”. But there are many options for how to distribute processing across a network and these options suit different use cases. C-RAN and femtocells represent two extremes of those options, but there are many useful cases in between which deserve more attention.

Ajit Jaokar • @thanks simon (re edge insights)

Ajit Jaokar • coming back to Operators .. other than spectrum case.. Why do mobile networks need small cells?

Simon Saunders • Mobile operators need small cells because:
– You can’t multiply today’s macrocells by x10
– Spectrum efficiency is limited
– Space (and money) for antennas on macros and in devices is limited
– User demand higher rates, reliably – and even without considering capacity, macrocell geometries struggle with that
…

Simon Saunders • …and operators need small cells to remain different. One day operators will advertise that they provide the best service because they have the most small cells. That may seem implausible today, but watch this space!

Ajit Jaokar • @simon – very insightful ” One day operators will advertise that they provide the best service because they have the most small cells. That may seem implausible today, but watch this space!”

Dr John Kelliher IKC • @Simon – Cisco and Juniper have a somewhat traditional view of Internetwork edge, which I thought you may be referring to. However processing should, I would be consider be a distributed function, granted that the air-interface processing is high. Operators usually consider use cases as multifaceted { end user – designer/implementer – Architectural }, so ordinarily I would consider this to be more a design consideration than a use case.

Simon Saunders • @John: I think the best location of the processing is indeed a design consideration, but the optimum location is a function of the use case.

Simon Saunders • .. so the best processing location for a remote rural village is entirely different to that for a national football stadium!

Ajit Jaokar • @simon – What about inter-vendor interoperability?

Simon Saunders • Interoperability = big topic.
Starting point: femtocells needed standards to get off the ground. And got them very early in the lifecycle I’m proud to say,

Simon Saunders • But interop is much more than standards. We organised plugfests to encourage and demo actual interop and to iron out standards ‘bugs’. But even then you have to advance step by step towards meaningful functionality. Today operators can genuinely buy femtocells from different vendors and have them work with a third vendor’s gateway, though there is still more pain than I’d like in that process. Nevetheless for femtocells it’s all trending in the ‘right’ direction.

Ajit Jaokar • and the femto forum had a role to play

Ajit Jaokar • @simon yes agree tending in right direction ..

Simon Saunders • Metrocells are in a different state. They need very tight integration with the surrounding macro network. And there are sharp compromises at this stage between interop and performance. And tough choices for operators who want one “neck to choke”!

Simon Saunders • And let me be clear: open interop is not only good for operators, but also for vendors who want to address a wide market, and also for consumers who want products which work well. But it has to be done without sacrificing innovation or performance unduly,

Ajit Jaokar • @simon – thanks for insights on macro cells. agree re innovation

Ajit Jaokar • from a custromer standpoint femtocells have a cost?

Simon Saunders • For consumers, femtocells bring benefits which I believe outweigh costs. If you are genuiniely needy, most operators today will let you have a femtocell as part of the package (in exchange for a little loyalty!).

Simon Saunders • Another way of looking at it: given femtocells can (in the right circumstances) reduce overall costs of delivering a service for the operator, and eventually the customers pay for every cost in the network, reduced cost for the operator translates to reduced cost for the customer (assumes a competitive market!)

Ajit Jaokar • yes agree. win-win for all

Ajit Jaokar • ok we are in last 15 mins .. @simon anything imp we have not covered you think?

Simon Saunders • A tangential topic: for those considering research in this area, we need:
– More analysis of the lifetime environmental & energy impact of small cells
– Radio techniques for hyperdense networks

Simon Saunders • Would also like to give due acknowledgement to the >145 organisations (operators and vendors) in Small Cell (Fermto) Forum who made all this happen. When we started it was heresy – now 98% of operators want small cells in their networks. Prevailing orthodoxy!

Simon Saunders • But (maybe finally) there are unanswered questions: exactly how many small cells are needed, and exactly where they should go, and exactly how they are managed – are all open questions. We need to rewrite the mobile network planning rulebook!

Ajit Jaokar • @simon – yes indeed – great work by femto forum and great to have you here for that reason

Simon Saunders • Thanks @Ajit and all online – great to chat. Go and ask your mobile operator for a femtocell!

Ajit Jaokar • indeed! thats a good point to conclude!

Peter Holland • Thank you to Ajit and Simon for a great discussion and also thank you to all those of you who followed and contributed to the conversation.

It’s goodbye from ForumOxford at the University of Oxford for now.

The auction sets the landscape for the deployment of UK 4G networks, taken along with their existing holdings of 900, 1800 and 2100 MHz spectrum, all of which Ofcom proposes to liberalise (i.e. make technology-neutral).

The specific frequencies to be held by each of the winners is not yet fixed and a subsequent ‘assignment stage’ will determine the final outcomes.

That isn’t the end of the story and Ofcom is already planning for further spectrum releases to support “5G” services, citing Real Wireless’ work on the capacity needed to support growth of 80x today’s demand by 2030.

Full details on the Ofcom website.

 In the new project we will engage with a wide range of wireless operators and conduct surveys at major cricket grounds to:

• Gather ideas for wireless-enhanced applications of benefit and interest to cricket fans and support and media personnel
• Audit and survey existing infrastructure and service from surrounding networks
• Set clear requirements for wireless services, differentiated according to size of ground and timescale for deployment
• Explore suitable engagement models to support technologies including Wi-Fi, 3G and 4G
• Determine the form and scale of wireless infrastructure which will best deliver near-term benefits while operating within a strategic framework which is clear and consistent for the longer term future

 These steps will enable us to create a clear plan for rapid deployment of initial solutions and a longer-term roadmap for on-going service and infrastructure enhancements. We are now inviting expressions of interest to contribute to this process at: ecb@realwireless.biz

The high growth in the number of small cells deployed appears to due to two factors:

• A steady flow of small cell launches by operators in 2012 – according to the report there were 10 new small cell services launched by operators in 2012 bringing the total of small cell commercial deployments to 46 across 25 countries worldwide.  Interestingly since this summer the UK has become one of only two countries where all operators have small cell offerings.
• Early adopter operators of small cells seeing the number of small cell sites in their networks reach significant levels – the report highlights Sprints announcement that their network reached 1 million femtocells in October 2012, having been the first to launch femtocells commercially in September 2007, and estimates that the AT&T network will have similar levels of femtocells.  Softbank and Vodafone UK deployments are also reported at above 100,000 femtocells.

The report provides a very interesting case study from Vodafone Greece which is said to be the first hard launch of small-cell zone services based on location.  The case study describes a public-area small cell service which has been launched by Vodafone Greece recently in partnership with fixed line provider Hellas Online (HOL) and two of Greece’s fast food and café groups, Goody’s fast food restaurants and Flocafe.  The service makes use of both WiFi and 3G access points to offer free data connections to its customers when in 200 of its partners’ premises.  The service named “Free 3G Hotspot” is triggered once a subscriber is handed over from a macrocell to a small cell in one of the venues and effectively white lists all traffic from the subscriber whilst they are using the small cell so that their data usage in the registered venues appears free of charge.  This is an interesting application of small cells which may lead to other revenue avenues for operators such as targeted advertising, being able to provide user statistics  to venue partners and being able to provide customised mobile services in venues that are attractive to venue partners (such as log in screens with special discounts, store maps etc.). 

This has similarities to O2’s decision in the UK to partner with a series of venues to provide free indoor wireless broadband in certain locations (see http://www.cambridgewireless.co.uk/Presentation/Mobile.Broadband_Gavin.Franks_10.10.12.pdf). However, key differences appear to be:

• The O2 offering is purely WiFi based and in unlicenced spectrum.
• The O2 offering is open to any mobile users – not just O2 subscribers.  O2 felt this was crucial for gaining interest and partnership with venues.
• The O2 offering doesn’t charge the subscriber for this service in any way whereas the Vodafone Greece “Free 3G Hotspot” appears to assume that the user has an existing contract even if the traffic used in the venues does not come out of the user’s monthly data allowance.

Finally the Informa report highlights a growing interest amongst operators in public access and metrocell deployments with AT&T announcing plans to deploy 40,000 LTE public area small cells to cover dense urban areas and SK Telecom’s launch of public access LTE services in June 2012.  The report also mentions recent wins by Virgin Media in the UK to deploy WiFi metrocells in cities, that will likely become cellular in future, and a growing body of companies announcing plans for Small Cells as a Service (ScaaS) offerings which would package and make wireless ready batches of street furniture sites to operators for small cell deployments in urban areas.  Multimode access points are highlighted as a key technology enabler for this market as operators in the short term want to address capacity bottlenecks on 3G networks but also want to have a migration path towards LTE and an offload option via WiFi where available.  Traffic balancing across these radio access technologies is seen as an important area to make multimode access points reach their full potential.  Vendors are already responding with announcements of multimode small cell products from both NTT DoCoMo and Ubiquisys recently.

The full Informa report can be obtained from the Small Cell Forum’s website at:

http://www.smallcellforum.org/resources-white-papers

Our director of technology, Simon Saunders, has been appointed as an independent advisor to UK-based technology company Quortus.

Quortus provides software solutions for mobile cores across 2G, 3G and 4G. Distinctively, their solutions are designed to run at the edge of the network. For example, it is possible to run an entire mobile core on a 3G femtocell: a complete 3G network in a box the size of a paperback book. This opens up a wide range of applications for mobile networks in remote areas and in special locations such as enterprises. Their approach represents a highly logical extension of  the small cell concept from pushing radio processing to the edge to including the entire core functionality.

Simon joins the technical advisory board of Quortus to assist with technical and strategic issues. The appointment builds on Simon’s previous activities as founding chairman of the Small Cell Forum (formerly Femto Forum).

Quortus’ website and press release provide further details.

In summary, the Statement indicates that:

• The 700 MHz band may be needed to meet future mobile capacity demand. Although it will not be available until around 2018, there is strong momentum behind international harmonisation of this band for LTE.
• The 600 MHz band may be needed to preserve digital TV capacity. This band was previously cleared as a result of the switchover from analogue to digital TV, but there is no harmonisation of this band for mobile applications. 
• However in the interim the 600 MHz band may be available for white space devcie applications. We have supported Ofcom’s work on this by conducting a short audit of the technical analysis conducted by the  BBC to determine the available white space bandwidth. We also previously issued a comprehensive report on the prospects and challenges for white space devices.

• The combined total of reserve prices is £1.3 billion
• Provisional application date is 11th December
• Bidding begins in January
• The outcome depends on the bidding process, but bidders should know what they have won and its cost in February/March
• Ofcom expects resulting services to be launched in May/June
• Press release
• Full statement

In addition, the amount of spectrum that can be used for mobile services is more than doubling with the 4G spectrum auctions that have or will soon take place in Europe. So the future’s bright … our mobile and wireless networks should have the capacity to meet the future demands of consumers and businesses for using our smart phones and wireless broadband services?

However, the amount of data we consume through our mobile devices has been growing frenetically and many expect that growth to continue, particularly as smart phones and tablets become more widespread.

The chart below shows a series of market forecasts that vary widely but all show rapid growth – the Mid forecast shows roughly a 100 times increase in demand for mobile data over the next 10 years. NOTE – it’s plotted on a logarithmic scale which gives a compressed view of how fast demand for data is predicted to increase. Going up one notch on the vertical axis represents an ten-fold increase in demand (not a doubling). So is there perhaps a question to answer despite the imminent arrival of 4G and so much new spectrum. And what could we do if there were a risk of a mobile network capacity crunch in the future?

Source: Real Wireless

Does or can government help industry meet soaring demand?

One reason to consider this now is because, if we do need to bring more spectrum on stream in the future, the process is cumbersome to say the least – potentially years of international negotiations and heaps of technical work. In order to get more spectrum in 10 years’ time, we might need to set the wheels in motion quite soon.

The key things to consider are:

• how fast demand for mobile data may grow in the future, taking into account that some of the demand might be carried over Wi-Fi or indoor small cells (i.e. a mini femtocell or picocell base station inside a home or office)
• what spectrum may be available for mobile in the future – it also makes a difference whether other countries are considering doing the same thing
• potential future developments in technologies which could improve mobile network capacity.

My associates, Real Wireless, experts in mobile technologies mapped out the potential future technology enhancements that could increase the capacity of mobile networks in a study for Ofcom. Generally we can identify quite a few techniques now which could be introduced over the next 10 years (despite the uncertainty inherent in technology forecasts):

• deploying more infrastructure – either outdoor small cells (micro / picocells) or full scale base stations (macrocells)
• improvements to 4G technologies e.g. LTE Advanced should enable mobile networks to use spectrum more efficiently and flexibly and increase the top speeds mobile networks can deliver
• techniques to use mobile frequencies more efficiently – e.g. increased sectorisation and use of multiple antenna technologies (MIMO)
• distributed processing and sharing of traffic loads across multiple cell-sites – e.g. Coordinated multi-point and Cloud RAN.

Real Wireless worked out a number of plausible combinations of these techniques and looked at how much additional spectrum Ofcom is currently predicted to make available for mobile use over the next 20 years – up to 350MHz (which compares well to the 200MHz of 4G spectrum currently being released in Europe). This enabled them to make a good forecast (using information on real geographic areas) of how mobile network capacity is likely to increase in the future.

This allowed mobile data demand to be matched against mobile network capacity (once the fluctuations of mobile data demand during the day were taken into account to get a measure of the peak demand).

Spectrum currently earmarked for mobile could be exhausted in just over a decade

The result is that that there may well be a network capacity crunch, in as little as 10 to 12 years’ time in some areas, even given the likely technological improvements and increased spectrum we currently expect to come on stream.

By capacity crunch we mean that the mobile operators will have exhausted all the techniques for increasing capacity we can currently forecast, and the only way to increase capacity would be a significant expansion in base station sites. This would not only be costly, but physical and planning limitation could mean that a major expansion was unlikely to be feasible, particularly in urban areas.

The result was derived by evaluating the costs of the alternatives for increasing mobile network capacity, i.e. using more of the spectrum available for mobile vs.  new technologies vs. deploying more base stations. The most cost effective way to increase capacity to meet demand was calculated on a rolling 2-3 year basis. The result is shown in the graph below.

Source: Real Wireless

What could be done to provide more capacity?

The option that is most in the control of governments and regulators is to try to allocate more spectrum for mobile. It’s likely that any suitable candidates are already being used for something else, hence there would be a cost to society in switching over such spectrum to mobile.

The 700MHz band is one possibility. Although currently used for terrestrial TV broadcasting, moves are afoot in Europe and in other regions to consider possible future mobile use. The 700MHz band is attractive because it may gain broad international support. This would make it more likely that leading handsets would work on it. Also, its physical characteristics mean that it can provide more reliable coverage, and hence capacity, compared to the majority of existing mobile spectrum.

700MHz could alleviate the potential capacity crunch

Our research shows that mobile operators could save substantial sums of money by deploying 700MHz spectrum at the key point in the future, instead of deploying more base stations. Consumers should benefit as well through lower prices and more consistent service quality.

However the timing of when 700MHz is available is important, particularly the closer we are to the worst case scenario of when mobile broadband demand is high and the government cannot release as much spectrum for mobile as it currently expects over the next 10 years.

If 700MHz spectrum were available in 2020, the benefits for mobile operators (and consumers) would be much greater than if it were only available when current 700MHz licences expire in 2026.

If 700MHz is not available until 2026, mobile operators would have to start deploying new base station sites when the capacity crunch hit in 2022 to 2024. Deploying new sites would lock the operators into a certain course of action (to exploit the new sites to the full). The potential cost savings from using 700MHz would be much lower than if 700MHz had been available before the new sites were deployed. In other words, there is a risk that the industry could get locked into the wrong technology path.

Conclusions

Despite the exciting changes that 4G is likely to make to our smartphone and tablet experiences, regulators and mobile operators have to keep an eye on the future needs of the mobile networks. Our technological inventiveness may not be enough to avoid a capacity crunch 10 years down the line, hence the mobile sector is likely to need even more spectrum, preferably harmonised on a European or wider basis.

The 700MHz spectrum is potentially a good prospect, but the cost savings it could bring need to be offset against the costs of clearing out the existing broadcasting users.

Full details of the work, including an illustrative video, download of the full report and a link to Ofcom’s use of analysis in their UHF strategy consultation are available at:

http://www.realwireless.biz/mobile-capacity-in-the-uk-major-study-published/

As we reported recently, the trials were conducted in two UK cities to help inform operators as to the practical radio performance available from small cells. The small cells in the trial were LTE devices and we have examined the performance of these for both outdoor and indoor users. We have also analysed the data to infer  how small cells could supplement the service from macrocells and how they might perform in a  3G/HSPA context. A comparison was made of the indoor coverage available from a Wi-Fi access point and an LTE small cell mounted in the same location.

Findings include:

• Outdoor range of as much as 290m for a  20 Mbps cell edge target
• 60 Mbps measured indoors up to 250m from the access point
• A consistently high indoor user experience in the trial area with all except 4 indoor measurements reaching above 20Mbps 
• A potential doubling in outdoor median throughput was observed compared to simulated macrocells (for cell edge placement of small cell)
• Small cell mean single user outdoor throughputs in the region of 58Mbps for a 20Mbps single user cell edge target 
• Small cells deployed in busy areas could meet today’s mobile data demand requirements in the UK’s 80% most densely populated areas with a 15x capacity headroom for future growth or to serve the ‘hyper dense’ demand of the City of London’s busiest locations.
• Small cells achieve consistently higher indoor performance over a wider area than outdoor Wi-Fi from a given location

As well as giving details of the trial data analysis, the report analyses the motivations of operators to deploy small cells and examines how a SCaaS approach could help to address some of the major challenges to widespread small cell deployment, including backhaul and practical site issues. The approach can also help to create a bridge the interests of operators and those of city councils, who both ultimately want to enhance the mobile broadband experience for the inhabitants and visitors of the city.

For further details see:

• A summary white paper from Virgin Media Business
• The executive summary of our report  (pdf, 470 kB)
• The full text of our report (pdf, 6MB, 83 pages)
• Our comments on the impact of small cells on the Virgin Media Business blog

Real Wireless Limited is seeking a qualified and experienced technology consultant to join a small and successful expert consulting team to lead and contribute to projects regarding a wide range of wireless technologies for enterprise, vendor, operator and regulator clients.  In particular, we are looking for an additional team member whose main focus would be on delivering, operating and interpreting simulation models to quantify the performance of wireless networks.  However, the successful candidate would also have strong general consultancy skills and technical expertise in wireless technology to contribute to other projects as needed.    

About Real Wireless

Real Wireless is a UK-based wireless consultancy, founded by principals with extensive wireless experience and reputation in the UK and internationally. A small but highly capable and experienced consulting team has been created, complemented by a growing group of part-time expert associates, many of whom are acknowledged international experts in their fields. Since its formation at the beginning of 2007, Real Wireless has gained a reputation for thought leadership, at the forefront of developments in femtocells, enterprise wireless systems and spectrum issues, and in providing technical, commercial and strategic expertise with credibility and independence. Diverse assignments for clients such as Wembley Stadium, Ofcom, iBwave, BAA, Ubiquisys and Small Cell Forum have confirmed this reputation.

We have deep and detailed knowledge of a wide range of wireless technologies. We conduct in-depth technical analysis and link the outcomes to commercial and strategic business and regulatory contexts.

Real Wireless is, by design, small and focused entirely on the wireless sector. The distinctive elements of our service include:

• Complete focus on wireless, covering service, technology, business and regulatory aspects.
• Expert staff with a high level of education and experience.
• Independenceof thought and ownership, underpinned by a high level of integrity.
• Consulting based on real-world experience, derived from our background in research, product development, systems design and operation as well as technical and strategic consulting.
• Experience of designing, installing and operating wireless systems for enterprises as well as operators, yielding a unique perspective on the needs of both.

The Role

Real Wireless has built up an impressive in house capability in the simulation and modeling of wireless networks.  Recent example of this has included amongst others:

• Developing detailed coverage models for Ofcom to understand the cost to operators of applying a coverage obligation at 800MHz via LTE
• Designing and developing in-building propagation algorithms to be incorporated in commercial indoor planning tools such as those delivered by iBWave
• Analysing measurements collected during trials of LTE outdoor small cells by Virgin Media and interpreting these into quantifiable benefits for operators
• Modeling the capacity of cellular networks over an 18 year timeline for Ofcom which included understanding the trade-offs between spectrum efficiency improvements, topology changes and the availability of additional spectrum in meeting growing demand.  

Our success in modeling the performance of wireless networks, understanding the trade-offs within these and translating this into the benefits that our clients really care about has led to an ever increasing demand for our skills in this area.  We are now looking to expand our team to keep pace with this.

The main focus of the role is to contribute to the design, development, operation and interpretation of system-level  simulation models to quantify the performance of wireless networks.  What is meant by “quantifying the performance of wireless networks” will vary from project to project depending on the client’s interest and so we are looking for a team member who can quickly understand a client’s need and is flexible and innovative enough to rapidly develop simulation models that clearly present the answer required in tight timescales.  Essential skills for this role include having in-depth experience in using MATLAB (ideally to model wireless networks) and a firm understanding of wireless technologies (including but not limited to LTE). Experience of other simulation tools and packages would also be of benefit.

Due to the nature of consultancy work the role is a highly flexible, dynamic and varied one. Beyond the simulation and modeling tasks which are the main focus of this role, you may be responsible for assisting with proposals to clients based on identified needs, delivering on other non-modeling based consulting projects and identifying opportunities for follow-on engagements.

You will work on a wide range of consulting projects as these arise. You will lead some projects and work as a team member on others according to the project.

Real Wireless operates a ‘virtual office’ approach to maintain flexibility. Some projects will be remotely conducted and home-based, while others will involve periods working within client offices. Most work will be based in the UK, but there are likely to be opportunities for international travel. A high degree of flexibility is required to work successfully on projects to the delight of our customers as the need arises.

The role is a full-time permanent one, subject to an initial probationary period.

Skills and Qualifications

• Good quality degree in relevant engineering or science subjects to Masters or PhD level
• In-depth knowledge of the theory and practice of a range of wireless technologies, preferably including a strong mixture of mobile (GSM, UMTS / HSPA, LTE, WiMAX), wireless LAN/PAN (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth), PMR (trunked radio and TETRA) technologies.
• In depth experience in using MATLAB to model the performance of wireless networks and the ability to revert to using other modeling approaches such as Excel or C in this context as needed. It would also be an advantage to have experience in other simulation environments, including commercial radio planning tools, MapInfo etc.
• Ideally 2-5 years experience in a wireless vendor, operator or consulting environment
• Strong presentation skills and experience in explaining challenging technical and commercial concepts for both expert and non-specialist audiences
• Strong written skills in providing clear and logical expositions of technical and commercial information
• Problem-solving aptitude, adopting an evidence-based approach supplemented with clear analysis and reasoning to reach and advocate conclusions and recommendations of value to our customers
• Ability to work independently or as part of a team and to be able to deliver under tight timescales without close supervision
• Preferably based in the South-East of England with easy access to London, but other locations may be possible

Package

The successful candidate will be offered a competitive basic salary, supplemented with an uncapped bonus scheme, paid quarterly based on individual and team achievements against targets.

Informal enquiries concerning the role are welcome via info@realwireless.biz, as are applications in the form of a CV and covering letter highlighting relevant background, experience, and interest in the role as described.