Wireless Site Survey

In the example above, the engineer completing the site survey was primarily concerned with the physical layout of the project area. By contrast, a wireless site survey is concerned with the suitability of a structure for a new or upgraded wireless network.

Many companies have a wireless site survey conducted prior to moving into a new location. If a network overhaul at an existing location is required, a wireless site survey could help identify new issues that have arisen since the last site survey.

An engineer performing a wireless site survey will take the following steps:

• Survey the physical layout of the structure to identify potential installation locations for wireless access points (WAP’s).
• Analyze any radio frequency (RF) interference that could result in dead-zones or slow network connections.
• Confirm that a stable connection to the service provider’s Network Operations Center (NOC) is installed and configured at the property.
• Consider equipment heating and cooling concerns to prevent Servers overheating, or uncomfortable workspace adjacent to Server stacks and other network hardware.
• Identify any potential physical or RF interferences that could impact Quality of Service (QoS).