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TeleStructures’ UniPole System Enhances Washington DC METRO Emergency Communications
Aesthetic Towers used to boost wireless communications for city’s Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
ATLANTA: TeleStructures, Inc., a subsidiary of Crown Castle International, is completing installation of five UniPole Systems in Washington DC to boost emergency communications for the area’s METRO system.
As part of an overall effort to shore up emergency communications throughout Washington, DC, public safety departments of Montgomery County, Maryland and the Washington DC Metropolitan Area Transit Authority developed a plan to enhance wireless communications for the city’s METRO (subway) system. TeleStructure’s UniPole Systems are being used in those areas of the city where aesthetic towers are required. The TeleStructures’ UniPole System is a complete, wireless site designed to blend with or complement the surrounding terrain.
Pat Eberbach, program manager for TeleStructures, said, “The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority wants to make sure it has adequate emergency communications to underground tunnels in the event of an emergency. The existing system provides poor signal strength at lower levels, and coverage at many METRO depots is spotty. They want to make sure they have constant contact at all times if there is a fire or other emergency in the subway system.”
Because aesthetics in the communities where METRO depots are located is a primary concern, TeleStructures’ UniPole solution was chosen. The patented UniPole System is a complete wireless site that packages wireless technology in a visually attractive structure. The poles can be decorated with finials, banners, lighting systems and a variety of other options to enhance functionality and visual appeal.
The UniPole is available in heights ranging from 30 to 120 feet. In addition, the systems accommodate multi-carrier configurations. Each UniPole System antenna module houses at least three antennas within a specially constructed, RF-friendly glass reinforced plastic radome. Standard radomes range from 27" to 36" in diameter. UniPoles used for the METRO project will feature custom designed 40” radomes and an overall UniPole height of 30 feet.
“The UniPole Systems also feature a unique antenna mounting system specifically designed by TeleStructures to provide greater antenna azimuth and directional tilt flexibility. Improved antenna positioning within the radomes helps to increase wireless signal strength and uninterrupted communications,” Eberbach said.
Eight sites were required to cover the east and west sections of the Washington METRO system. Due to zoning restrictions, five sites required an aesthetic solution versus a traditional antenna site. Equipment installation is currently under way. System launch is scheduled for Fall of 2002. When the project is complete, the police, fire and rescue teams of Montgomery County, Maryland will be assured of constant communication with any point in the subway system in the event of an emergency.
TeleStructures, Inc., a subsidiary of Crown Castle International, Corp., is a leading global supplier of aesthetic wireless communications towers. The company is dedicated to providing a better way to bring the advanced benefits of wireless telephony into neighborhoods without sacrificing the beauty of the horizon or landscape. For more information on TeleStructures, visit: www.telestructures.com.
Crown Castle International Corp. engineers, deploys, owns and operates technologically advanced shared wireless infrastructure, including extensive networks of towers and rooftops as well as analog and digital audio and television broadcast transmission systems. The Company offers near-universal broadcast coverage in the United Kingdom and significant wireless communications coverage to 68 of the top 100 United States markets, to more than 95 percent of the UK population and to more than 92 percent of the Australian population. Crown Castle owns, operates and manages over 15,000 wireless communication towers internationally. For more information on Crown Castle, visit: www.crowncastle.com .
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