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Part I in a series on WiMAX network planning and deployment.

Business models and financial considerations for a successful WiMAX network

Companies or cities that are considering building and operating wireless WiMAX networks need to consider the array of financial and business planning models prior to developing RFPs and network designs.

A number of independent yet connected issues need to be discussed, researched and documented into a complete view of the proposed network.

In order to avoid past lessons, it's vital that a wireless network be self-sustainable in some way. For a city, a WiMAX network must be justifiable and create value or cost savings for the town. For a commercial operator, a network must be able to attract customers, maintain them and thrive in a competitive market.

Part II in a series on how to plan a city-wide wireless WiMAX network.

Companies or cities that have decided to or are considering building and operating wireless broadband networks have several important issues to consider in terms of how to proceed.

Once demographic, competitive, financial, commercial and/or residential market analysis is complete, the operator must conduct a thorough engineering site survey of the area to be served. Once that is completed, the data learned and gathered during the survey will aid in the development of a preliminary network design.

The initial spectrum for WiMAX in the US is unlicensed spectrum in the 5GHz range. Given that this spectrum is 'open to the public', it has inherent interference issues and risks which need to be studied carefully. A quality site survey can provide an invaluable insight into current or potential interference issues. As will be discussed in the WiMAX network design document, there are many effective ways to minimize interference in unlicensed WiMAX networks both from a site selection and equipment selection perspective.

Part III in a series on how to plan a city-wide wireless WiMAX network.

Once a municipality or operator has considered the business model and financial aspects of the WiMAX network and a comprehensive initial site survey has been completed, a preliminary design is required.

The design will leverage the assets and information gained from the site survey and allow the engineer to make a cost effective design choice in terms of equipment and architecture.

Part IV in a series on how to deploy a city-wide wireless WiMAX network

Fixed point-to-multipoint WiMAX-based networks typically require cell site structures, water towers or tall buildings from which to broadcast.  As outlined in the survey and design sections, terrain and foliage play a critical role in finding the right tower locations.

Once the survey has been completed and the site candidates have been identified, estimated coverage plots are run to determine potential network coverage.  After the site candidate list has been finalized based on the coverage estimates, the formal site acquisition process will begin.

Part V in a series on how to deploy a city-wide wireless WiMAX network

All the work put forth to plan, design and install a quality WiMAX network can be for naught if the network is not proactively monitored and properly maintained.

Cities and service operators are likely to use WiMAX networks as a delivery method for critical data and voice services (such as public safety) and having a network actively monitored and maintained is critical to its proper performance and overall success.

In a large metro wireless network, there will invariably be dozens, if not hundreds of devices to monitor.  These devices can include routers, switches, access points, CSU/DSUs, point-to-point links and other related items.  The ability to manage remotely and monitor remotely these devices varies from one manufacturer to another.  For the most part, today's leading vendors' infrastructure allows for remote SNMP management.  The ability to get "into" the network and actively monitor various items is paramount to keeping the system operational to a carrier class level.