Heathrow Express Radio Coverage
Radio coverage of 6 different systems (including UMTS - Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) had to be provided within 6km of tunnels and throughout the T5 Rail Station. In order to achieve such a vast distance and provide a robust solution against failure, an RF (Radio Frequency) over fibre solution was adopted. The use of fibres provided a higher isolation which allowed the signals to be fed over greater distances without excessive cable attenuation. The radio system was a defined as a safety critical system so redundancy played a vital role in the design and build.
RF coverage was provided by using purposely built radiating cable in tunnels and installing cellular and PMR (Private Mobile Radio) antennas to provide coverage in the T5 Rail Station.
As part of the V life cycle, we researched several manufacturers to find the one which best matched the technical parameters specified by us, could operate effectively in a rail environment and offered good value for money.
Firstco found that, as with every project, some challenges have arisen during the process. One of the biggest challenges was coordination of equipment within the rail station domain. We had to work closely with the architects to ensure that the positioning of the antennas within the T5 Rail Station was aesthetically pleasing but also provided good radio coverage that was expected by the stakeholders.
Two teams were used by BAA to build a large in-building radio network for T5. Firstco had to work in conjunction with the terminal team to ensure that the handover of cellular and emergency services radio between the T5 Rail Station and T5 Terminal building was seamless.
We have really enjoyed working on such a grand-scale project as we have worked alongside many people from different backgrounds and experiences. From this we have gained a lot from peers through knowledge sharing and experience in leading edge solutions that we can apply to future projects.
Working directly under the guidance of BAA has also been insightful and enjoyable. There has been a great sense of a team environment and our engineers feel from this we were able to produce effective results.
The terminal and station has been built to such a high standard so it has been important to design systems that sit in background to an equivalent standard. It has been a privilege to have worked at T5.