Jody owner and operator of Hill Farm Services was missing out on potential business as the Hill Farm Services team was not able to effectively run their business without high-speed internet at their rural office in the countryside of Monmouthshire. Jody needed a fast and reliable internet service to ensure the smooth running of his company, not being able to run a cable directly to his office he was starting to run out of options.
When we arrived for their first meeting with Hill Farm Services, it was clear that being so far away from the local town the only solution would be to find a way in which data could be bridged to his business. The most viable option was to wirelessly bridge data from an estate situated not far from the grounds on which the office was based. After consulting with the house owner we were able to successfully use point to point bridge data to the office across a large expanse. Jody and his team now have super-fast broadband and can complete their daily tasks with no issues.
Data Networking | Rural
At the first point of contact with any customer, we request details on the customer’s request. We then document all the goals that need to be achieved and problems that need to be solved on a
report which gets filed with the customer’s details. At the earliest convenience for the customer, we arrange a site visit. Once on-site, we complete a full site walk so that we can also identify any potential hazards or issues that we or the customer may face during and after installation. We also collect the following information, building structure, customers’ budget and health and safety concerns.
Once we have all the data required, we can complete and issue the customer with a complete proposal.
This proposal outlines to the customer the issues they have raised and how we intend to solve these issues. Inside a proposal, the customer can see a breakdown of the solution required. Once a proposal is accepted and we have received written confirmation we then go ahead with ordering the required system components. A full parts list is completed and added to the customer’s document folder for future reference. We order all system components to arrive on a specific day that meets the customer’s deadline, we check all the equipment for faults or missing parts.
This is done to ensure we are ready for the installation date agreed with the customer.
The initial stage of the day is to confirm with our customer our time of arrival on the day of installation, ensuring the customer is on-site and ready to meet with us. Once on-site, we complete a walkthrough with the customer outlining the steps of our installation and liaising with anyone else on-site that we may impact while completing our work. Once we have carried out all agreed works we complete a walkthrough to check that everything has been completed and meets the specification provided by the customer. Once we are
happy with the installation we then complete one final walk through with our project lead to cross-reference all work carried out, which is checked off on our completion document.
While working on-site at Hill Farm Services our engineers would have to be aware of fast-moving farm machinery and specialist equipment. They would also have to be working at height to be able to install the point to point bridging equipment. For the installation, day to go smoothly the engineers needed to be professionally trained to use high reach equipment such as scissor lifts and cherry pickers. To make sure this was possible all engineers were sent on their IPAF training before being allowed on site. This would ensure the
safe working of the equipment but more importantly the safety of the engineers and anyone else in the area. To combat the fast-moving farm machinery all engineers were also provided with high visibility clothing.
It was also important that all Hill Farm Services staff would be aware that our engineers would be on site, to implement this a signing in and out process was adopted for all on-site engineers and barriers were also erected at work locations. To further minimise any potential dangers, it was vital that we would liaise with Hill Farm Services at every step ofthe installation so that the Hill Farm Services managers could make their staff aware of the engineer’s locations.
Task 1. Installation of Bridging Poles
To be able to send data across a large distance it was vital to minimise any objects obstructing the signal, to solve this issue it was clear
that we would need to erect poles to which the bridging equipment could be mounted. This is where working with Hill Farm Services would be most critical, as Hill Farm Services installed poles it was our task to instruct where the poles would need to be positioned.
Task 2. Installation of Bridging Equipment
With the poles already in place, the next task would be to install the bridging equipment on each pole. To access the required height our engineers would utilise their newly acquired IPAF licence to be able to confidently and safely operate the cherry picker and scissor lift that had been provided to them on the day.
Task 3. Setup and Testing
The most challenging part of the installation for our engineers would be to align and set up both data points to ensure the effectiveness of the data transfer over the long-distance that was required. With the equipment successfully positioned extensive stress testing was completed on-site, with the results logged and a report provided to Hill Farm Services.
As the installation would ultimately allow them to operate at their fullest their internet service needed to be reliable, we continue to send engineers to Hill Farm Services to complete tests and provide reports.
Our engineers can often be found at Hill Farm Services as providing reliable after service is what keeps the business running smoothly. If there are any data dropouts they have a direct line to our engineers so that the time they are down is kept to a minimum. We have also been back to install further data equipment which has further improved the success of Hill Farm Services.
With a super-fast network, Hill Farm Services are now able to operate at its full potential. Jody is now able to rely on his connection and can concentrate on his customers and developing his business at Hill Farm Services.
Netfit Communications Limited is a trusted data and security partner that specialises in the protection of your people, your property and your possessions. We install intelligent systems for intelligent thinking.