NW Group is a Sydney-based production company specializing in Audio, Lighting, Video, and Staging for high-profile corporate events and large-scale international productions. The company has been involved in most Olympic ceremonies since Sydney 2000, providing their expertise in RF and audio, amongst other services. This year their RF design team, headed up by engineer Steve Caldwell, played a pivotal role at the Paris 2024 Olympics, ensuring a flawless execution of the event’s massive productions.
Challenges
Designing and engineering RF solutions for large international events is particularly challenging due to the temporary nature of the events and the unpredictable changes in the RF landscape over the course of the event. This makes it difficult to rely on conventional frequency bands and often, out-of-band custom equipment is necessary. The ability to predict the performance of such custom solutions is crucial, particularly when the solution involves custom antennas not previously used by the company. However, traditional RF planning tools were costly and complex to use, typically requiring extensive training.
Solutions
Maprad.io’s unique features address these challenges head-on. By leveraging the online platform’s ability to instantly model and predict RF coverage with no software installation, set up, or training required, NW Group could easily simulate the performance of bespoke antennas, even in previously untested frequency bands and locations. Specifically, the tool allowed Steve to input custom antenna specifications and visualize the predicted coverage area directly on a detailed topographic map. This functionality enabled Steve to account for terrain effects, obstacles, and environmental factors that could influence signal propagation—something traditional RF planning tools struggle to manage without specialized expertise.
Maprad.io’s intuitive interface made it easy to adjust parameters such as antenna gain, height, and positioning, and see the impact on coverage. This saved NW Group from the costly and time-consuming process of physical site visits and manual testing. Maprad.io took the guesswork out of planning, offering reliable data for decision-making.
Results
By including Maprad.io in their initial engineering models, the team at NW Group has greatly increased the accuracy of their expected results. For this year’s Paris Olympics, the ability to virtually test and refine antenna placements allowed them to optimize coverage long before they set foot on-site. This not only saved time and resources but also eliminated uncertainty in RF performance. While not having an opportunity to visit the site before installation was initially a cause for concern, Maprad.io allowed Steve and his team to finalize the design confidently, knowing that the predictions from Maprad.io aligned closely with real-world outcomes. The accuracy of the predictions, particularly for bespoke equipment, was a game-changer, allowing NW Group to meet the demanding requirements of a high-profile event without the stress of last-minute adjustments.
“I would recommend Maprad.io for the exceptional quality of results compared to the time and effort required to achieve them. In less than an hour, I could resolve multiple predictions with incredible accuracy, including entering the specifications of custom antennas. Maprad.io’s functionality allowed me to model the RF coverage precisely and overlay it on the event’s map, providing insights that were instrumental in ensuring a flawless execution.”
Steve Caldwell, NW Group Pty Ltd
