NYC-based property owner completes launch in collaboration with Crown Castle International Corp (NYSE: CCI).
Publisher’s Note: This is a supplemental edition of our weekly newsletter. Connected Real Estate Magazine will have more details about Rudin’s new CBRS-enabled building in next week’s newsletter.
The Rudin Family announced today that its 345 Park Avenue building in New York City has become one of the first Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS)-enabled multi-tenant commercial office buildings in the United States. The company, which owns and operates one the largest privately held real estate portfolios in New York City, accomplished this feat in collaboration with Crown Castle.
Crown Castle currently owns, operates and leases more than 40,000 cell towers and approximately 80,000 route miles of fiber that supports small cells and fiber solutions across every major U.S. market.
With access to the CBRS radio spectrum, also known as the “innovation band”, 345 Park tenants will be able to create and access their own dedicated, private broadband wireless network. Neutral host CBRS network construction is complete in the building’s lobby and concourse levels. Additional areas will be connected later this year. The launch at 345 Park coincides with the first anniversary of when the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) authorized the CBRS spectrum band for commercial use.
“This exciting new technology goes beyond what was possible even a few years ago,” Michael Rudin, Senior Vice President at Rudin Management Company, the operating arm of Rudin Family holdings said in a statement. “The spectrum that this technology is based in is the wave of the future, and tenants and owners alike who rely on fast, reliable connectivity will need this in order to stay competitive.”
This new initiative will double 345 Park’s current wireless capacity and will provide more flexibility for configuring wireless solutions for improved security and visitor features. Tenants, employees and visitors can use this higher capacity private network, while building owners can accommodate a lot more devices. The system will also support additional bandwidth in the lobby for tenants and visitors as they abide by new social distancing guidelines brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“CBRS is consistent with our company’s focus on shared assets for the benefit of all. This is of great value to building owners, tenants, and wireless network operators,” said Paul Reddick, Vice President of Strategy, Business and Product Development for Crown Castle.
The 345 Park Avenue building is considered one of the most technologically advanced properties in the Plaza District today. It currently uses the Nantum operating system, a smart building platform that Prescriptive Data, Rudin’s start-up tech company, developed. Nantum was designed to save money, make tenants more comfortable and dramatically increase energy efficiency. The new multi-tenant CBRS network will integrate with Nantum to provide faster, real-time updates to building owners and tenants that includes floor-by-floor occupancy data, indoor air quality, lobby occupancy and elevator wait times.
The CBRS network at 345 Park was designed with the infrastructure to meet future tech demands such as 5G software upgradable radios that will provide faster speeds and elevated user experiences. The private network was also built as an Open RAN solution that will result in lower costs and increased flexibility.
KPMG LLP is a 345 Park tenant that recently chose Rudin’s Nantum platform to be a part of its new patent-pending blockchain capability called KPMG Climate Accounting Infrastructure (CAI). This solution helps organizations more accurately measure greenhouse gas emissions, track offsets and report on non-financial factors to investors, lenders, and tenants following industry standards and frameworks. With a new CBRS network, KPMG CAI can leverage the heightened bandwidth and security to capture data continuously. This will improve the foundational emissions and consumption data that KPMG CAI will use.
“Real estate owners and operators are under immense pressure to assess the impact of different climate risks on their assets, improve tenant experience and report progress toward emissions reduction goals to stakeholders,” said Arun Ghosh, KPMG One Americas Blockchain & Cryptoassets leader. “A CBRS network can provide the fault tolerant, local 5G backbone to enable KPMG Climate Accounting Infrastructure to capture highly granular data, powered by Nantum, to derive the trusted insights needed to measure progress toward net-zero by accounting for decarbonization and the transition to renewable energy.”
