Project Background

Baoding Gubei Fashion Mall is located in the core area of Xujiahui, at the intersection of Wuzhong Road and West Zhongshan Road in Shanghai. With a construction area of 15,360 square meters, it is a large-scale commercial complex integrating dining, entertainment, and leisure. The mall has attracted numerous well-known tenants including “Shunfeng Grand Hotel,” MINI Cooper, Shanghai Shenyin Liangfan KTV, BMW M Brand Experience Store, and an Anime Arcade. The project enjoys a superior geographical location, adjacent to the Inner Ring Elevated Road, offering convenient transportation. It provides quick access eastward to the bustling Xujiahui commercial district and connects westward to the high-end Gubei cultural and residential community, solidifying its role as a significant commercial hub.

To match its high-end commercial positioning and substantial customer flow, the mall management has set extremely high requirements for the coverage quality, stability, and commercial value of the wireless network. After comprehensively evaluating proposals from multiple vendors, the project owner ultimately selected the COMFAST Commercial Wireless Coverage Solution to build a wireless network infrastructure that is forward-looking, influential, and practical.

Core Challenges Analysis

1. Complex Building Structure and Full Coverage Challenge: The mall encompasses underground parking, multi-level commercial areas, and outdoor plazas, featuring a complex spatial structure that requires comprehensive, dead-zone-free signal coverage, including hard-to-reach areas.

2. High-Density Access Pressure Under Extreme Foot Traffic: Located in a prime area, the mall experiences daily visitor counts in the tens of thousands. Particularly in areas like restaurants and cinemas, the wireless network must possess extremely high concurrent access and load-bearing capabilities to ensure a good user experience during peak hours.

3. Differentiated Needs Across Diverse Scenarios: Different zones (e.g., parking, brand showrooms, dining/entertainment areas, outdoor plazas) have varying functions and user dwell times, necessitating differentiated coverage strategies and equipment selection.

4. Integration of Commercial Marketing and User Experience: The network is not just a public service facility but must also serve as an entry point for the mall’s digital marketing. The solution needs to support flexible marketing functions and align with the mall’s “fashionable” image.

5. Convenience of Project Implementation and Ongoing Maintenance: The solution must be easy to deploy, minimizing impact on normal mall operations as much as possible, and support unified, efficient management of a large number of network devices.

COMFAST Commercial Wireless Coverage Solution

Overall Solution Architecture

A centralized management network architecture of “Intelligent Core Gateway (AC) + Multi-Type Wireless Access Points (APs)” is adopted, running the OrangeOS for intelligent control. This solution provides integrated wireless coverage and a marketing platform for the entire mall domain, including underground parking, commercial floors, and outdoor plazas.

Zoned Deployment Plan

1. Underground Parking (B1): Dual-band ceiling-mount APs utilizing 11AC wireless technology are deployed to achieve network coverage. A stable WiFi environment facilitates IoT applications like wireless surveillance, reducing the difficulty and cost associated with traditional structured cabling.

2. First-Floor Brand Showrooms and Stores (1F): Based on spatial layout and predicted foot traffic, six COMFAST Gigabit Dual-Band Wireless APs are precisely deployed. Each AP supports over 200 concurrent terminals. Working with the AC for seamless roaming and load balancing, this ensures an excellent network experience in high-end brand display and consumption areas.

3. Entertainment and Education Floor (6F): Targeted coverage design is implemented for businesses like the fencing club, ensuring fast and smooth wireless signals in all corners including training areas, lounges, and changing rooms, meeting the needs of both users and merchants.

4. Outdoor Plaza: Professional outdoor APs are deployed. The equipment features waterproof, sunproof, and lightning protection characteristics, adapting to complex outdoor environments. The plaza WiFi not only serves leisure customers but also becomes an interactive platform to attract foot traffic and push promotional information for mall tenants.

Core Advantages of the Solution

1. Full-Scenario High-Speed, Stable Coverage: Through scientific network planning and high-performance equipment, the solution addresses the challenges of the mall’s complex environment and high-density access, providing customers and tenants with a 360-degree, dead-zone-free, continuous, and smooth internet experience.

2. Intelligent Operation and Efficient Management: The core gateway and OrangeOS enable unified configuration, monitoring, and policy distribution for all AP devices. Operation and maintenance management is simple and efficient, significantly reducing the mall’s long-term operational costs.

3. Marketing Enablement and Value Enhancement: Supports various authentication methods like WeChat and Portal pages. The mall can use this platform to precisely push merchant activities and promotional information to customers, transforming the wireless network from a cost center into a business value-added tool that enhances customer loyalty and promotes consumption.

4. High Scalability and Future-Proofing: The solution architecture is flexible with excellent expansion capabilities. It allows for smooth capacity expansion and functional upgrades in line with future changes in mall or technological advancements, effectively protecting the investment.

5. Secure, Reliable, and Compliant Deployment: Provides comprehensive network security protection to ensure user safety. The project implementation balances aesthetics and standards, with discreet device placement and tidy cabling, complying with safety and fire regulations for commercial premises.