Enabling Always-On Broadband Connectivity in Puerto Rico: How Carrier-Grade FWA Provides an Outstanding Broadband Experience

Neptuno is a leading Puerto Rico–based telecommunications and IT solutions provider, specializing in wireless and wireline (fiber) connectivity. The company delivers high-speed broadband, cloud, cybersecurity, and data center services to residential customers and enterprises. With over two decades of telecom experience, Neptuno covers all municipalities in Puerto Rico and has a strong focus on business continuity and reliability. Within a few years of its founding, it has become the largest wireless internet provider in Puerto Rico and has expanded its service offering across other islands (including Vieques, Culebra, USVI).

WiBAS™ G5 is a purpose-built, millimeter-wave FWA (Fixed Wireless Access) system with superb RF performance optimized for fixed services. It offers fiber-class multi-gigabit capacity and QoS, and is exceptionally resilient to rainy environments.

WiBAS™ G5 accommodates coreless technology based on flat Layer-2 access principles consistent with the architectures used by Internet Service Providers. Its design is simpler and less energy demanding than solutions that have to support the full mobility stack within the core.

WiBAS™ G5 uses Multi-User MIMO operation, with active antennas and beamforming / beam steering capabilities, for higher real-world speeds during peak hours and less “slowdown” when many users are active. This feature fundamentally optimizes efficiency, which is exactly what dense wireless access networks need.

The key characteristics of the WiBAS™ G5 system, comprising Smart Base Stations and GigaConnect+ Terminal Stations, include:

• Market-leading performance: 5.6 Gbps aggregate sector capacity at FR2 bands (mmWave).
• Exceptional spectrum efficiency: 28 bits/Hz/s in one sector, or 56 bits/Hz/s per typical 4-sector base station. Up to 2.4 Gbps download speed per end user.
• Light weight & compact terminals: easy installation in about 20 minutes.
• Long-range of multi-gigabit services: practical alternative to fiber deployments

In addition, WiBAS™ G5 is fully synchronized with the 3GPP timing profile, minimizing interference issues with 5G NR networks that can be deployed in the neighboring L1 band at 28 GHz.

Neptuno has also deployed Intracom Telecom’s uni|MS™ Network Lifecycle Management and Automation platform as part of the FWA solution. uni|MS™ offers advanced functionality for all network lifecycle phases: planning, rollout, optimization and maintenance. The uni|MS™ Radio Planner software is used to optimize the network design and support the automatic Service Qualification process. Zero-touch provisioning is also offered with the uni|MS™ SON Gateway plugin, supporting massive rollout, realizing error-free Terminal Station network entry and optimizing costs through the minimization of site visits and NOC engagement.