The IoT (Internet of Things) is only part of the ecosystem called The Internet. Most people don’t even recognize that they are interacting with the IoT, whether through their appliances or Personal Systems like Alexis. It is “just there.” But everyone knows when they interact with the Internet on their computer, tablet, or smartphone. Open a browser or email client, and there is the Internet.
Families, especially, recognize the importance of the Internet. With nearly every piece of information, accurate and not, available at a click of a link, the Internet has become part of the family’s daily routine. Accessing the Internet is another thing. From the “good old days” of dial-up 56k modems on telephone lines to today’s gigabyte cable connections and wide-area WiFi, getting online has become easier, faster, and more convenient. Unless you live in some buildings.
High-occupancy buildings—MDUs or multi-dwelling units—are a major part of the urban landscape. MDUs represent a significant proportion of European and U.S. homes, and investment in the multifamily category is rising globally. Yet property management companies often struggle with inefficient infrastructure and fragmented solutions that lead to poor Internet performance, expensive property buildouts, and outdated experiences for tenants.
Help on the Way
Parks Associates research finds 88% of MDU renters in the U.S. report have access to Wi-Fi through their property, either in-unit or in a common area. However, one-third of property managers in the U.S. who offer WiFi on their largest properties experience problems such as difficulty maintaining connectivity and managing credentials. With a third of the U.S. population living in multifamily environments and more than half of the global population expected to be in an urban setting by 2055, there is a huge opportunity for building owners to help minimize connectivity issues, enhance and streamline operations, and differentiate the consumer experience.
Plume, a company in Amsterdam known for its personalized cloud and AI services, launched Uprise, a connectivity and management solution designed to meet the unique needs of MDUs—including apartments, multifamily, and other high-density living spaces—with high capacity, reliable, and secure services.
Uprise is a suite of services that extends the benefits of Plume’s proven HomePass and WorkPass suites to the MDU market, enabling property managers and CSPs (communications service providers) to provide highly personalized customer experiences while reducing costs through hardware choice and lower CAPEX (capital expenditure). On the front end, Plume delivers self-optimizing, adaptive Wi-Fi, cybersecurity, access, and parental controls, and more. CSPs get robust data-driven, and AI-driven backend applications for visibility, insights, support, operations, and marketing.
Uprise allows property managers to easily manage their tenants’ connectivity from move-in to move-out and provides them with the capability to proactively monitor residents’ networks for issues in conjunction with the CSP via Plume’s Haystack Support and Operations suite. Uprise grants property managers and CSPs complete visibility and control of their portfolio of residences from a unified portal, eliminating the need for multiple tools and processes.
Work from Home or Anywhere
The COVID-19 pandemic led to many firms allowing, or even insisting on, employees working from home. For MDU tenants, Uprise enables personalize Internet experience through the HomePass and WorkPass apps which provide access to property-wide adaptive wireless connectivity and AI-driven cybersecurity. This means that tenants can use Wi-Fi in all community areas, such as pools, gyms, and lobbies so that they can remain online and roam seamlessly. Uprise performs sophisticated load and interference management, as well as clustered optimizations for reliable and consistent connectivity throughout the MDU.
The Uprise Suite is comprised of three services:
● Hub: A tenant lifecycle management web interface with APIs that enable both network monitoring and tenant management across multiple properties.
● Harmony: Uses sophisticated optimization algorithms purposely built for MDUs that provide unrivaled performance by working proactively to minimize Wi-Fi interference.
● Places: Includes a Private Property SSID for building IoT and employees’ devices, and an Open Community SSID for tenants and guests enabling separation between common areas and residential networks while providing a clear view of monitoring and management.
Plume leverages OpenSync, an open-source framework that comes pre-integrated and supported on the leading silicon, CPE, and platform SDKs. Uprise gives CSPs the ability to decrease CPE hardware CAPEX costs and enables them to fully benefit from hardware diversification and supply chain independence with over 35 OpenSync-certified devices available.
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