Proxim Wireless Secures Belgium's Premier Music Event
(27/06/2008)

Proxim Wireless Corporation has announced that Live Nation Festivals Belgium has purchased and deployed Proxim’s wireless solutions for Wi-Fi connectivity and wireless security and surveillance at the Rock Werchter festival, due to take place July 3-6 this year in Werchter, Belgium.

Proxim’s Tsunami™ MP.11 5054-R radios deliver the wireless broadband access that will be needed to enable the CCTV wireless surveillance systems, providing security for the 300,000 visitors expected to attend the Rock Werchter festival this year. Real-time high-quality images will be wirelessly streamed from the cameras to the police base at the festival, as well as two other police stations in the nearby village of Haacht and 15km away in the city of Leuven. Video is streamed to these locations via a 45Mbps full duplex backbone, which is accomplished by using Proxim’s wireless Ethernet bridges.

Proxim’s ORiNOCO® AP-700 Access Points will provide wireless hotspots for artists, roadies and the event production team. The ten box offices at the festival will also be wirelessly interconnected to the central server using a Proxim Tsunami MP.11 5054 to provide real-time data processing. The power supplies to the ATM machines are also monitored through wireless technology in order to ensure that there is no disruption to service.

Furthermore, Live Nation Festivals Belgium will be selling drink tickets on their website, so that customers can print barcoded e-tickets at home and exchange them for drinks on site. The Proxim wireless network will connect all the barcode scanners across the festival site to the central server.

Multicap, a Proxim Distributor in Belgium, is responsible for configuring, monitoring and troubleshooting the entire network at the event. Having deployed wireless solutions for the past three years at Rock Werchter, Multicap knows the terrain well. The Werchter festival ground has a large number of tall trees and therefore requires the installation of radio antennas on 37m high masts to enable the most effective backbone links.

“Our internationally renowned festival has been declared ‘World’s Best Festival’ by the industry. Last year we welcomed visitors from 58 different countries and were presented with the ‘Green ‘n’ Clean’ award for environmentally-friendly festivals. However, whenever a large number of people are in one place, there needs to be caution, which is why we ensure the highest level of security and surveillance during the festival. The Proxim Wireless network ensures that police can monitor any trouble spots and have access to high quality video,” explained Walter D’Haese, Production Director at Live Nation Festivals Belgium.

“We know and trust Proxim’s products, which are ideal for this deployment where flexibility and ease of installation are key factors. The systems must also be robust, reliable and secure since much depends on the success of the network. Our experience of specifying and installing secure wireless networks at Rock Werchter and other such outdoor events positions us in good stead for successfully enabling this year’s festival,” said Glenn De Haes, Product Manager at Multicap.

“Being selected to provide the wireless network for such an important regional event for three years in a row is a great validation of Proxim’s technology, especially considering the critical role the network plays in the success and security of this event. Our large wireless product portfolio provides our partners with a multitude of solutions which can be configured and deployed rapidly,” added Simon Snowdon, Regional Sales Manager at Proxim Wireless.