Article 11 May 2023 A Mitie royal celebration! Last weekend ushered in a new era for the monarchy with the coronation of King Charles III. It also brought with it a long bank holiday weekend that would have been very welcome to many of us! But did you know that people across Mitie played important roles in this historic occasion? In Mitie Telecoms, Stephen Tomkinson and his Vodafone team got three mobile towers up and working for the Coronation weekend located in Green Park, Hyde Park and Windsor Castle grounds. These were to cover areas of key public viewing areas, namely the procession, the public viewing screen and within the grounds of Windsor Castle for the Coronation Concert. These were to increase capacity for Vodafone customers attending the event and worked alongside the existing infrastructure to offer the best possible experience. The mobicell in Green Park was key to a major 5G ‘slicing’ trial that Vodafone ran with ITN. This was the first time a public 5G network has been used to broadcast TV. This trial shows that a public 5G network can be allocated to businesses to ensure that bandwidth for critical transmissions can be maintained. Hannah Staniland and her 3uk team also deployed three temporary sites at Green Park, Hyde Park and Windsor Castle. They were the first mobile network operator to have all their temporary locations on air! Their gravity base solution to provide 5G at Green Park and Hyde Park took a grand total of two cranes, four lorries and eight people to build the towers. Plus two electricians, and eight microwave operators to get the towers linked to pre-existing sites and ensure coverage. Hannah explains that they had to lift everything off the lorries to build the base, then construct the tower on the ground. Once all together, they then lifted it into place and bolted it down. Once that was done, they ran all the cables and feeders up the towers and connected to the cabinets below. A four-day job in total! Both teams report that all three locations were deployed in shorter than usual timescales. Extra challenges came from access – due to tight security – and some late changes to requirements. But they got everything built and on air in time. Well done, teams! Meanwhile, Dave Shepherd and the rest of our Mitie Security team at the Government Offices Great George Street were at the heart of the action. This building is home to HM Treasury and other Government departments. It’s directly opposite the Houses of Parliament and Parliament Square. The Government Coronation Centre was based there from 5.30am on the day of the Coronation.Dave, our security account manager, was on site at 1am. He and his team supported our customer to set up a control room to support the day’s activities. They also enabled the police, military and Cabinet Office stewards to use the building facilities.Dave said, ‘My team responded fantastically. Apart from the normal day of security cover, we also had an eclectic array of additional Mitie staff in. All were outside their comfort zone. The entire team worked alongside our customer to make it a great operation. I only got to see the event from the control room but I am so proud of what they achieved.’Others who were involved in supporting the weekend included:• Our colleagues who work in the royal households• Many other colleagues who worked to secure and provide support at locations along the route While some of our colleagues were working, we hope that everyone had the chance to enjoy the weekend. Whether you took part in local celebrations, spent time with loved ones, or simply got to relax and unwind. And to those who were working, we thank you as always for your dedication and commitment.
