Put a cell tower in the hallway

Stately stone-and-steel edifices are not usually known for hospitable wireless phone coverage. Yet visitors to some of the Library of Congress buildings in Washington might be surprised to find that no matter how deep they burrow into the stacks, they will still be able to get a strong signal on their cellular phones.

The library implanted antennas throughout its Madison , Jefferson and Adams buildings, as well as in the public tunnels connecting these buildings. Visitors and staff enjoy full coverage throughout the facilities, not only from the major cellular phone carriers but also for their BlackBerrys. Even police officers and medical personnel get strong signals for their radios.

As citizens and government employees grow increasingly reliant on wireless communications, agencies may find that it’s beneficial to install such in-house antennas.

“Ten years ago, did you really care if your cell phone didn’t work in a building? It was an annoyance, but people tolerated it. Not so anymore. People expect phones to work everywhere now,” said Lance Wilson, director of wireless research for technology market researchers ABI Research of Oyster Bay, N.Y. Beyond convenience, in-building wireless coverage is increasingly seen as essential. When firefighters and medical personnel rushed into the World Trade Center during the events of Sept. 11, 2001 , they found their land radios did not work. The buildings’ metal-and-glass pillars blocked signals.

For more than a decade, a group of vendors have offered to outfit buildings with wireless coverage, calling their mix of services and technology “in-building wireless.” They have focused on larger venues: buildings with more than 500,000 square feet of floor space, tunnels and enclosed structures such as shopping malls and underground facilities.

For such facilities, a wireless distribution system acts much like such other utilities as a heat, ventilation and air conditioning, said Ed Jungerman, senior vice president of marketing for InnerWireless Inc. of Richardson , Texas . “Whereas an HVAC system distributes heated and cooled air uniformly throughout the building, [a] wireless distribution system distributes this full range of radio signals through the building,” Jungerman said.