In-building cellular without a DAS

Skip the six-figure build

A multi-carrier active DAS runs $250K–$1M+. Carrier offload uses enterprise networks like UniFi and Meraki, or APs we install. It is not a DAS, and it is not the same as a DAS.

AT&T and T-Mobile indoors

Phones automatically authenticate. No app, no password, no splash page. A dead-zone desk went from about 1 Mbps to 600–700 Mbps. Verizon is not live.

Live in days, not months

Configuration on the enterprise network already in the building, or APs we hang. Not a construction project. Not RF retuning for a DAS.


THE PROBLEM WITH DAS

Why DAS Doesn’t Fit Most Buildings

A Distributed Antenna System rebroadcasts licensed cellular through a head-end, coax or fiber, and a grid of antennas. A multi-carrier active DAS runs roughly $5–$10 per square foot — $250,000 to $1,000,000+ for a mid-size building, and into the millions for large venues — plus RF design, fire-code compliance, carrier approvals, and months of installation. For most buildings there isn’t a right-sized DAS option at all.

And even when the budget is there, a DAS is a fixed, single-purpose build: every carrier has to sign off, any change means truck rolls and RF re-tuning, and you own the upkeep for years. So most offices, hotels, clinics, and venues simply live with dead zones — not because good coverage is impossible, but because the only “official” fix is priced for stadiums.

An honest limit: Flywheel Systems is not a public-safety DAS (ERRCS / NFPA). It is not a cell booster. Voice and text stay with the carrier; Wi‑Fi is the radio.

THE ALTERNATIVE

Carrier Offload: Coverage on the Enterprise Network in Your Building

AT&T and T‑Mobile phones automatically authenticate using the SIM already on the device. No SSID picker, no captive portal. Voice and text stay tunneled to the carrier; Wi‑Fi is the radio.

  • Runs on enterprise networks like UniFi and Meraki — or on APs we install.
  • Phones automatically authenticate — AT&T and T‑Mobile, using the SIM already on the device.
  • Isolated VLAN — you never see IMSIs, phone numbers, or SIM keys.
  • Add sites by replicating the config — Verizon, when it is live, is a configuration change, not a rebuild. Verizon is not live.

HOW IT WORKS

Up and Running in Days

1

Assess

We assess the building and whether enterprise networks like UniFi and Meraki are already there, or whether we hang APs. No disruption, no commitment.

2

Deploy

We convert the enterprise network already in the building, or install APs, then deploy carrier offload.

3

Automatically Authenticate

AT&T and T‑Mobile phones automatically authenticate in the background using the SIM they already carry — no app, no login.

4

Scale

Replicate the same config across more sites. Verizon is not live yet.


DAS vs booster vs carrier offload

A DAS or a booster is the usual quote. Most buildings need neither.


Active DAS

  • $5–$10 per sq ft, often $250K–$1M+
  • 6–18 months
  • New cabling, head-end, antennas
  • Native licensed radio for the carriers that sign on
  • Still right for stadiums, public safety (ERRCS), and sites with no usable backhaul

Cell booster / CEL-FI

  • Hardware you buy and mount
  • Helps a weak donor signal in a room or floor
  • Often one carrier, limited area
  • Right for a small Verizon dead zone, or a site with no enterprise network and no appetite for APs

Flywheel offload

  • AT&T and T‑Mobile phones automatically authenticate on a Passpoint SSID
  • Enterprise networks like UniFi and Meraki, or APs we install
  • Days to weeks; carriers pay and the building earns a share
  • Verizon is not live
  • Not ERRCS and not a 911 DAS substitute; Wi‑Fi calling still depends on the phone and carrier

COMMON QUESTIONS

DAS & Carrier Offload — FAQ

A DAS is a network of antennas connected to a central head-end that rebroadcasts licensed cellular signal throughout a building. It improves coverage but requires dedicated hardware, RF design, cabling, and carrier approvals.

A multi-carrier active DAS typically runs $5–$10 per square foot installed — roughly $250,000 to $1,000,000+ for a mid-size building, and into the millions for large venues, before RF tuning and fire-code compliance.

For most offices, hotels, gyms, clinics, and stores, yes — without claiming it matches a stadium DAS. A real deployment took a dead-zone desk from about 1 Mbps to 600–700 Mbps. Public-safety DAS and sites that need Verizon today still need a DAS or a booster.

When the problem is a small area, one carrier (especially Verizon), and there is a usable outdoor signal to amplify. Offload will not fix Verizon until Verizon is live.

Stadiums, public safety / ERRCS, no backhaul, or a carrier mandate for licensed indoor radio.

It runs on enterprise networks like UniFi and Meraki. No enterprise network? We install APs.

AT&T and T‑Mobile. Verizon is not live.

Passpoint on its own isolated VLAN with carrier-issued credentials. Offload sits behind essential business traffic.

This is not a public-safety DAS. Emergency calling still follows the phone and the carrier, including Wi‑Fi calling. If the building is required to have ERRCS, that requirement does not go away.

See what your building can already do

Talk to Flywheel Systems about AT&T and T‑Mobile coverage on enterprise networks like UniFi and Meraki, or on APs we install.

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