DAS Signal Survey Checklist for Facility Managers

Why Preparation Matters

A signal survey runs faster, costs less in lost time, and produces better data when the building is ready for it. Most of what slows a survey down has nothing to do with RF — it is locked doors, missing escorts, unavailable floor plans, surprise renovations, and unclear goals. This checklist walks through what facility managers should have lined up before survey day. None of it is hard; it just takes a little advance coordination.

Cell Surveys conducts onsite cellular signal surveys; we do not install or design DAS or ERRCS systems. This checklist is written from the survey side of the table — what we ask for, why it matters, and how it influences the data you get back.

Section 1: Project Goals

Before scoping anything, get clear on what the survey is for. The deliverables, test point density, and choice of frequencies all key off of the goal.

• What is the primary purpose? Common options: DAS RFP baseline, post-installation validation, public safety / ERRCS compliance documentation, troubleshooting coverage complaints, lease or acquisition due diligence.
• Which carriers must be measured? AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, FirstNet Band 14, US Cellular, regional carriers — confirm the list. Some buildings only care about the dominant tenant carriers.
• Is public safety / ERRCS in scope? If so, which frequency bands and which AHJ thresholds apply?
• What is the deliverable expectation — raw data export, written report, interactive dashboard, all three?
• Who are the stakeholders? IT, facilities, security, executive leadership, biomedical, operations, legal — knowing the audience shapes how the report is written.

Section 2: Facility Information

The more the survey team knows about the building before arrival, the tighter the test grid and the faster the on-site execution.

• Total gross square footage (or per-floor breakdown).
• Number of floors, including basements, mezzanines, and rooftop / penthouse mechanical levels.
• Year built; year of any major renovations.
• Building construction type — steel frame, reinforced concrete, masonry, tilt-up, prefabricated panel, etc.
• Exterior envelope — standard glass, Low-E glass, brick, EIFS, metal panel, precast concrete.
• Roof type — metal, membrane, ballasted, tile.
• Critical areas (will get tighter test point density): fire command center, ED, ICU, OR, imaging, server room, executive floor, cold storage, fire pump room, stairwells, elevators, etc.
• Known coverage problem areas — where do users complain, and what do they complain about?
• Building occupancy and use type — single tenant, multi-tenant, owner-occupied, public assembly, healthcare, manufacturing.

Section 3: Documents to Provide

If these documents exist, send them ahead of survey day. They reduce on-site time materially.

• Current floor plans (PDF preferred; CAD or Revit acceptable). Stamped architectural plans are not required — operational plans work fine.
• Roof plan with mechanical equipment, antennas, and any existing rooftop wireless infrastructure marked.
• Site plan / aerial photo of the campus if multi-building.
• Any prior signal surveys, drive test results, or carrier-supplied coverage maps.
• As-built drawings for any existing DAS, BDA, or ERRCS infrastructure already on the property.
• Public safety AHJ requirements document or correspondence (for ERRCS scope).
• RF interference reports, if any. Hospitals and industrial sites often have known interferers (radiology equipment, VFDs, industrial RF heating, paging systems).

Section 4: Access Coordination

Access is the single largest source of schedule slip on a survey day. The list below covers the spaces a typical survey needs to enter.

• All occupied areas — escorted or unescorted, depending on policy.
• Rooftop(s) — for donor signal measurement at the highest accessible elevation. Confirm fall protection requirements, harness availability, and any roof access permits.
• Electrical rooms and telecom IDFs/MDFs — for measurement at the building's signal entry and distribution points, and for context on existing wireless infrastructure.
• Stairwells (every floor) — required for ERRCS and frequently a worst-coverage zone for commercial cellular.
• Elevators — including any service elevators. Confirm whether the survey team will need to ride elevators to capture vertical coverage transitions.
• Basements, sub-grade levels, parking garages — typically the worst-performing zones in any building.
• Mechanical penthouses and roof yards.
• Loading docks, dock thresholds, and exterior staging areas — frequently exhibit sharp coverage cliffs.
• Restricted areas — server rooms, executive offices, secure storage, restricted clinical zones, vaults, evidence rooms. Arrange access and escorts in advance.

Section 5: People and Logistics

• Single point of contact (SPOC) for the survey day, with mobile number, who can unlock doors and escort.
• Security desk / lobby notification — names of survey technicians, vehicle make/model, expected arrival time.
• Parking and equipment unloading location.
• Badge issuance process — pre-issued, day-of, or escorted throughout?
• Required PPE — hard hat, safety glasses, hi-vis vest, harness for rooftop, isolation gowns or scrubs for clinical areas.
• Required safety training — site-specific orientation, hospital infection control, OSHA general industry, etc.
• Hours of operation and any time-of-day restrictions (no surveys during specific operations, no after-hours access, etc.).
• Quiet zones / "do not enter without escort" zones that the team should know about up front.

Section 6: Operational Considerations

• Survey during normal operations whenever possible. Data captured during normal use captures real network load, real occupant density effects, and real interference. After-hours surveys miss these conditions.
• Disclose planned renovations. If walls are coming down, Low-E glass is being installed, or a major mechanical change is on the books for the next 6–12 months, the survey team needs to know — it affects how the baseline is documented and whether a re-survey will be needed.
• Disclose known RF noise sources. Industrial RF, paging systems, BAS radios, two-way radio repeaters, microwave links, large variable frequency drives, leaky DAS or BDA from adjacent buildings.
• Coordinate with IT. If the building has private LTE or CBRS, the survey team should know — these can appear in the data and need to be properly attributed.
• If there is an existing DAS or BDA on site, identify whether it should be on, off, or attenuated during the survey. The answer depends on whether the survey is establishing a pre-existing baseline or validating the existing system.

Section 7: After the Survey

A few items to plan for once the on-site work wraps up.

• Confirm the deliverable format and timeline. Most surveys deliver a draft report within 7–10 business days, with the interactive dashboard following shortly after.
• Identify reviewers in advance — facility, IT, leadership, legal — so the report can be circulated efficiently when it lands.
• Plan how the data will be used downstream: RFP issuance, AHJ submittal, internal CapEx justification, integrator coordination, lease negotiation. Each downstream use shapes how the report is referenced.
• If renovations or moves happen after the survey, notify the survey team. A re-survey may be necessary to keep the baseline valid.

One-Page Quick Reference

If the rest of this checklist is too long to absorb before survey day, work from these eight items:

1. Know what the survey is for and which carriers must be measured.
2. Send floor plans and any prior coverage data ahead of time.
3. List the critical and known-problem areas.
4. Coordinate rooftop, basement, stairwell, elevator, and electrical room access.
5. Assign a single point of contact for survey day.
6. Confirm PPE, badging, and any site-specific safety training in advance.
7. Disclose planned renovations and known RF interferers.
8. Identify report reviewers and deliverable timeline expectations.

For more on what a survey produces and how to read the output, see our guide to reading a signal survey dashboard, compare the indoor coverage options in our DAS vs. small cell vs. booster guide, or — if the project includes public safety coverage — review the NFPA 1225 ERRCS compliance guide. You can also learn more about our onsite signal survey service and the custom signal quality dashboards we build from the data.