Microwave links · carrier-grade capacity
Microwave links for high-capacity backhaul over long distances.
When a job needs serious capacity, long reach and uptime you can put a number against, microwave is the step up from WiFi-band links. Tighter beams, higher-gain dishes, licensed or unlicensed spectrum, and a link budget engineered for the weather and the distance.
When microwave is the right call
It is the tier above a standard wireless bridge, for paths where capacity and uptime are not negotiable.
High capacity
From hundreds of megabits to multiple gigabits per second on a single hop, enough to carry a whole site or a whole network's traffic.
Long, clean hops
Narrow high-gain dishes push reliably across many kilometres of clear path, the distances where ordinary wireless starts to struggle.
High availability
Adaptive modulation and engineered margin hold the link through rain fade, for the kind of uptime you can write into an SLA.
Licensed when it matters
Exclusive licensed spectrum removes the interference risk on critical paths, so the link's performance is yours alone.
Licensed or unlicensed spectrum
Two routes to a microwave link. The right one depends on how critical the path is and what else is on the air.
Unlicensed (5 / 6 / 24 / 60 GHz)
Fast to deploy, no licence fee, shared spectrum. A strong choice where a survey shows the interference floor is low and the path is short to medium.
Licensed and coordinated
Your own ACMA-coordinated frequency, protected from interference and able to run higher power. The pick for backhaul a business depends on.
We survey and coordinate
Path survey, link budget and the licensing paperwork where you go licensed, so the link is right on paper before a dish goes up.
How we build it
Path survey and link budget
We profile the path, measure the spectrum, and run the link budget so the design holds with margin to spare before anyone commits.
Install and commission
We mount and align the dishes, commission the radios to the design figures, and prove the throughput and the margin on the day.
Monitor to an SLA
We watch capacity, errors and availability around the clock, alert on the first sign of drift, and keep the link to target.
Where microwave fits
ISP and WISP backhaul
Carry aggregated subscriber traffic from a tower back to the upstream, with the capacity and uptime customers expect.
Multi-site enterprise
Interconnect campuses, depots or branches at high speed where leasing fibre is slow or simply not available.
Mining, industrial and construction
High-capacity links to sites and camps that are too remote or too temporary to trench fibre to.
Broadcast and major events
Move large, time-critical data from a venue or remote location when the schedule does not wait for cabling.
Part of the bigger network
A microwave hop is often one leg of a larger design. It pairs with fibre backhaul for diverse, redundant paths, feeds a point-to-multipoint base, and stands on the right tower. For enterprise and multi-site network design, this is delivered with our parent practice Alien IT Solutions.
Questions people ask
How much capacity can a microwave link carry?
A single microwave hop can carry from hundreds of megabits to multiple gigabits per second, depending on the band, the channel width and the distance. We size the link to the capacity you need now and the headroom you will want later.
What is the difference between licensed and unlicensed microwave?
Unlicensed bands such as 5, 6, 24 and 60 GHz are quick to deploy and have no licence fee, but the spectrum is shared. Licensed microwave gives you a coordinated, interference-protected frequency for critical paths, in exchange for a licence and ACMA coordination. We advise which suits the job.
Is a licensed link worth the extra cost?
For a backhaul that the whole network or business depends on, the interference protection and the higher availability usually justify it. For shorter or less critical hops, a well-surveyed unlicensed link often does the job for less.
What happens in heavy rain?
Rain fade matters more at the higher microwave bands. We engineer a link budget with margin and use adaptive modulation, so the link steps down gracefully and stays up rather than dropping, holding carrier-grade availability through the weather.
Who does the tower and rigging work?
We design, integrate, install and monitor the link, and bring in licensed rigging and electrical trades for tower work and mains power. We do not claim to be a licensed rigger or electrician.
Serious capacity, where the fibre doesn't reach.
Tell us the distance, the capacity you need and how critical the path is. We will scope a microwave link and a price.
Get a quote