Fresno's economy runs on movement. Produce travels from cold-storage warehouses to Fresno Yosemite International Airport and finished hardware leaves light-manufacturing parks along State Route 41. The common thread is that forklifts trucks sensors and workers all need uninterrupted data while on the move and concrete tilt-ups and metal sheds make that hard. Private cellular offers a single over-the-air fabric that blankets indoor and outdoor areas with the same low-latency secure coverage.
Why Fresno Organizations Are Evaluating Private Cellular
Agriculture is still king in the Central Valley yet the way crops are processed and shipped is changing fast. Computer-vision sorters and autonomous tractors demand millisecond responses that WiFi simply cannot guarantee across thousands of acres. The CBRS spectrum that powers private 5G operates at higher power than WiFi and is free of the interference that plagues the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands. Because spectrum is dedicated, data from moisture sensors and drone inspections never competes with guest internet traffic.
Beyond agriculture, Fresno's logistics corridors see twenty-four-hour activity. Distribution centers around Herndon Avenue must track pallets and vehicles seamlessly indoors and out. A private network lets scanners and rugged tablets roam through dock doors without an SSID handoff or a roaming fee from AT&T or Verizon. Healthcare providers such as Community Regional Medical Center also benefit. Isolated network slices keep medical devices separated from visitor WiFi and the hospital's own data center can keep traffic local for HIPAA compliance.
California's building codes favor energy-efficient construction that often relies on Low-E glass and insulated wall panels. These materials block outside cellular signals which makes indoor coverage a recurring headache. Installing a private network under the roof sidesteps the problem entirely and guarantees signal strength in every bay.
Interested in what we are doing elsewhere in the state? See how our approach translates in Los Angeles or Sacramento. We also serve San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, and the broader California market.
Where Private 5G Beats WiFi And Carrier LTE
Private 5G leverages 3.5 GHz Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) to deliver up to 20 MHz of dedicated spectrum. That means:
- Four to ten times the outdoor range of WiFi, even using a single small cell
- Up to 99.999 percent availability thanks to carrier-grade redundancy
- Latency under 20 ms for time-sensitive control applications
Public 5G networks from the big three carriers rely on shared spectrum and per-device data plans. Congestion is common around freeways and stadiums and carrier backhaul forces traffic to exit the local network before it reaches your servers. Private 5G keeps all traffic on-premises, cuts latency in half, and eliminates recurring line fees.
Compared with WiFi 7, private cellular radios transmit at much higher power—up to 47 dBm EIRP versus roughly 30 dBm for a WiFi access point. Fewer radios are needed to cover the same space and the radios can sit on light poles or roof parapets rather than every forty feet on the ceiling. The result is faster deployment and dramatically lower lifecycle cost. For a deeper technical dive see our Private Networks Guide.
We start with a rapid site snapshot. You send us a floorplan or KMZ, a desired coverage outline, and a list of devices you plan to connect. Within three business days we deliver a high-level RF design, capacity estimate, and budget range.
If the numbers make sense we move into full engineering. Our RF team builds a 3-D propagation model, selects the optimal mix of small cells and backhaul, and prepares a bill of materials along with an install Gantt chart. Because we are vendor-agnostic, the core might be Celona, Pente, or Highway9 while radios could come from Baicells or Airspan. We match the technology to your application rather than the other way around.
Deployment is turnkey. Our crews install radios, pull fiber or PoE, and commission the EPC core. We provision SIMs or eSIMs for every gateway, handheld, or camera and then hand you a live network backed by our 24 x 7 NOC. Ongoing monitoring, software upgrades, and an SLA that guarantees availability keep surprises off your to-do list.
Need something temporary? Our "network in a box" kits arrive pre-configured and can cover an outdoor event or construction site within hours.
Proven Wireless Expertise Across California
While private 5G is new, wireless integration is not. Waveform recently completed a comprehensive indoor wireless deployment for Kaiser Permanente's San Jose Medical Center, a busy healthcare campus roughly 150 miles northwest of Fresno. The project required rigorous coordination with hospital operations and demonstrated our ability to deliver critical connectivity in regulated environments on schedule and on budget.
Transparent Pricing And Rapid ROI
For most indoor projects, turnkey private 5G costs between $1.00 and $2.50 per square foot depending on ceiling height, construction, and redundancy requirements. Outdoor coverage often delivers even better economics. In flat Central Valley terrain a single sectorized small-cell site can blanket a 1.5-mile radius. Total project cost can start near $100,000 including the core, radios, SIMs, and first-year support.
Because you own the network there are no per-device data plans. Many Fresno warehousing clients recoup their investment in 18 to 24 months by retiring dozens of carrier lines and eliminating roaming outages that slow production.
Ready To Talk?
Waveform is the connectivity integrator that delivers fully managed Private 5G networks without the hassle. Call us at (800) 637-4049 or get a custom private 5g design and quote today.
