UPDATED: FTTP upgrade for MDU Apartment Block

This post is to conclude my story from a little over a year ago: Openreach FTTP upgrades for MDU (Apartment Blocks)?

I'm pleased to say my building has just gone live with Hyperoptic FTTP! It was quite a long process and I'd like to share the timeline and advise for any others in a similar situation.

2020-May: Registered interest with Hyperoptic on their website
2020-May: Contacted by a Business Development Manager at Hyperoptic asking if I had details of the building management company, etc
2020-Dec: Enquired with Hyperoptic Manager regarding progress
2021-Jan: Hyperoptic unable to organise a survey with the managing agent
2021-Mar: Started chasing managing agent to provide access to Hyperoptic
2021-Apr: Case handed over to a new Business Development Manager at Hyperoptic who made contact with managing agent and freeholder
2021-Jun: Hyperoptic planner attended site
2021-Aug: Chased Hyperoptic - need to re-attend site as it's a complicated building
2021-Aug: Studied building plans and attended survey with Hyperoptic planner
2021-Sep: Install proposal sent to managing agent for sign-off
2021-Sep: Received approval from freeholder but still struggling to get managing agent to sign-off installation plan
2021-Oct: Back and forth with managing agent regarding aesthetics of installation
2021-Nov: Residents Association requested managing agent not block the install over some trunking
2021-Nov: Wayleave signed by freeholder following approval from managing agent
2021-Nov: Provisional install scheduled for Jan 2022
2021-Dec: Discussed using hatches instead of trunking with managing agent
2022-Jan: Pre-install survey raises concern of creating hatches as it does not match installation proposal, plus separate requirement to penetrate fire stopping
2022-Jan: Stage 1 install completed
2022-Feb: EAD ordered
2022-Mar: Gave access to Openreach to survey for EAD installation
2022-May: Gave access to Openreach to complete EAD installation
2022-Jun: Continue chasing Hyperoptic for go-live date
2022-Jul: Building went live, ordered service with Champion voucher and got installed 2 days later

For anyone else trying to get fibre brought to their apartment block, these would be my tips:

- Create a relationship with the provider (e.g. Hyperoptic) and become the point of contact
- Get familiar with the building - service routes, basement plant rooms, etc
- Don't rely on the managing agent to provide access or documentation
- Join / form a residents association / right to manage company to give yourself more authority
- Chase all involved parties on a regular basis

The main delays were getting access for the Hyperoptic surveyors, and a getting the proposal signed off by the managing agent (freeholder was surprisingly smooth). Try and take that out of their hands as much as possible - nominate yourself to provide access, work with RA/RMC to get sign-off. Having said that, it still took 6 months from building installation to go-live. This, I can only put down to Hyperoptic + Openreach internal process.

This won't just happen in the background on its own, it needs a driver. It's no wonder Openreach aren't generally covering MDUs as part of their standard rollout!

Cool. You sound pleased. 👍

What size was the EAD out of interest and how many dwellings in the building?

Yes, very happy

I posted about the EAD while it was being installed:
https://forums.thinkbroadband.com/fibre/t/4712441-hy...

It's 1Gb serving 41 private units and 9 social.

Seeing as how I'm the only one using it at the moment and haven't seen speeds over ~830Mb/s in daytime (at night it's gone over 900 for single connection curl test), I suspect the site it's connected to (another live building, not directly to an exchange) is also fed by a 1Gb EAD.

Will be interesting to see how the speed changes as others sign up, we are also looking at a 100% service deal, so I'd expect another 40 properties will put fair pressure on the link.

Ah yes of course, I recall now. Thanks for the update. Hope it all continues smoothly for you 👍

Edited by Pheasant (Fri 15-Jul-22 10:21:15)

If you think yours has taken this long, mine was much worse!

I am a Hyperoptic Champion of my building Denning Point here in London E1 since 2015.
In August 2014 I registered my interest and within 6 months I got 30+ people to register their interests. The Business Development Manager also emailed me in February 2015 asking me to get hold of Edgar Tannoh Housing Estate Manager and Technical Services Manager John Hinds from EastendHomes.

Guess what? Nothing helped. They kept repeatedly insisting at that time that if they are going to sign wayleave for FTTP they'll do it with another provider and not Hyperoptic.

Fast Forward 6 years later... A new UK law was introduced in March 2021 https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2021/03/new-uk...

Exactly 2 months later wayleave agreement finally happened!! https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2021/05/commun...

But it was CommunityFibre instead. So basically, my management team from EastEndHomes would NEVER, EVER voluntarily sign the wayleave agreement. It was only because of this new government ruling to force wayleave agreement made the difference.

It's quite probable that your story is similar to mine. Our management team would never sign wayleave voluntarily. The UK law for wayleave is from March 2021. I got wayleave granted 2 months after the UK law and you got it in November that year.

So for the last 15 months I have been waiting without CommunityFibre yet despite wayleave passing. It says Coming Soon in a few months. But I knew wayleave was the biggest obstacle and even after it is granted it could take 1-3 years. I've seen buildings like Petticoat Square Tower wayleave granted in 2015 and it went live in 2018 with Hyperoptic.

This is generally a very long process, you're lucky you got it within 8 months.

Interesting to hear another story.

As mentioned, the wayleave was the easiest part for me. My building's freeholder is Pier Management who are listed as a partner on the Hyperoptic website.

I wouldn't go as far as to say it was "within 8 months". The main problem was getting the survey finalised and signed off by the managing agent (different party to the freeholder) which I got involved with closer to 14 months ago. But yes, 2 years is a lot better than 7

In reply to a post by Cockroach:

It's 1Gb serving 41 private units and 9 social.

Seeing as how I'm the only one using it at the moment and haven't seen speeds over ~830Mb/s in daytime (at night it's gone over 900 for single connection curl test), I suspect the site it's connected to (another live building, not directly to an exchange) is also fed by a 1Gb EAD.

Will be interesting to see how the speed changes as others sign up, we are also looking at a 100% service deal, so I'd expect another 40 properties will put fair pressure on the link.

They're still selling gigabit over a gigabit, backhauling multiple buildings?

I know they've been doing this since they started but am surprised they're still doing it.

Keeping the 'skinny pipe' syndrome running.