Jilani Place Co-Working Space

Background

Jilani Place is a co-working space occupying a full floor in a seven-story commercial building located in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Owned by the larger Jilani Group—which itself manages multiple properties and businesses throughout the GTA—this co-working floor is designed to accommodate up to 400 users across approximately 50 rooms. Jilani Group’s vision is to offer best-in-class connectivity, security, and user experiences for its tenants, whether they are remote workers, podcasters, or small teams looking to collaborate in a professional environment.

Over the last few years, the Jilani Group began a phased transition away from legacy Cisco gear and Moroi solutions, aiming for a unified, modern platform without steep recurring fees. They experimented with a few Ubiquiti Protect cameras at one site and, impressed by the ease of use and cost-effectiveness, decided to expand their adoption of Ubiquiti (UniFi) products. Today, they are close to standardizing UniFi Network and UniFi Protect across multiple locations, including Jilani Place, as well as several of their other commercial properties and even some of their agricultural or residential sites.

Mac Telecom Networks, led by Cody (known in the UniFi community as “Cody from Mac Telecom”, took on the project of designing, deploying, and optimizing the network infrastructure at Jilani Place. With expertise in structured cabling, surveillance (CCTV), access control, VoIP, and advanced Wi-Fi, Mac Telecom Networks has been a long-time proponent of Ubiquiti. This case study explores how Mac Telecom Networks helped Jilani Group realize its goals for Jilani Place, focusing on robust WiFi 6/6E coverage today and preparing for WiFi 7 in the near future.

Business Objectives

1. Best-in-Class WiFi Experience The top priority at Jilani Place was a highly reliable, seamless WiFi experience. Initially, the plan was to minimize physical cabling and rely heavily on wireless connectivity. However, as the project progressed, it became apparent that many users still prefer a hardwired connection for maximum throughput and stability. The resulting implementation included both state-of-the-art wireless and extensive cabling—over 300 cables in total.

2. Future-Proof Networking As technology evolves, the Galani Group wants to keep pace. Their owners believe in adopting new standards quickly (e.g., WiFi 7, 6 GHz coverage, higher-end campus switches) to give tenants the best possible service. They want minimal disruption as they move between WiFi 6/6E solutions and future WiFi 7 offerings.

3. Scalable Security & Surveillance The co-working space, shared by numerous small organizations and individuals, requires comprehensive security that can be easily monitored and managed. The group chose to expand upon UniFi Protect, leveraging AI-enabled cameras and advanced analytics. Proper coverage on this floor, as well as in common areas, was crucial to ensure tenant safety.

4. Centralized, User-Friendly Management A key differentiator for Jilani Place is an in-house mobile application. The Jilani Group wanted an integration with the UniFi Network via API so that tenants booking a meeting room, or a podcast studio, would automatically receive secure WiFi access for the duration of the booking—no more, no less.

5. Cost-Effectiveness and Elimination of Ongoing License Fees Previously, the Jilani Group had used Moroi for WiFi management and Access for their cameras. The licensing and maintenance costs were high, particularly across multiple buildings. By transitioning to UniFi (which requires no recurring licensing fees for network or Protect), they see significant operational savings and easier centralized oversight across all locations.

Why UniFi?

1. All-in-One Ecosystem UniFi products bring together networking, security cameras, access control, and VoIP under one management interface—UniFi OS. For a multi-tenant co-working space, having an all-in-one approach reduces complexity and training overhead. Instead of juggling disparate platforms, the Jilani Group can manage everything from a single pane of glass.

2. Cost-Effective Scalability Unlike many enterprise WiFi solutions, UniFi does not charge recurring license fees per access point or camera. The capital expenditure covers most of the deployment cost, and the ongoing operating costs remain manageable. This was critical for a property group intent on staying within budget while still deploying best-in-class equipment.

3. Seamless User Experience From the WiFi vantage point, UniFi’s zero handoff features, quick adoption process, and intuitive controller interface benefit both end users and administrators. Tenants at Jilani Place can roam around the co-working floor without losing connection, and the staff can easily provision or revoke access.

4. API Integration Possibilities The Jilani Group was particularly excited about building a custom application that ties into the UniFi Network APIs. The requirement: when someone books a space in the Jilani Place app for a defined time period, they should be provisioned with a WiFi account or VLAN for that timeframe. Once the booking ends, the WiFi access should expire automatically. UniFi’s robust RESTful APIs make such integration feasible.

Planning for WiFi 7 and Complete 6 GHz Coverage

Although current deployments often focus on WiFi 6 and 6E, the Jilani Group insists on a forward-looking strategy—one that can easily be adapted to WiFi 7. The 6 GHz spectrum, available in WiFi 6E and 7, is essential for delivering higher throughput and reducing congestion. Yet planning for 6 GHz (and eventually WiFi 7) is more complex because 6 GHz signals do not propagate as far as 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz. Ensuring “true coverage” demands a more careful design approach with extra access points and consideration for interference.

For Jilani Place, Mac Telecom Networks selected U6 Enterprise access points, known for their 6 GHz support and robust performance. They placed these devices strategically across the floor to ensure near-uninterrupted coverage. As WiFi 7 hardware from Ubiquiti (like the UniFi XG and XGS lines) becomes more readily available, these devices can be swapped or added without changing the entire underlying infrastructure.

Deployment Optimization with Mac Telecom Networks

1. Pre-Deployment Surveys and Heat Mapping Rather than relying on guesswork or generic floor plans, Mac Telecom Networks took a methodical approach:

UniFi Design Center: As an initial step, they imported the building’s floor plan into the UniFi Design Center to obtain a baseline recommendation for AP placement, focusing on coverage and capacity.

Ekahau Sidekick 2 and AP-on-a-Stick: To validate and refine these recommendations, they physically tested with an AP-on-a-stick method. The Ekahau Sidekick 2 is a high-end spectrum analyzer that gives detailed signal strength and interference readings. By moving a single U6 Enterprise AP around the space and recording heat maps, Mac Telecom Networks ensured each future AP mount location would deliver the desired coverage for both 5 GHz and 6 GHz.

2. Structured Cabling and Hardware Selection Although the original project scope envisioned minimal cabling, it became apparent that many users (e.g., video editors or large data transfer professionals) would need wired connections. As a result, the co-working space grew from 25 cables to over 300 cable runs. This robust cable plant supports:

• Two UniFi Dream Machine Pro (UDM Pro) Max gateways in High Availability (Shadow) mode for redundancy.
• An Aggregation Pro Switch to handle increased throughput and potential fiber uplinks.
• Multiple 48-Port PoE Pro Max Switches to supply ample power and connectivity to the access points, cameras, and any wired workstations.

3. High Availability and Redundancy Jilani Group places a premium on network uptime. Downtime in a co-working space can severely impact tenant satisfaction. To address this:

• Gateways in HA: Using two UDM Pro Max units ensures gateway redundancy—if one fails, the other takes over seamlessly.
• Backup ISP: They brought in a 3 Gbps fiber circuit as the primary connection, with Starlink Enterprise as a secondary failover. Although the Starlink installation initially faced some cable quality issues, Mac Telecom Networks resolved them to provide a stable backup path.

4. API Integration One of the most innovative aspects of the deployment is the planned integration of the Jilani Place booking app with the UniFi Network via the API. The concept:

• A user books a meeting room or podcast studio for a specified time.
• The booking app communicates with the UniFi Controller (running UniFi OS).
• UniFi dynamically creates a voucher or limited-time WiFi access for that user or user group.
• Once their session ends, UniFi automatically revokes access.

This approach ensures tight security—only authorized bookings can use the co-working floor’s premium WiFi—and it streamlines the user experience. Although final tests are still in progress, this integration will be key to Jilani Place’s brand differentiation.

UniFi Protect & AI Integration

In addition to top-tier wireless, security was another make-or-break feature for Jilani Group. Co-working environments see a steady stream of visitors and need robust oversight to safeguard personal property and sensitive information.

1. Camera Coverage Currently, Jilani Place uses:

• UniFi Protect AI 360 Cameras for wide, 360-degree coverage in common areas.
• UniFi Protect G4 Bullet or G4 Dome Cameras (like the “Theta”) to cover entry points, hallways, and the more sensitive zones.
• A dedicated UMBR Pro as the NVR for the co-working floor (separate from the building’s main UNVR system). This keeps local camera streams and recordings segmented for easier management.

2. AI Smart Detections Some cameras utilize AI-based detections (e.g., person, vehicle, or package detection). This allows the owners or co-working staff to zero in on relevant events—especially in high-traffic areas. Combined with the forthcoming AI Key (an additional resource to offload some AI processing), searching for specific motion or object types becomes much faster. ** 3. Access Control** Though not fully deployed for this particular site (due to doors requiring wireless locks), the Jilani Group does use UniFi Access for certain other properties. Future expansions may bring more advanced access control solutions if or when Ubiquiti releases wireless door hardware. For now, the co-working space uses an alternate system to handle interior door access, but the synergy between UniFi Protect cameras and third-party door access remains a potential future project.

Results and Key Takeaways

1. Seamless WiFi and Stable Performance Preliminary testing in the co-working space shows minimal dead zones and strong overall throughput. While full occupancy has yet to be reached, early adopters report reliable connectivity even during busy parts of the day.

2. Reduced Ongoing Costs By moving away from legacy Cisco gear and retiring Moroi licenses, the Jilani Group eliminates monthly fees while consolidating management under a single, user-friendly interface. ** 3. Enhanced Security** With about 10 cameras strategically placed on the co-working floor (and over 100 building-wide), the security team can more effectively monitor common areas. UniFi Protect’s AI capabilities expedite investigative tasks, saving time and resources.

4. API-Driven Innovation The soon-to-be-finalized integration of the Jilani Place app and the UniFi API underscores the flexibility of UniFi. This synergy will automate WiFi provisioning—offering exactly what a modern, tech-savvy tenant expects in a high-end co-working environment.

5. Future-Ready Design As new UniFi WiFi 7 equipment and advanced campus switches become available, the robust wiring (300+ drops) and aggregated backbone can handle upgrades with minimal disruption. The design choices made now (e.g., planning for extra AP density on the 6 GHz band) reflect the Jilani Group’s insistence on future-proofing.

Looking Ahead

The co-working concept at Jilani Place is only one piece of the Jilani Group’s portfolio. With eight total locations (including some residential and farming sites), they are well on their way to standardizing on UniFi for networking and security. The next phases may include:

1. Full WiFi 7 Upgrade As soon as the UniFi XG and XGS WiFi 7 APs are widely available, Jilani Group plans to test them in select areas. If performance gains are significant, they will scale that solution building-wide.

2. Campus Switch Redundancy To support multi-gig or 10G backbones, they anticipate deploying or upgrading to UniFi Campus series switches—particularly for MC-LAG (Multi-Chassis Link Aggregation) redundancy. This ensures no single point of failure can disrupt entire sections of the network.

3. Expanded AI & Automation Beyond cameras, the group may experiment with AI-driven alerts to automate building operations. For instance, occupancy sensors or motion detectors integrated with the UniFi platform could inform the building’s HVAC system.

4. Unified Access Control If Ubiquiti introduces wireless door locks or otherwise expands its Access product line, the Jilani Group may unify door access, Protect, and WiFi within the same dashboard. This further streamlines administrative tasks and enhances security.

Conclusion

Jilani Place exemplifies how a forward-thinking organization can leverage UniFi’s breadth of features—WiFi 6/6E today, ready for WiFi 7 tomorrow, AI-enabled surveillance, and a flexible API for custom app integration. Mac Telecom Networks’ rigorous approach (site surveys, structured cabling, redundancy, and close attention to 6 GHz coverage) ensures that tenants at Jilani Place experience the robust, high-speed connectivity they demand. Meanwhile, the Jilani Group benefits from an environment that’s simpler to manage, more cost-effective in the long run, and primed for future growth.

Through the synergy of thorough planning, the powerful UniFi ecosystem, and Mac Telecom Networks’ on-site expertise, Jilani Place stands as a model for modern co-working deployments—blending reliability, security, and cutting-edge technology into an engaging, future-proof space for businesses and creators alike.