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Vertical Bridge REIT, LLC, the largest private owner and operator of communications infrastructure and locations in the United States, today announced the completion of its merger with North Carolina-based Eco-Site, a leading developer of wireless communication, tower sites and infrastructure. The combination increases Vertical Bridge’s owned and master-leased tower portfolio to over 20,000 sites and its entire portfolio to more …
NATE UNITE 2021’s show in Memphis cancelled; Las Vegas is a go in 2022
As an organization founded on the core tenet of safety, the health and well-being of the Association’s members and staff is a top priority. NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association, on a daily basis, has been carefully monitoring the evolving landscape surrounding COVID-19 developments in the United States. The NATE Administrative Staff has engaged in extensive planning and devised a …
SURVEY SAYS: NATE documents the many thousands of telecom positions needed
For the last few years, FCC Commissioners, federal agencies, educational institutions, association CEOs, and industry focus groups have said that there is a shortage of approximately 20,000 telecommunications workers that are critically needed to build out 5G and maintain broadband infrastructure. That workforce shortfall total has been employed to obtain millions of dollars of federal grants for training and other …
AT&T selected for 10-Year, $311 million contract to modernize NOAA’s network
AT&T announced today it will deliver modern networking capabilities and other advanced technologies to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under a Task Order from NOAA valued at $311 million over 10 years. The Task Order was made under the General Service Administration’s (GSA) Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) program, which the government created to help federal agencies modernize their technology …
DISH’s first massive tower deal has Crown Castle providing access to 20,000 towers
DISH Wireless and Crown Castle today announced a long-term agreement through which Crown Castle will lease DISH space on up to 20,000 communication towers. As part of the agreement, DISH will receive certain fiber transport services and also have the option to utilize Crown Castle for pre-construction services. The agreement encompasses leases on towers located nationwide, helping DISH facilitate its …
Navajo Nation celebrates move to provide more towers, broadband access
Navajo leaders met in Chinle, Arizona last week at a new tower site to celebrate the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority’s plans to build more than a hundred broadband towers across the tribal nation. The projects were funded with a $32 million CARES Act allocation approved by the 24th Navajo Nation Council and signed into law by President Johnathan Nez and Vice President …
Iowa Verizon outages weren’t through ‘hacking’ but by fiber slashing
Verizon appears to have repaired a large fiber cut in the Des Moines, Iowa area that impacted hundreds of tower sites, preventing many users from calling 911 yesterday. Verizon disputes an earlier report that it had been “hacked.” Normal cell phone usage was reportedly also affected. Some G-mail accounts were paused. An estimated 350 Verizon tower sites were having network …
What a difference a quarter makes as Colony Capital’s stock doubles in price through its digital design
Colony Capital Inc. (CLNY) had another good day in the market on Tuesday as shares jumped 6.67% to close at $4.00, doubling the stock price since CEO Marc Ganzi informed analysts during his August Q2 call that “Colony today trades slightly under $2.00. I’d encourage you guys to look at your history books, think about this management team, think about …
A great way to support Veterans every day is to reach out and hire one
Veterans Day every November 11th honors all Americans who have served our country in war or peace. It is a day set aside to thank the living veterans for their service and sacrifice made to a grateful nation. It is a day of remembrance with parades, services, ceremonies, and most of all to honor all those who have served our …
Wireless coverage at Yellowstone National Park featured in NATE video of hidden connectivity
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association today released a video entitled “Balancing Wireless & Nature”. The video was filmed at the nearly 3,500 square mile Yellowstone National Park and is the latest to debut in Volume 5 of the Association’s popular #ClimberConnection series. The video shines a spotlight on the importance of wireless connectivity on federal lands, utilizing historic Yellowstone …
One down, 14,999 Dish cell sites to go starting in Q2
Dish Network’s buildout finally kicked off last week, with a soft launch that was a test site near the company’s Littleton, Colorado headquarters. Executive Vice President – Network Deployment, Dave Mayo last week provided a sneak preview of Dish’s first 5G trial site on his LinkedIn page. Mayo joined Dish last June and will be responsible for the carrier’s wireless …
Newest airborne cell sites to take flight in 2024 every nine days
Cambridge Consultants has announced a stratospheric breakthrough, revealing its role in a visionary program to realize the dream of superfast 5G for everyone and everything across the globe. Working in collaboration with Stratospheric Platforms Limited (SPL), Cambridge Consultants’ remarkable technical achievement is a wireless antenna unlike anything seen before, delivering affordable connectivity from a fleet of zero emissions aircraft, airborne …
American Tower picks up InSite Wireless Group’s American and Canadian assets for $3.5 billion
American Tower Corporation this morning announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire InSite Wireless Group, LLC (InSite), which owns, operates and manages approximately 3,000 communications sites, primarily in the U.S. and Canada. The portfolio includes more than 1,400 owned towers in the U.S., over 200 owned towers in Canada and approximately 70 distributed antenna system (DAS) …
Two tower techs are killed when their man lift in Delaware topples onto electrical lines
UPDATE: November 4, 2020 — Two men, who were killed attempting to install antennas onto a water tower near Bethany Beach in high winds, have been identified. Delaware State Police said 23-year-old Jovan Maldonado and 22-year-old Bryan Maldonado Andino, both from Puerto Rico, were in a Z135 Man Lift working to put antennas for the Velex, Inc. on the Sussex Shores water tower just of the …
Five Alarm Concern: UWM assesses the vulnerability of cell site infrastructure to wildfires
While the FCC attempts to get accurate maps of broadband coverage in the U.S., three University of Wisconsin – Madison researchers have completed the task of identifying for the agency the vulnerability of cell sites throughout America when confronted with wildfires. The study, presented at a meeting of internet network researchers this week found more than 430,000 cell site transceivers …
Actor, comedian, entertainer Rob Riggle to deliver keynote address at NATE UNITE 2021
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association announced today that famed actor/comedian/writer/producer/director Rob Riggle will deliver the keynote address at the NATE UNITE 2021 Conference in Memphis, Tennessee. NATE UNITE 2021 will take place February 15-18, 2021 at the Memphis Renasant Convention Center. NATE UNITE is widely regarded as the premier and most comprehensive education event in the communications infrastructure industry. …
FCC’s launch of a $9 billion fund will benefit broadband poor rural areas and contractors
The FCC voted unanimously today to establish a fund for up to $9 billion in federal support for rural 5G buildouts and precision agriculture, but Commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks each registered their concerns over progress on new wireless coverage maps. The Report and Order adopted sets up the 5G Fund for Rural America that includes up to $8 …
NATE’s record 185 STAR Initiative participants take advantage of following the gold standard for safety
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association announced the member companies, listed below, who have been formally approved to participate in the STAR Initiative program for the 2020-2021 year. NATE has proudly accepted 185 participating companies in this year’s STAR Initiative which represents a record number of companies since the inception of the program. The STAR Initiative will be entering its …
Alabama accident takes the life of a Texas broadcast tall tower tech
A broadcast tower technician employed by San Antonio, Texas-based Broadcast Construction Solutions died yesterday shortly before noon in Elsanor, Alabama while performing retrofitting services on a 1,500-foot guyed tower owned by Deerfield Media that broadcasts WJTC TV. Wireless Estimator has confirmed that the deceased broadcast worker is Sirous Snider, 33, of Burleson, Texas, a well-respected and popular poster on Facebook. …
Wireless Infrastructure Association names three new industry execs for leadership roles
The Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) named Dr. Rikin Thakker as Chief Technology Officer; Brent Weil as Vice President, Workforce Development; and Jason Nelson as Vice President, Partnerships and Development. These new leaders will expand WIA’s wireless workforce development initiatives and extend WIA’s thought leadership and convening role for businesses in the wireless industry. These positions will play a major role …
