Although Crown Castle’s safety protocols do not require having a medical doctor on a tower site when technicians are present, one was available for Novotech Construction’s safety-conscious tower techs recently should a medical emergency present itself during a recent tower compound visit by Pennsylvania Congressman John Joyce.
IT’S COMFORTING TO KNOW THAT YOU CAN STILL GET A DOCTOR TO MAKE A SITE VISIT – Novotech Construction’s team with Pennsylvania Congressman John Joyce are (top, left to right) Luke Weaver, Ian Brown, Rep. Joyce, Chris Mika, Josh Quarry, and Shane Donaldson. Pictured with Crown Castle representatives (left to right) are: Staci Pies, Rep. Joyce, Ronald Marshall, Arthur Zebroski, and Marina Sansom.
Dr. Joyce has represented Pennsylvania’s 13th Congressional District since January 2019 and has championed, amongst other advocacies, expanding high-speed internet access in rural communities where telehealth is vital for many residents.
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association and member companies Crown Castle and Novotech Construction, Inc. facilitated an opportunity for Dr. Joyce to conduct a communications tower site visit in his district.
During the site visit, Dr. Joyce toured a 300-foot, self-support Crown Castle tower and compound with event participants to learn about the work that is conducted daily by vertical real estate companies, contractors, and technicians to build, maintain and deploy communications sites and related wireless/broadband infrastructure.
Dr. Joyce also spoke with event participants about the industry’s workforce development initiatives, training and safety protocols, and legislative and regulatory priorities.
“One of my top priorities in Congress is closing the digital divide and ensuring that every family and business across our district has fast, affordable, and reliable internet access,” said Dr. Joyce recently in announcing that the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) had allocated $1.2 Billion in funds through the Broadband Equity, Access, and Development (BEAD) program to develop high-speed internet capabilities in Pennsylvania.
“Right now, over 318,000 Pennsylvanians do not have fast and reliable internet access, and I look forward to ensuring the NTIA provides funding to our rural communities that are hurt by the digital divide,” said Dr. Joyce.
Congressman Joyce serves on the Energy and Commerce Committee and has introduced H.R. 3288, legislation that bypasses bureaucratic delays and accelerates broadband deployment.
“We were happy to have Congressman John Joyce visit one of our 1,600 Pennsylvania tower sites,” said Owen Deneny, Crown Castle Vice President of Construction Services.
“Towers provide essential wireless coverage to residents as they work from home or go to school remotely, and it also ensures that first-responders can be reached in emergencies. We are proud that our infrastructure serves more than 98% of Pennsylvanians.”
“It was a privilege to host Congressman Joyce at the Duncansville tower site,” stated Christopher Mika, President of Novotech Construction, Inc. “I was especially pleased that a few of our company’s hard-working tower technicians could visit directly with the Congressman to discuss all the work they do daily to enable connectivity in the District, State, and Region. I would like to thank Congressman Joyce, NATE, and Crown Castle for partnering with our company to make the event special,” Mika said.