Jonathan Adelstein, President and CEO of the Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA), was honored today at the Wireless Connect conference held at the University of Maryland for his work to enhance training and education opportunities within the wireless infrastructure industry. Dr. Rikin Thakker, Faculty Member of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park, and …
Services set for Alabama tower tech, the nation’s first 2018 fatality
Services have been set for Melvin Ronnie Nelson, Jr., 34, a resident of Foley, Ala., who passed away Mon., April 2, while working on a new Verizon tower installation in Utica, Miss. Nelson was the first industry-related fatality in 2018. According to Hinds County Sheriff Major Pete Luke, “The tower was being erected just off Hwy. 27 near Bear Creek …
SpaceX’s broadband satellites approved conditioned upon not causing space collisions
The Federal Communications Commission issued an order approving SpaceX’s application to start launching operational satellites as early as 2019, with the goal of reaching the full capacity of over 4,000 satellites in 2024, even though the FCC approval only requires SpaceX to launch 50 percent of the satellites by March 2024, with the remainder by March 2027. “Grant of this …
New structural corset could sound the death knell for tower technicians’ retrofitting work
AT&T Labs’ top research scientists and engineers, in conjunction with Flex Tape for Towers, introduced a ground-breaking disruptive technology yesterday that is expected to transform the way capacity-challenged towers are retrofitted. It will also speed up broadband development and add to the towercos’ bottom lines, but will clearly force many companies specializing in structural rehabilitation to close their doors as …
Giant step back for mankind: Supreme Court scrubs Nokia’s 4G Moon network launch
Still smarting from last week’s passage of a rule by the FCC that will streamline the deployment of 5G networks by cutting into the ability of American Native Indian tribes to charge upfront usury fees for review of smaller cell sites throughout the country, tribes took solace in yesterday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision that scrubbed an effort – temporarily – …
Outside engineer’s defective gin pole rigging plan is cited for three tower techs’ deaths
Calculation errors in an engineer’s rigging plan is being cited as the reason a gin pole broke loose from the 1,000-foot Miami, Fla. tower it was attached to, causing the death last September of three tall tower technicians employed by Tower King II, Inc. of Cedar Hill, Tex. The disclosure came to light this afternoon from Tower King II’s attorney, …
Organizations applaud new rules that curb 5G ‘cash cow’ reviews
The FCC helped clear the way for wireless providers to deploy hundreds of thousands of small antennas for use in 5G services by easing historic and environmental reviews before equipment is installed, and limiting American Indian tribes’ authority over the installations. In a 3-to-2 Republican-led vote for its Wireless Infrastructure Streamlining Report and Order, the FCC said that installing the …
Vertical Bridge is a major creditor In the iHeartMedia bankruptcy
In a prearranged bankruptcy worked out with creditors, debt burdened radio conglomerate iHeartMedia, with 850 stations, many of them losing money, has been giving some breathing room to shed under-performing stations and focus upon growth potential stations that are profitable. The company has been saddled with $20 billion in debt, the legacy of a leveraged buyout in 2008. In a …
AT&T’s small cell ‘rat’s nest’ of cables is needlessly messy says former FCC senior exec
Dr. Michael Marcus, a former forceful proponent of new technology at the FCC for 20 years, who is recognized for getting the FCC to adopt rules for the 60 GHz mmWave bands in 1995, has taken AT&T to task for using a photograph of a small cell in Indianapolis in a Feb. 23 presentation to the FCC that he believes …
Citing national security concerns, Trump kayos $117 billion Broadcom-Qualcomm deal
UPDATE: March 14, 2018 – President Donald Trump blocked Broadcom in its hostile takeover bid of U.S. chip-maker Qualcomm earlier this week, and the Singapore company said today it is officially withdrawing its $117 billion bid. Broadcom Ltd. said it was disappointed as it withdrew its proposed candidates for the board at Qualcomm Inc., but assured in its announcement that …
Bonuses for American Tower execs are a far cry from bread crumbs
When companies started handing out bonuses of $1,000 or more to workers in January as a result of the GOP tax bill, House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said they received “crumbs”. Pelosi was not impressed. “In terms of the bonus that corporate America received versus the crumbs that they are giving to workers to kind of put the schmooze on …
Tower tech’s new ‘badge of honor’ certifications detailed in NWSA video
The National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) has unveiled a video highlighting the National Wireless Safety Alliance (NWSA) worker certification programs as the second to debut in Volume 3 of the Association’s critically acclaimed Climber Connection series. The video, entitled “NWSA: A New Badge of Honor” focuses on the transformative and portable certification offerings now available in the marketplace to the …
Massive new workforce development, training needed for success of 5G
The Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) has announced the release and publication of a new white paper titled “Getting Ready for 5G: Preparing a Skilled Workforce for Future Wireless Networks.” The new research focuses on how next-generation of mobile communications networks will dramatically change the way network infrastructure is designed and deployed, requiring many new qualified engineers and technicians. The paper …
Leaving the cradle of earth, Vodafone and Nokia to create moon-based 4G network
The Moon will get 4G coverage next year, 50 years after the first NASA astronauts walked on its surface. In an announcement Tuesday, Vodafone said it plans to create the first 4G network on the Moon to support a mission by PTScientists in 2019 and has appointed Nokia as its technology partner. Berlin-based PTScientists is working with Vodafone Germany and …
American Tower and SBA paint a rosy picture for 2018
American Tower Corp (ATC) and SBA Communications (SBA) informed analysts during their earnings calls this week that higher build levels and increased carrier capex are expected in 2018, supporting above average industry growth. “First, we anticipate that our core U.S. tower market will enjoy strong tenant demand in 2018 and beyond,” said ATC CEO James Taiclet, Jr. yesterday. “Based on …
NATE’s Music City show ends on a ‘real’ record high note
The National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) announced today that last week’s NATE UNITE 2018 conference in Nashville, Tenn. set a new attendance record of 1,856 registrants. The organization’s all-time conference attendee total in its 23-year show history exceeded the previous attendance registration record of 1,801 at NATE UNITE 2017 in Fort Worth, Tex. NATE leaders also recognized the high …
Sprint wants to put an end to tribal fees costing 24% of a small cell’s installation cost
In a short letter to the FCC with four photographs , Sprint has easily identified the outdated review processes that have become a significant barrier to 5G deployment with small cells. According to Sprint Senior Counsel Keith C. Buell, the tribal review process that is part of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) allows fees to be levied against Sprint …
NRA awards FCC chief Pai a long gun for his ‘courage’ to kill net neutrality
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is a passionate and polished speaker. But on Friday he was flummoxed when he was about to speak at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Maryland when the American Conservative Union (ACU) and the National Rifle Association (NRA) presented him with the Charlton Heston Courage Under Fire” award, an honor that is given with the …
Foundation launches ‘$1 Per Tower’ campaign and highlights donors
The Tower Family Foundation today recognized the tower owner/vertical solutions provider companies who are the inaugural donors to the organization’s “$1 Per Tower” fundraising campaign. The “$1 Per Tower” effort involves firms who own and manage vertical communications infrastructure sites and commit to donating $1 for every tower the company owns directly to the Tower Family Foundation. The foundation made …
Cipov, Miller and Blackburn honored at NATE UNITE 2018 awards luncheon
The National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) today honored Pat Cipov, President of Cipov Enterprises, Inc. in Sumter, S.C.; Pat Miller, Director of EasTex Tower, LLC in Colorado Springs, Colo.; and Congressman Marsha Blackburn, U.S. Representative for the 7th District of Tennessee during the Awards Luncheon sponsored by SBA Communications at NATE UNITE 2018 in Nashville, Tenn.Cipov was honored as the recipient …
