The Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) today announced the creation of the Telecommunications Education Center (TEC), a new program and online portal that aims to provide the wireless telecommunications industry with a series of education and training courses with the goal of building a stronger and more diverse workforce. TEC (www.tec-online.org) aims to improve safety and quality, reduce costs of wireless …
FCC Enforcement Bureau adds another three violations to broadcaster’s tally
It is likely that Cortaro Broadcasting, a Coolidge Ariz. company that owns, KCKY-AM, a Spanish language religious broadcaster, might hold the title for operating a small station with the most FCC violations when last week Cortaro was cited for not having a property fence, and the gates in both individual tower fences were held closed with a loose loop of chain …
UAS focus conference features NATE’s new epic drone video
The National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) today unveiled an Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) safety video as part of Volume 2 of the popular Climber Connection series. The UAS Operations video was showcased by NATE during a main stage presentation at the 2017 Drone Focus Conference in Fargo, N.D. The 2017 Drone Focus Conference is a prominent annual gathering of …
Commissioner O’Rielly addresses tower lighting, crews and siting concerns at WIA
FCC Commissioner Michael O’Rielly took Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) conference attendees yesterday in Orlando, Fla. down a somewhat pessimistic two-year overview of troubling issues he addressed in 2015 before WIA in Hollywood, Fla. One key concern he had was that In 2014, the Commission eliminated unnecessary tower marking and lighting burdens on the industry while ensuring the safety of aircraft, …
Single structure towerco wins siting suit in Oklahoma Supreme Court
The owner of a successful Oklahoma tower and lighting maintenance company saw an opportunity to provide homeowners in a severely underserved area east of Muskogee with cell service – in some homes non-existent – and constructed a 250-foot self-supporting tower that a major carrier was interested in co-locating on in 2010. But as soon as it was built, homeowner Ken …
FCC chief chides AT&T for 911 outage that could have been prevented
Ajit Pai said today that AT&T’s 911 outage in March could have been prevented if the carrier had implemented network reliability best practices. On March 8, 12,539 Americans who were AT&T customers tried to call 911. But they couldn’t reach emergency services because of a nationwide outage of AT&T’s VoLTE 911 network. When they placed that call, they heard fast …
Weekend strike threatened by AT&T’s 21,000 wireless workers
More than 21,000 AT&T wireless workers may go on strike this coming weekend if their union can’t reach a deal on a new contract by Friday at 3 P.M. ET. Workers from 36 different states have been working without a contract since February. “Going on strike is a decision that is not made lightly. Your bargaining team has worked countless …
Mobilitie musters another siting snafu requiring removal of its tower
When the the City of Goliad, Tex. informed Mobilitie that they had illegally installed a 120-foot tower in their right of way off of West Fannin St. on April 2 and they were to remove it no later than May 1, a Mobilitie spokesperson informed them that it could take a couple of weeks since they were constrained by safety …
NATE, Sen. Thune commemorate tower techs, the ‘muscle’ behind the nation’s networks
The National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) this morning unveiled a commemoration declaring Thursday, May 11, 2017 as Tower Technician Appreciation Day. This day has been set aside by NATE to coincide with OSHA’s National Safety Stand-Down Week in order to pay tribute to the important work that tower technicians conduct on a daily basis to enable a mobile society. NATE …
Verizon wins with its superior $3.1 billion offer for Straight Path
Update: May 11, 2017 -Straight Path Communications Inc. announced this morning that it will sign today a definitive merger agreement under which Verizon Communications Inc. will acquire Straight Path for $184.00 per share, reflecting an enterprise value of approximately $3.1 billion, in an all-stock transaction. Concurrently therewith, Verizon will pay on behalf of Straight Path a termination fee of $38 …
Son’s love for the un-carrier blossoms again after ending their quiet period
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son said today that his first pick for a merger with Sprint would be T-Mobile, but the billionaire and founder of SoftBank said at a news conference in Tokyo that all comers are welcome. ““Our top choice remains T-Mobile. We will be open and sincere as we aim to launch negotiations. We’re basically open to anything. If …
AT&T’s tower-centric drone software could sunset a number of head counts
More than 30 years ago, Art Pregler directed the Air Force’s complex mission of taking full sized multi-million-dollar fighter aircraft, converting them into drones, and then shooting them out of the sky with new advanced weapons systems. Today, as director of AT&T’s National Mobility Systems, Pregler’s role is just the opposite, requiring him to ensure that the carrier’s experimental drones remain …
Using cell towers, a record is set for longest drone package delivery in the U.S.
A new record has been set in long-distance drone delivery using cell towers to maintain a connection between a drone in the air and a pilot on the ground, rather than relying on a radio frequency. On May 5, a Nevada UAS Consortium (Team Roadrunner) set the record flying a fixed-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) over 97 miles to Austin, …
Portal to check cell tower RF exposure in India is a poor PR patchwork
In early April, a ruling from India’s Supreme Court shut down a BSNL cell tower after Harish Chand Tiwari, who works in Gwalior, complained that for the past 14 years he was exposed to radiation from a the tower illegally installed on a neighbor’s rooftop that was 165-feet from his employer’s home. And under pressure from the major tower owners …
Tower tech’s 150-foot fall in Mississippi is nation’s second 2017 fatality
Update: May 3, 2017 – Kris Edward Runyon, 39, has been identified as the tower technician who fell from a Crown Castle guyed tower near Meridian, Miss. yesterday evening and was pronounced dead at the scene. A resident of Portsmouth, Ohio, Runyon had been working for D&K Nationwide Communications Inc. of Bristol, Conn. for the past year, but according to the …
Report: Sprint approved ‘trial’ for Mobilitie to build sites without regulatory compliance
A humorous anecdote heard in siting corridors is that distributed antenna system (DAS) providers are secretly funding Mobilitie so that they can look good in comparison since the California-based developer is well-known for installing DAS poles in community rights of way without getting permission. Their typical answer, when discovered, is that there was a misunderstanding with a zoning or permitting …
Industry’s contractors readying for national safety stand-down
Next week’s national safety stand-down, May 8 through May 12, to prevent falls in construction, is an ideal time for contractors and other aligned businesses to take time out to discuss the very real problem in wireless construction of civil workers and tower techs injuring themselves. And even though the industry has not had any fatalities of a wireless worker …
New Labor Secretary sworn in, but OSHA chief still in the wings
Alexander Acosta was sworn in Friday as Labor Secretary after a bipartisan vote of 60-38. Acosta, 48, is President Trump’s Cabinet’s first Latino member, but the President’s second choice for Labor Secretary. His first selection was fast-food executive Andrew Puzder, who withdrew when it was clear that he lacked support in the Senate for confirmation. In a statement, Senator Tim …
NATE video stresses how riding the line is safe when using best practices
Riding the line to reach a work station on a tower is thought by some individuals to not be the best safe practice for ascending or descending. However, as identified in the National Association of Tower Erectors’ (NATE) safety video released today – Riding the Line – the procedure is safe and there have been no incidents of injuries or …
Crane collapse takes the life of a 51-year-old Texas industry worker
Update: April 26, 2017 – The cell tower compound that RMCI’s crane toppled into is owned by Crown Castle International. April 25, 2017 – A 51-year-old industry worker was killed yesterday afternoon when a crane tipped on its side in downtown Dallas, Tex., crashing into a cell tower compound in the 1700 block of Arts Place, according to Dallas Fire-Rescue …
