For 15 years Wireless Estimator has covered tower compound thefts and the most common items taken are copper and cell site batteries; on occasion, a generator or air conditioner makes the list. However, in the annals of bizarre telecom thievery, it’s likely that a theft in McIntosh, Ala. last week will be difficult to top. Three Alabama men are in jail …
SBA breaks the prized $200 mark and Crown to break ground for a 13-story 420K square-foot headquarters
SBA Communications (SBA) made another record high today with its stock closing at $201.49, the first towerco of the big three ever to break the prized $200 plateau. The day’s range was from $199.87 to a record high of $201.99. American Tower closed at $196.22, Crown Castle at $128.51. SBA will be releasing its first quarter result on April 29. In …
Ugly cell sites can be rejected leads 20 Fast-Forward Friday news stories
Article Media San Francision can reject 5G equipment it views as too ugly Bloomberg SC school district’s cell phone tower program draws scrutiny FITSNews WIA’s Adelstein: 5G deployment faces a skills gap RCR Wireless News How a Trump admin ruling could hurt effort to improve data coverage in Syracuse’s poor areas Syracuse.com Deadline to adopt and publish small cell facility …
Services set for New Jersey tower tech who died after falling from Georgia monopole
UPDATE: March 27, 2019 – Services have been set for Devon James Collins who passed away on March 21, 2019 in an industry accident. He attended Pinelands Regional H.S., and graduated from Oakcrest H.S. in Mays Landing, NJ. Devon not only loved climbing cell towers, but he loved and cherished the tower family he gained and grew into nationwide over the …
Congressman Loebsack tours Crown Castle monopole site in Iowa
U.S. Congressman Dave Loebsack (D-IA) today conducted a site visit to a communications tower located in Le Claire, Iowa. The tour was facilitated by representatives from the National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE), the Association’s Wireless Industry Network (WIN) and Crown Castle. The site visit was held at a Crown Castle-owned monopole cell tower site that is conveniently located in …
ExteNet sues Crown and NY DOT over shot clock violation, wants Crown’s contract revoked
In a be careful what you wish for reality incident, a subsidiary of Crown Castle is being sued for violating an FCC’s shot clock deadline as set forth by Congress in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, an action that carriers, Crown Castle and other vertical realtors petitioned the FCC to adopt. ExteNet Systems, Inc. filed its complaint on Monday against …
Contractor survey uncovers some startling financial statistics that could trigger a 5G train wreck
In their drive to lower capex as they roll out 5G, carriers have created a troubling national Achille’s heel – a contractor base that has many companies swimming in debt with serious cash flow problems, according to results of an extensive nationwide survey taken by Wireless Estimator. The wireless contractor survey that was completed last quarter by 263 vetted companies, clearly indicates that …
Comments on contractor roadblocks set up by carriers that will derail America’s 5G race
Deeply concerned about the unsustainable state of wireless contracting, company executives provided 328 optional comments in Wireless Estimator’s extensive survey that was unveiled today. Armed with anonymity, it’s not possible to verify the accuracy of their statements. But it’s clear that their comments, in most cases, were well-thought-out summaries of the difficulties they are facing as carrier capex cuts, extended …
Carriers either ignore or are unaware of contractors’ higher than average truck roll expenses
Wireless contractors can’t be profitable with the hourly rates set by carriers and turfing contractors in many markets or the rates that they have to use to successfully win a bid, according to company executives who registered their concerns in an extensive nation-wide survey taken by Wireless Estimator that will be released this week. “They treat us like we’re a …
National Wireless Safety Alliance announces Board of Governors leadership appointments
The National Wireless Safety Alliance (NWSA) has announced that Jim Coleman, National Tower Safety Manager at AT&T, and Paul Roberts, Vice President of Compliance at American Tower Corporation, have been appointed to serve as Chairman and Vice Chairman respectively, of the organization’s Board of Governors. NWSA also announced that J. John Barker, Partner of Barker MacEntee PLLC, Richard Cullum, Director of …
Mobile infrastructure industry pioneers honored at WIA Hall of Fame ceremony
Five titans of technology were honored last night in Washington by the Wireless Infrastructure Association during its inaugural Mobile Infrastructure Industry Hall of Fame ceremony. The ceremony honored trailblazers who have shaped the wireless infrastructure landscape. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai delivered opening remarks. The five inductees were Neville R. Ray, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of T-Mobile; Steven E. Bernstein, founder …
NATE hosts UAS operations showcase event in D.C. Beltway at Crown Castle site
Key stakeholders from federal government agencies, industry and media participated in the inaugural NATE Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) Operations “Field Day Showcase” yesterday. This dynamic drone experience was held at a Crown Castle tower site located in Gainesville, Va., in close proximity to the Washington, D.C. beltway. At the event, attendees were provided an opportunity to witness live flight demonstrations …
Industry’s first-ever influential contractor survey’s deadline is October 10
Make your company’s concerns count As wireless contractors are acutely aware, contractor firms in the industry have experienced trends that have seen payment terms go from 30 days to 60 days, and now are settling in at 90 to 120 days, placing an undue financial burden on contractor companies. It’s not whether these terms could potentially compromise safety and hinder …
FCC’s rules passage will serve to put the U.S. as a leader in the race to 5G
As expected, the FCC voted this morning to approve rules, available here, designed to speed up the deployment of small cells and other 5G network equipment by regulating in part the fees and timelines cities and states can impose on wireless network operators and other wireless players. Although Democrat FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel voted for the rules, she dissented in …
Firefighters secure the safety of 20 towers in Holy Fire flareup
When the Holy Fire in the Santa Ana mountains in California was contained on Sunday, tower owners gave out a collective sigh of relief. However, yesterday morning the Cleveland National Forest reported new activity around 10 a.m. as flames were heading towards Santiago Peak, home to approximately 20 communication towers. However, crews battled the unexpected flareup using air tankers and …
CTIA’s tower tech shout out leads dozens of Fast-Forward Friday articles
Fast-Forward Friday is Wireless Estimator’s latest news offering that provides an overview of relevant industry news stories presented during the week by other media that were not covered by our staff, along with a link to the article to go upstream and read it in its entirety. After all, the articles’ authors did all the heavy lifting, and capsuling their content and …
Verizon’s ‘Bubba’ remark angering community is first in dozens of Fast-Forward Friday articles
Fast-Forward Friday is Wireless Estimator’s latest news offering that provides an overview of relevant industry news stories presented during the week by other media that were not covered by our staff, along with a link to the article to go upstream and read it in its entirety. After all, the articles’ authors did all the heavy lifting, and capsuling their content and …
Nation takes a deep dive into contractor obstacles threatening 5G with industry supported survey
Wireless contractors have recently raised the distinct possibility that due to what they identify as ‘onerous’ payment terms and other issues created by carriers and tower owners, the industry could see a shakeout, and all of the recent successful legislative moves to speed up the implementation of 5G in America could be stymied as cash flow problems keep contractors from …
Crown’s Q2 is all good news; ATC and SBA show some weaknesses
The nation’s big three publicly traded tower companies have released second quarter earnings this month and spent time with analysts on their calls, highlighting marked improvement in some areas and offering encouragement of what they believe will be increased revenues as 5G is rolled out. There were also some less than encouraging summaries within their reports, but the Street shrugged them …
Vertical Bridge’s collection chances increase with iHeartMedia bankruptcy court action
Vertical Bridge, one of bankrupt iHeartMedia’s largest unsecured creditors, might have a better chance at securing its past due lease revenues following a filing from iHeartMedia’s unsecured creditors to a Texas bankruptcy judge on Monday that could affect the media giant’s creditors’ Chapter 11 recoveries. The committee of unsecured creditors want to prosecute and settle claims based upon allegations that many …
