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DISH Chairman Ergen and FCC’s Carr added to NATE UNITE’s stellar lineup of keynotes and presenters

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association announced today that DISH Co-Founder and Chairman Charlie Ergen and FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr will participate in a Q & A Keynote Fireside Chat at the NATE UNITE 2022 Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada. The keynote session will be moderated by prominent industry analyst Jennifer Fritzsche, Head of North American Telecom and Digital Infrastructure …

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Audax picks up controlling interest in Centerline Communications, buoying acquisitions

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

Audax Private Equity (“Audax”) announced today that it has acquired a controlling interest in Centerline Communications LLC (“Centerline”), a leading professional services organization focused on the design, build, and maintenance of wireless and wireline network infrastructure from Wincove Private Holdings, LP (“Wincove”) and Stone-Goff Partners (“Stone-Goff”). This transaction took place in August 2021 and terms of the transaction were not …

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Mo Katibeh, AT&T’s network infrastructure build chief, moves to RingCentral’s cloud

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

RingCentral, a provider of global enterprise cloud communications, video meetings, collaboration, and contact center solutions, today announced that Mo Katibeh, former Chief Product Officer and Chief Marketing Officer for AT&T Business, will join the company as Chief Operating Officer on January 18, 2022,, reporting to founder, chairman and CEO Vlad Shmunis. Katibeh has managed a portfolio of businesses with $36 …

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New NATE Director Santee joins reelected Directors, Cobb, Dougherty, Lee and Miller

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association released the official results of the 2022 Board of Directors election. The Association announced that Jessica Cobb, Chief Executive Officer of MDTS in Ortonville, Michigan, Kevin Dougherty, President of MILLENNIA CONTRACTING, INC. in New Castle, Delaware, Bryan Lee, President of Lee Antenna & Line Service, LLC in Springtown, Pennsylvania and Jimmy Miller, President of MILLERCO …

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DISH Network appoints John Swieringa as its new wireless prexy as pressures mount to launch in Las Vegas

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

DISH Network has named John Swieringa as President and Chief Operating Officer of DISH Wireless. In this expanded role, he will be responsible for all operational aspects of DISH’s wireless business including the deployment and management of DISH’s virtualized, O-RAN 5G broadband network. Swieringa also will continue to lead DISH’s retail wireless business, and oversee day-to-day wireless activities. The Sweiringa announcement comes at …

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Unionization of tower training company provides CWA with a foot in the door they intend to exploit

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

In the past few months, the Communications Workers of America (CWA) has been quietly attempting to unionize wireless contractors and has made inroads with employees of two mid-sized companies, according to sources who have informed Wireless Estimator of the CWA’s efforts. Today, the CWA made its intentions known by spearheading their campaign with a press release announcing that workers at …

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Black & Veatch recognized among ‘Best of the Best’ in Michigan workplace safety, health

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

Reflecting its unwavering championing of safety protocols, Black & Veatch proudly announces it has received the Michigan Voluntary Protection Program in Construction (MVPPC) STAR Award – the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (MIOSHA) highest honor involving workplace safety. The award, open to all Michigan employers, recognizes companies determined to be the “best of the best” in demonstrating exemplary safety …

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Unless you are a tower tech, T-Mobile wants to ensure that no employee is left behind

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

Commentary – T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert received a round of thanks from his employees and future job applicants when he announced on Friday, “Every single employee at T-Mobile, even our newest team members just starting to build their skill base, should have a competitive wage. So, we have decided to implement a nationwide minimum pay at T-Mobile of at least …

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RF signage placement row heads to NJ court after landlord refuses T-Mobile site access

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

After a 24-year contractual relationship with a Brunswick, NJ building owner, T-Mobile Northeast LLC says in a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court of New Jersey that 390 George Street Associates refuses to allow the carrier to perform modifications that are allowed in their lease and is prohibiting T-Mobile access to their rooftop equipment. In their complaint, T-Mobile requests …

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Senate confirms FCC Chair Rosenworcel to a new term, the first woman to lead the agency

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

The U.S. Senate yesterday confirmed Jessica Rosenworcel in a 68-31 vote as the first appointed female chairperson of the FCC. Rosenworcel had been acting chairperson since January. Tuesday’s action means the FCC narrowly avoided a Republican majority, which could have happened if Rosenworcel’s current term was allowed to expire at the end of the year.  “It is a tremendous honor …

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Foolish draft petition has a carrier telling NATE to ‘Shut up!’ and the matrix pricing problems will be resolved

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

Commentary — One carrier’s well-thought-out solution to NATE’s concern regarding untenable contractor matrix pricing that is crippling the nation’s wireless workforce can be capsuled in two words: ‘Shut Up!’ There are no legitimate arguments that matrix or model pricing shouldn’t be used in wireless construction unless it’s a project that requires different disciplines or presents unique labor or material-intensive requirements outside of …

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OSHA will be inspecting a dissolved air conditioning company when investigating a Texas tower tech’s death

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

OSHA has identified the contractor they are investigating following the death of a Texas tower technician, Steven Rankin, 53, after falling from a tower on November 17 in Garrison, TX, as reported yesterday by Wireless Estimator. The inspection information released this morning states that Weiman Air Condition & Electrical, Inc. was the contractor that was managing the Verizon installation project …

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Appeals court provides a holiday present to contractors, telling OSHA to stand down on its COVID mandate

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

OSHA is temporarily suspending enforcement of the Biden administration’s private sector COVID-19 vaccine mandate that would have had companies with over 100 employees comply with the new vaccine mandate rule, although tower crews  could be exempt. Yesterday’s announcement comes after the Fifth Circuit U.S. Courts of Appeals in New Orleans twice ordered implementation of the mandate halted, citing “grave” constitutional …

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Ohio Lt. Governor Husted announces that NATE-developed TTT-I curriculum to be offered at three schools

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association participated today in a Telecommunications Tower Technician I (TTT-I) program launch announcement event at North Central State College in Mansfield, Ohio. The workforce event, hosted by Ohio Lt. Governor Jon Husted and the Governor’s Office of Workforce Transformation, included a celebrated announcement that TTT-I pilot programs will be established at three Ohio schools: Hocking College …

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Four trailblazing pioneers inducted into the Wireless Hall of Fame

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

A trailblazing class of pioneers was inducted into the prestigious Wireless Hall of Fame Thursday night. The event, hosted by the Wireless History Foundation (WHF), a nonprofit organization that has honored the hall of fame members for the past decade, celebrated Pat Riordan, Mark Crosby, Jim Tracy and Ari Fitzgerald. “We were so happy to highlight the accomplishments of the Hall of …

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Lindsey Graham is leading the charge to remove Gigi Sohn’s FCC nomination for Commissioner

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee is holding a nomination hearing to examine the nomination of FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel (D), but it appears that Republicans have been initially successful in blocking President Joe Biden’s other FCC Commissioner nominee, Gigi Sohn (D), who will not appear with Rosenworcel, according to the committee’s agenda. GOP committee members, Sen. Roger Wicker …

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Inflation delivers another gut punch to wireless contractors as it reaches a 31-year high

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

Consumer prices surged at the fastest pace in more than three decades in October as fuel costs accelerated, supply chains remained under pressure and construction materials and steel prices moved higher — bad news for economic policymakers at the Federal Reserve and for the Biden White House. Even worse news for wireless contractors who are locked into Tier 1 companies’ …

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IFC will invest an additional $25 million in infrastructure assets managed by DigitalBridge

In Daily News Briefs by Wireless Estimator

DigitalBridge Group, Inc. today announced that the International Finance Corporation (“IFC”) will be investing $100 million in digital infrastructure assets managed by DigitalBridge in Brazil, Indonesia and Malaysia to expand digital access and connectivity. IFC’s $100 million investment includes $75 million already committed in three of DigitalBridge’s portfolio companies: Scala Data Centers (“Scala”), a leading scaled hyperscale data center operator …

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It was anticipated, but now there’s proof that NWSA Certification dramatically reduces safety incidents

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

The National Wireless Safety Alliance (NWSA) announced today that due to the collaboration of all sectors of the telecommunications industry, there has been a dramatic three-to-one decrease in tower crew-related safety issues and accidents when NWSA trade certified technicians are present on jobsites. This major safety improvement is the result of countless hours donated by volunteers representing the broadest-ever consortium …

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Pelosi’s on again, off again historic infrastructure bill passes with NATE and WIA applauding broadband funding

In Featured News by Wireless Estimator

After months of frustrating attempts to pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill, Speaker Nancy Pelosi finally achieved success with the support of 13 Republican House members on Friday night. The bill, which received 19 GOP votes in the Senate, was dissociated from the broader social spending package known as Build Back Better “Tonight, we took a monumental step forward as a …