Hello again as I return from NATE Unite, which was awesome! I really have to thank the NATE team for all that they have done for this year’s conference. I really had a great time.
First off, I want to thank the NATE team for putting this all together in an efficient way that we could attend sessions and walk the floor. Great job team! You really outdid yourself this year. I believe everyone there was thankful for all the hard work and the results that they saw there. Great job team NATE!
Second, I want to thank all of you that I saw there and came up to say hi. I wish I had time to talk to all of you. I really appreciate the feedback and conversations I had with all of you. It really means a lot to me that you would take the time to talk. I am also happy that no one came up and hit me! I appreciate being surrounded by friends. In this industry we consider each other brothers and sisters. When you go to this event you see how the companies are more than just a place to work, or just a team, they become families. When someone leaves a company, they are not forgotten but remembered, hopefully in a good way, just like when a family member leaves the nest. When you do tower work, you learn to respect your fellow workers because you understand what they do and what they risk.
The sessions all were full, the attendance was amazing. I wish I would have made them all. In fact, there was a meeting at the Hilton for drones at 6:30AM and there was a large group of people who attended at 6:30AM off site and it was a great meeting that went on for over an hour! Everyone was very active in the meeting. When a team is in New Orleans and gets to a meeting at 6:30AM to talk drones in the tower industry, it tells me that we have a very dedicated team of workhorses! This team will put the limits of technology and safety for this industry. That’s right, the wireless & tower industry where the steel meets the airwaves!
The sessions that I attended were great and I really think all the speakers did a good job. I know that the lunch and dinner speakers were also interesting to watch.
I got there in time to see the dedication to Ernie Jones that was moving by dedicating a scholarship in his name to the school near his home. His wife was honored and seemed to be very moved by the heartfelt and emotional dedication of the scholarship in his name.
I walked the floor and it was great to see the people that I have communicated with on Facebook, LinkedIn, and email. I got so many cards from all of you. I still didn’t get to talk to everyone, sadly, but if you were there and we didn’t hook up, or even if we did, let me know by emailing me at wade4wireless@gmail.com. I want to know what you thought of the show.
Did you see Sean Payton’s keynote speech? It was great to have him there. Unfortunately I had to take a call during his talk so let me know what you thought of him.
This panel covered the RFI that OSHA put out last year to the tower climbing community, the people on the front lines, for Information on Tower Climber Safety, OSHA-2014-0018, and click here to learn more about it.
I will be at the NATE Unite conference February 23rd and 24th, will you be there? Let’s talk if you are! So who is going? The exhibit floor, map found here, where I will be the 24th to meet and greet as many people as I can! The schedule, found here. See you at NATE Unite! Remember that the TFF will auction off a professional drone package, details here.
Thank you FCC and DoL/OSHA for putting this together, for taking the time to show you care about making this a better industry.
David Sams, SBA Communications, Vice Chair for TIRAP board
Laurie Gebhardt, Verizon Wireless
Jonathan Adelstein, PCIA – The Wireless Infrastructure Association, President and CEO of PCIA
Opening Remarks
Dave Anthony gave praise to NATE and many other organizations for all of their support to the tower technician workforce. He explained how complex the business really is and how much sacrifice the tower workers give each day. He also brought up how common training certification will make a difference in the industry. It is important that we continue to educate and train the tower workforce moving ahead. This documentation and standardization will lead to uniform safety across the industry.
Chase told us that he sees TIRAP a bit differently because he is the climber on the front line. He also mentions how many changes he has seen in this industry and went through the history of his training. And how much better it is now compared to when he started. How MUTI training took training from a one day class to a week-long training program. MUTI training makes the climbers safer and professional.
David told a story how when he started with SBA he was on his 10th day on the job and he got a call that one of his foreman fell and died. He then said how SBA had no safety program. He went to management and explained that they need to follow the regulations from OSHA and they needed to make changes. Two years later they lost one of their climbers from a fall in Florida. Today they have a serious and dedicated safety program. He sat down with Scott Kisting about how to make changes in the industry.
Then Laurie opened with how the demands put on the network demands a vast number of people with a wide variety of skills to roll out the network. It is important to Verizon that they know that people are properly trained. TIRAP is just such a program where the workers training is standardized and nationally recognized. Verizon has established programs to verify the vendor’s safety programs and certifications. They have hired a third-party to verify the contractor’s certifications. They don’t want anyone to get hurt or lose a life building their network. They feel that standardization across the industry will really help.
Jonathon talked about his time with the FCC and thanked everyone for focusing on safety on the 20th anniversary of the telecom act. He pointed out how telecom has exploded in growth. He then said how growth means that the programs to train the works needs to be set and standardized for the workforce. Then he said how the workforce needs to provide an opportunity for the workers. They are bringing in academic institutions and veterans to build careers in this industry. To develop a career.
First question asked by Matthew Warner. Has TIRAP advanced its 3 main goals, safety, quality, and job advancement for workers?
Dave responded with how pleased he was to develop the training standards for each of the climbers to do their job at each level, and how TIRAP is supported by volunteers. By pursuing this course it will make the industry better with safety and standards.
David agreed with Dave and also said how it’s self-funded and full of volunteers. He feels what they have accomplished in the past year is remarkable with the job titles and curriculum they have set up it a great start. They are working to get more codes for more job titles. Although slower than they would like it to be it is making progress. They are looking for volunteers to help.
Laurie felt good about the push forward but she thinks that they could improve by getting more HR departments involved in this program. There is plenty of work to be done and they would love to have more people help.
Jonathon said that they formed an apprenticeship program that stretches across the industry and that is a first. There is a long way to go but it’s a start-up, a small group that is really working on big ideas. They really want to make it grow quickly. It’s difficult to help all the companies with the help they need because of the small TIRAP group. He would like to hand it to the companies so they can see how much it will help them improve.
Joseph said about how TIRAP took a lot of time creating ONET codes so that the jobs can be recognized by the DOL, why is this so important?
David said that SBA has job titles and job description to provide uniformity to their workforce across the nation. This apprenticeship program is providing a career path instead of just a job. This states that the tower industry in wireless will provide a career path for them to earn money and build it into more. The ONET code is the catalyst behind all of that.
Then Joseph followed up with, “what is the major advantages of providing ONET codes regarding safety quality, job advancement, and universal understanding of qualifications for this industry.
David came back pointing out that the training curriculum is based on the ONET code in the job title. Each person has their qualifications based on that curriculum so they should all be trained the same. He said that the agreement between TIRAP and NWSA agreeing on the training so that the industry is completely aligned no matter how you get trained, with for NWSA or through TIRAP, the standards are the same and uniform.
Then Matthew asked Chase if he could explain if he would want to see TIRAP trained people working for him and with him. Especially if he went to another company.
Chase said that as a TIRAP member you start as an apprentice and then you work your way up. If he were to go to another company then he would have the certification, the training, the card, and the new company would know exactly what he is trained for. If you don’t have this certification then you really don’t know what the new guy was trained for. With TIRAP you have the structure in the training so you know that they know how to be safe and do their job.
So Matthew asked if the training changed. with MUTI in the last 4 years?
Chase said when he started training was 1 day with going up one tower and making sure you know how to tie off. Now they have class study and tower training that lasts a week to go over training and a competent training class. They also have continued education with teams that come out and do audits of the climbers knowledge
Then Matthew asked a question from the audience, “A new climbers first time on the tower should not be on the job,, are tower owners willing to allow access to the towers for training?”
Chase said that they do have a training tower as well as classroom so it will not be a=on the job but there is on the job training.
Then David jumped in and said that its SBA policy not to allow any training on their towers due to the risk and liability and that they do not have the faith in how most folks dot he training, and that they have their own program. That is SBA policy.
Joseph then asked how Chase would improve training to ensure that he and his team is safe, what could companies to make them all safe?
Chase responded stating that no job is more important than the tower climber’s life so if they feel at risk they should now they don’t have to climb. That should filter down to the climber so that they can stop the job at any time. They save an acronym called SAUCE, Stop, Assess, Understand, Communicate, Execute, this is what they do when there is an issue at the site.
Matthew has followed up with stating that they have good practices, how do we make that a best practice for the industry.
David said that everything they do they are trying to make a common practice. He also said how the workers spend a week in training first before they are deployed. They are taught what they need to know which is very similar to the TIRAP curriculum.
Jonathon said that TIRAP is really about sharing best practices, looking at how they can do things right. This is being spread across the industry with TIRAP. They are working to developed more training. They are also promoting TIA standards and getting the word out in the industry. Now TIRAP is working on videos on YouTube to be released to train the workers to do the job right.
Joseph ask Chase, have you noticed that following TIRAP procedures that you are improving your practice in the job have you been able to notice when someone is doing something wrong that you can improve the practices?
Chase said that he spends more time with his crew then with his family, so they are family and it makes them look out for each other. He is picking up and showing the new workers how to improve their work. He also learns from others and to learn from them
Matthew asked about how you know when the contractor is telling the truth about their training?
Laurie said that they evaluate the contractors on several factors, safety, length of time in the industry, and track record with OSHA. There really is no set of criteria to evaluate how good they really are. So they like that if they could have a uniform way to see what their workers can do with uniform certifications. This will help align contractors with the certifications. How does a carrier know who does the actual training versus someone who just copied credentials. So with TIRAP setting a uniform training and certification program to let them know what they can and cannot do.
Then Matthew asked what would be the ultimate solution for that, but ONET codes won’t really help the carriers, but what would help Verizon verify who is qualified?
Laurie would like to see a way that they could look at a database it would really help. There isn’t anything at this time but the sooner they have it the better.
Then David brought up that this is a real problem in this industry. He said the way to stop these companies it to catch them in the industry, but doing site audits.
Then Dave said that NWSA will help align their training credentials with a database lookup. This training has 37 different jobs that they will code which means one size does not fit all, but each one will be specialized. So they are being very specific about the training and certifications which is specific to the scope of work.
Joseph asked what is TIRAPs method for validation of training and how will this be different from internal training programs?
Dave came back and said that the federal government will have a role in this. Credentials will back up what they say and the government will back up prosecuting anyone with false credentials.
Joseph asked if the TIRAP board could do more to create standardized training modules and does the all-volunteer TIRAP board have the resources to complete this?
Dave said they need more time and money. They are taxing OSHA to support them which needs more time and money to support this program. Dave asked them to step and be all in. They need the support of the government to help them achieve the goal, the commitment to support them.
Then Jonathon brought up that this is a startup phase but they expect that when the larger companies start to pitch in then they can quickly adopt the apprenticeship programs then things will start to roll ahead faster.
Then David said that the program for the smaller companies that can’t hire a training staff, it will really help. What a great way to train veterans to be trained and use the GI Bill to get trained.
Matthew then asked what TIRAP could do to help veterans.
Dave (on the board for Warriors for Wireless) brought up that veterans are looking to build a career because they are always looking to advance. The wireless industry didn’t have that before but now they are building career paths for the people to get a job that they can succeed in and grown. A career that they will enjoy. A career that they will support their family with.
Jonathon said that this is the perfect industry for veterans because they are team oriented, safety oriented, and many are leaders. Maybe they want to move into different jobs and that is open to them now. The GI Bill could be used to train the veteran workforce and help them move ahead. The men and woman of the military are perfect to build a culture of safety.
Matthew wondered if Verizon would pay a higher rate to hire TIRAP trained contractors.
Laurie said that the job does not always go to the lowest bidder but to someone who is the most qualified and has the training in place. She said that Verizon understands that when a contractor says they need a man lift that they would allow that.
Matthew then asked could third-party auditing contractors, would that help.
David said it is very hard to stop this, no matter what you do it may not stop. They ask for the training certificates for the people on site and they did over 500 audits last year. The problem is that you have several companies that play this game and do not train people properly. He doesn’t think that audits could help.
Laurie said that audits would be a good place to start but it will not be enough. It’s a step in the right direction.
Matthew asked, Most companies are money driven and TIRAP would be driven by company owners, so if new companies pop up during the busy time, how would you know who is trained and who isn’t?
Dave said that the workers will not get the certificate until that worker is qualified and passes the certification program in TIRAP and NWSA. The on-the-job training for TIRAP is more thorough and requires more validation. The apprenticeship part of that will help as well but it takes time to get all of this in place. The workforce will be trained for their specific job, then there should also be a no tolerance policy for the cheaters. There isn’t one thing to be done but all of it has to be done right. It take time and adjustments to do it right. Do we love money or do we love the people that work for us? Dave asked his guys to stand up and we all applauded because he made the point that he loves his guys and he doesn’t want to see any of them get hurt. He thinks that all contractors should decide what they love more, their people or money. He hires the right guy for the job. He states that each company and worker will stand the test of time and that the industry is moving in that direction. We want to build something that is enduring.
Then Joseph asked how TIRAP works for the climbers for someone who has been in the industry for years.
David said that they can test out at each level.
Closing remarks
Dave said that we got a long way and let’s work it together. Each group has to do what they need to do be successful.
Chase said that safety starts with the company so if the company isn’t safe then the climber will take shortcuts. Don’t let complacency creep in because if you get complacent on the tower then you have accidents. Stay 100/100.
David thanked the FCC and OSHA and thinks that the industry needs more workshops like this. He said that he does not want to investigate any more fatalities, he has looked into 17.
Laurie said that safety is paramount and it needs to be the culture at all levels from the climber to the contractors to the engineers to the carriers. Everyone needs to accept that they have a role in safety. For the culture change we need to stop focusing on the money and focus on each other so we all are safe for the next time.
Jonathon said that we are in a special industry, wireless broadband that improves not only our lifestyle but for public safety. This will make changes by creating jobs and providing safety. We need to align the safety with the growth and the demands for mobile data. We need to do it right.
Then Kathy Pierce, a volunteer with the Hubble Foundation, gave a moving speech about her loss. Her son died 2 years ago and she was so emotional when she spoke of her son, Chad Weller who died working on a water tank about 2 years ago on March 19th in 2014. She was very emotional and it was so sad, it is very hard for her to talk about this. Kathy talked about how you need to climb with a clear mind. Safety isn’t someone else’s responsibility, it is yours. Everyone involved needs to be held accountable. It is not just one person’s fault. She brought up how her son made a difference in that company and she found it very sad that it took her son to die for that company to realize that they need to improve safety. Why does it take anyone’s family member to decide that they need to be strict on safety? She said that her son made a huge impact on their lives when he was here and now he is making a big impact on others now that he is gone. Kathy asked us all too truly commit ourselves to make a change to make the industry safer for all involved.Then Michael gave the closing thank you to all that attended and to his team.
I would like to thank the DOL and OSHA and the FCC for doing all that they do to help this industry become safe and professional.
The thing is I have met some of the absolute best people I have ever know in this industry, but I have also met some of the worst people I have known in this industry. I would like to see everyone in this industry become the best they can be and see the level of professionalism rise to the top of all industries. I pray I get to see that day. Let’s all work together for a safer and happier future in wireless. Let’s work together to make this happen. I spend a lot of spare time writing about this and not everyone likes it, but for all of you that appreciate it, thank you!
Remember that the FCC and OSHA are here to help. They are our friends in the endeavor to overhaul the industry. Sooner, the professionals will run the industry and the other will fall behind and out of this industry. It’s more than a dream, we have all the people that were at this panel working to make sure that it happens. I see great things for the future. I see the value added to each task added to this industry with a pride that wasn’t always there. I am honored to take that step with each of you that want to see a successful and safe wireless deployment into 5 G and beyond.
Remember that the FCC and OSHA are your friends! They are working hard to help you become better at your job and safe!
I am asking the carriers to provide numbers for workers to call to report payment issues and contractor issues. I didn’t hear from any of them yet, If you know it let me know at wade4wireless@gmail.com, but for now, call OSHA!
OSHA cares, don’t be afraid to call the number below and explain to them what is wrong at the site when you feel the work site is not safe! CALL OSHA to report unsafe work conditions!
To report an emergency, fatality, or imminent life threatening situation please contact our toll-free number immediately:
1-800-321-OSHA (6742)
OSHA is asking for public comment on Safety and Management, click here..
Give to the Hubble Foundation because if you don’t help these families, who will? Who supports Hubble? The wireless workers and the tower climbers, that’s who! So it’s up to you!What if it were you? Would you want help? Who would help you if you were hurt? Who would help your family, your spouse, your children if something happened to you? Do you see the people who are hurt?
This panel covered the RFI that OSHA put out last year to the tower climbing community, the people on the front lines, for Information on Tower Climber Safety, OSHA-2014-0018, and click here to learn more about it.
I will be at the NATE Unite conference February 23rd and 24th, will you be there? Let’s talk if you are! So who is going? The exhibit floor, map found here, where I will be the 24th to meet and greet as many people as I can! The schedule, found here. See you at NATE Unite! Remember that the TFF will auction off a professional drone package, details here.
Thank you FCC and DoL/OSHA for putting this together, for taking the time to show you care about making this a better industry.
Richard Cullum, PM at Crown Castle, TIRAP board member, former climber
Nick Vespa, Southeastern Towers,
Dr. Bridgette Hester, Hubble Foundation
Michael and Erin opened the session by asking Nick to explain a picture, an overloaded tower with about 8 dishes all at one level making it impossible to climb around, that he had put up on the monitors.
Nick explained how many towers are overloaded and not conducive for a tower climber to manage the climb. Then Nick showed how you may rely on a safety climb only to see it spliced farther up the tower. Then he showed a crooked tower, literally, and how it’s not used but still standing and left there by the owner.
Erin asked how the panelist felt about the RFI response. She did day they were pleased with the response regardless.
Craig said that the RFI was successful because the FCC and DOL allowed the climbers to respond freely. Craig pointed out how that Regulations.gov was not the best way to respond and Wireless Estimator was fortunate that they could serve as a portal for the climbers to use them and submit it into Regulations.gov openly.
Nick thought that social media really helped to get the word out. Making the link to comment readily available to the climbers to know about the RFI and reminding them to do it. They also were able to submit anonymously was something that really helped. The ease of participation made it a success.
Dr Hester thought that the responses were well thought out and pointed out how the schedules and pressures were brought to light in the RFI. She was happy that company owners were pointing out many of the same problems as the climbers were talking about. She thought that RF would be more of an issue since it is a health risk over the long-term. There are many studies that prove this and a hazard that needs more attention.
Then Michael asked the board to comment on some RFI feedback they got, first one, “The biggest problem is the rush carriers put on the GCs. We have a couple of weeks where we might not have any work. Then all of a sudden. We get four sites in and the companies expect these sites to be completed within a matter of days. We have to push our guys to the limits sometimes working two weeks straight 10-12 hours a day.”
Nick said that it is a great comment that sums up one of the main problems in the industry. You have timelines that in the contracts it states that you shouldn’t be fatigued and yet you need to get it done or they can’t go home or the don’t get paid. Even if they ask for another week they may not get future work.
Richard then pointed out that because of all the delays up front, mainly permitting, causes the tower workers to do more work in less time. If the tower structural fails then there are even more delays to make it safe. The decision process often creates more problems. Sometimes a new tower is not an option due to the local zoning ordinances, so you spend more money to make the existing tower better.
Michael had the next comment, “Most safety issues are directly a result of pressure from the wireless carriers to get the projects done in a very short time frame. Even though the field crews go through all the OSHA training like ComTrain, and other safety training, they feel they need to take short cuts to get the job done by the due dates specified by carriers. This means that they do not always adhere to the safety regulations purposely or are too exhausted and overlook steps to insure their safety and others safe working conditions on job sites.”
Dr Hester told us that she hears this from the field quite often. They say it comes from the carriers from the top down. But many climbers feel forced to do this by the sub that hired them to do it. They are often told to get it done no matter what. They still free climb and take short cuts so that they can get done and get paid. She brought up that it might not be complacency but acceptance that you need to get it done. She mentions that to change the safety culture is a good idea but how do you do it quickly, if you can.
Craig responded by not totally agreeing with Dr Hester that the pressures are causing fatalities but instead fatalities in 2014 were more about not knowing how to do the job or following the standards out there. These guys didn’t’ know where to get the information. He brought up the West Virginia incident where 2 climbers dies and a fireman died. He mentioned that maybe the solution should be better training, inspections, and enforce it.
Michael brought up that we all have a responsibility to make this industry safer, how we all are a part of the solution.
Michael then brought up the next slide, Erin read it, “The placement and positioning of equipment on the tower, however, probably has the greatest impact on climber’s ability to safely navigate the natural hazards of our work. Obstructions of tower integrated safety components is certainly one of the more common examples of this. Mounts themselves are often heavily crowded with equipment and cabling configuration that can require climbers to take greater risks simply to access the equipment they need to work on.” “T-Boom style mounts, for example, often greatly increase the difficulty of accessing the equipment by requiring the climber to execute the balancing act along one, often round, steel member to reach the equipment – then to hang six feet below the mount in order to access cabling and connections. Finding a means of creating greater ease of access to the equipment once on the tower would mitigate some of the risk inherent in working these structures, further allowing the workers to focus their attentions on less controllable hazardous elements.” Erin then asked for comments.
Richard responded with the options to improve the safety of the employees like getting a man lift or another options.
Nick brought up that some towers do have a sign pointing this out. He mentioned that it’s not enough.
Richard said that it’s up to the contractor to figure it out. He said that if it’s a construction project that the contractor is fully responsible, not the tower owner.
Michael then transitioned into the next note from the RFI. “The issue is the use of a copier to make everyone a certification. Every employee that I hired would submit a certification that was copied from someone else’s certification and their name added. I had 8 companies tell me that they had one person to the class and everyone is certified in their company with the use of a copier.”
Craig believes that the NWSA will resolve the certification problems that we see today.
Nick thought that NWSA was also a great thing. He verified that it is a common problem in the industry.
Michael then brought up another comment which Erin read. “I was sent to test a [company’s] site with 2 climbers and when he got there he was working with 2 climbers. When we got to the site, one of the two climbers had two weeks of experience but had only climbed one time and the other climber had been hired the day before. Climber B, (the one hired the day before) decided he didn’t want to do this job any more and quit on site and climber A with 2 weeks experience belted up, and started climbing but had trouble with his safety climb about 60’ up the tower. Climber B exhausted himself trying to figure out how to get his safety climb sleeve past the bracket and I had to go up and rescue Climber A from 60’. In order to finish the job, I had to let the company rep use the site master to test while I climbed the tower to 160’, changed the TMA and completed the tower side of the sweep process. This was a regular occurrence.”
Dr Hester said that she gets this call all time from the field that many climbers are so poorly trained or they are not trained at all. Many complain that they are not trained and thrown into situations that they are not trained for. She would like to see TIRAP correct problems like these.
Richard said that he also sees things like that in the field where many times they send the untrained climber up because the older climbers feel they have done their time.
Nick says that he sees it often. Many times these new guys could be the problem and as it gets worse it could cause more fatalities.
Dr Hester said that they are often just passed to another company and the problems is not resolved.
The next issue brought up was weather. 2 comments – “We work in conditions that other construction workers with “safer” jobs don’t. Everyone climbs in the rain even if its policy not to. Refuse to climb in harsh weather and you will never go anywhere in this business” “Weather is also a major contributor to safely working on towers. Contractors in the north deal with every weather condition out there during the year. There doesn’t seem to be any standard available out there as to the limits to temperatures, wind, or snow/ice accumulation on the towers. It is basically up to the field employees and their managers to decide when the employees should be climbing or not.”
Nick said that weather is an issue, but it would be hard to have a standard because of the variations in temperature across the US. Florida weather and North Dakota weather are very different.
Richard said that it should be up to the competent person who is on site to make the call.
Dr Hester said that many people try to cancel the work but it still needs to be done and the manager requires them to do it.
Craig said that weather can’t stop you from working, the environment will not be perfect. You can do it safely.
Erin then read a question from the audience, “What do you believe will be able to help with those timelines?”
Richard said that the process the permitting issue should be streamlined. The consultants add a lot of delays because they often question the safety of the tower. He pointed out that while the tower is inspected by the tower owner, they do not do safety inspections because he said that is the responsibility of the contractor, not the tower owner. The tower owner often needs to correct tower issues. He said that often the restrictions put on them by the consultants adds delays to deployment.
An audience member asked about the oversight of training, does it need to be escalated to a higher level?
Nick said that the level of training is critical and the lack of consistency is a problem in the industry. There will be a formal approach to the certifications and training will be great for the industry.
Craig talked about TIRAP and NWSA working together to provide standards in training and certifications to move forward. He said that this industry is moving quickly with the standardization of training.
Michael’s next question stated that there isn’t one contractor here today where they haven’t worked a 2 week straight 10-12 hour day. He said that this industry has few limits on work schedules. He brought up the trucking industry and how they limit the number of hours they drive.
Dr Hester said that management has full control and they have them work the long hours anyway. She said that some of it is the climber mentality, it’s a need to change the safety culture.
Michael responded asking what the safeguard could be put in or implemented to make this change. (I think that a logbook system needs to be implemented)
Then Richard said that its employer is responsible and pointed out that Dave Anthony stays close to home to work. That travel is a problem. He said he used to be gone 3 weeks and home one.
Craig then said that he understood the dilemma but he stated that a truck driver on the road could kill many other people but a tower climber will really injury only himself. He pointed out that everyone works long hours, its part of life. He said that every industry works hard and long hours, but not use how to manage that in a safe way.
Richard said when his crew worked long hours they took other breaks to do other things.
Dr Hester mentioned that there is more issues on the climbers that affect mental health that could cause bad decision-making. She feels the employers don’t take the time to do a mental check to make sure the climbers are healthy.
Then Erin asked another audience question, she asked about who pays to make the tower safer if there is an obstruction, like if you mean you need a man lift or a crane or if there is already a T arm on the tower? If one company will climb on them then the contractor will not pay for a crane to do the work. The carriers need to make the crane a mandatory requirement to use a crane.
Nick said that to go in there with a crane or a man basket then someone will have to pay for it and it will cost more money. There are other ways to do it but it may be cost prohibitive for the carrier to do hire the qualified crew to do it right.
The Craig said that it would be wonderful if the carriers could get together to come up with joint standards of any project to put rules around it to get a fair bidding process. He also said that you can rig and do it safely but it needs to be done right.
The Michael asked another question, 2013 and 2014 were busy, 2015 was not. Fatality injuries go directly with carrier expenditures meaning there are unqualified workers doing the work. Do you think better vetting and putting more qualifications in place would reduce injuries? I have never in 17 years seen a safety line item on a bid.” The second question goes like this, “The tower owner states that the contractor is responsible to know the tower is safe. How can a third-party do this when they may not be qualified to know the structure or they may not know that the safety climb is broken 200 feet up the tower. Should there be a federal mandate stating that the tower owner should inspect the tower every 5 years?”
Richard responded by stating that the TIS states it as they have to inspect their towers and structures aver 5 or 7 years. Are responsible for the problems like the safety climb is not connected 200 foot up? They also hire contractors to do the work. If a contractor does not do the safety climb properly then they should be criminally negligent. Why would a contractor do that? They do all that they can to be TIA compliant. They allow tie off point and they advocate to use tie off anchorage of step bolts. But what if someone rigs to it and stretches it out and the next time someone uses it and it break causing an accident? How can tower owners know that?
Nick thinks there needs to be a better way to vet the contractors doing the work. Maybe their lowest bid because they cut corners. Maybe there should be a third-party audit to make sure it’s done right.
Craig mentioned that the person asking was well versed but he said that the question is answered in TIA-222 and 1019A and that contractors need to read these documents and spend the money to buy them. He says that the document costs around $700 but they need to buy that document and it is where they should start. He said he was talking to Scott Kisting from TIRAP and a lot of people will contact him and ask him how to rig it. The answers are in those standards documents and also in OSHA regulations. People need to take the time an effort to read this.
Nick said the answered are there but the everyday tower dog is not going to take time to read hundreds of pages to look how to rig. The ones in the field need to know it.
Craig says that reading is required. (He is implying that all climbers or crew owners should purchase and read the required documents like TIA-222G)
The closing statements:
Craig said he likes enforcement but it is necessary. The FCC and OSHA need to keep enforcing the rules.
Richard followed up with agreement o Craig saying that action matters. He went on to thank the leadership of Crown Castle for being an advocate for safety in the industry.
Nick said he doesn’t see enforcement as being feasible because of how spread out the work and the towers are. It will be too late until they get there. It is up to the company to train each individual properly.
Dr Hester agrees that we need great training and also that if we could have a third-party track problems, now with big data we could track everything is we took the time to create the system to do it. Follow who is at every tower to work. Follow all the potential avenues available to improve this industry.
Remember that the FCC and OSHA are your friends! They are working hard to help you become better at your job and safe!
I am asking the carriers to provide numbers for workers to call to report payment issues and contractor issues. I didn’t hear from any of them yet, If you know it let me know at wade4wireless@gmail.com, but for now, call OSHA!
OSHA cares, don’t be afraid to call the number below and explain to them what is wrong at the site when you feel the work site is not safe! CALL OSHA to report unsafe work conditions!
To report an emergency, fatality, or imminent life threatening situation please contact our toll-free number immediately:
1-800-321-OSHA (6742)
OSHA is asking for public comment on Safety and Management, click here..
Give to the Hubble Foundation because if you don’t help these families, who will? Who supports Hubble? The wireless workers and the tower climbers, that’s who! So it’s up to you!What if it were you? Would you want help? Who would help you if you were hurt? Who would help your family, your spouse, your children if something happened to you? Do you see the people who are hurt?
Happy Holidays my friends. I appreciate all of you that supported me throughout the years. I appreciate you more than you know. I thank GOD for having such a good crew following me. I really appreciate the support. Thank you!
I work hard for all of you hoping that you find value is what I am putting together for all of you. Remember that I’m here to help you any way I can. I intend to make this valuable to the small cell and DAS teams by adding more and more information. The LTE deployments are going to ramp up in 2016 and 2017 so let’s make sure we are all prepared to do quality work.
I will do what I can to keep you informed of what is going on in the industry as well as tips to help you deploy the right way.
Happy holidays to all you and may you all be blessed with a great and prosperous New Year! May GOD bless all of you now and all year.
Wade
Don’t be afraid to tell me what you want me to talk about in 2016! The sooner the better! Besides, this will put you on my weekly newsletter to keep you in the know!
Tower Safety graduates could get a tablet with all of my books on it!
Find out more below.
Tower Safety and Instruction, how often do you hear that as a sales pitch? Well, you know you need it to work in this industry. Even with NATE pushing NWSA certification at you, with the help of AT&T, you know that your climbers need to be trained. My sponsor, Tower Safety, (480-313-0678) is more than just someone who helps me out! They are an Arizona accredited school, which is more than most schools can say. They are approved by the state as a real school in Arizona. Yes, not a fly by Night Company but a certified school that is also currently a member of NATE. I don’t know how much longer that will last because NATE is making it clear that the schools are not as important as the NWSA certification is, but I am getting off point.
Tower Safety is going to train you for all you need to get started in tower training. If you are getting out of the military then you can get some help here. They can help you get the help you need to get trained properly and be prepared for you new career. This is something that all tower site workers need. Not only the tower training and rescue that goes without saying, but also the OSHA 10 hour and the First Aid and CPR training.
Tower Safetyhas the facility to train you at their location, although they will come to you. They have just added 2 antenna booms for you to train on. How cool is that? They have a 150’ tower crane to let you practice on, again, really cool! This is the place to be for the training. They are co-located with a crane training facility so if you want to coordinate the training, it may be an option.
Don’t settle for less than the best, get what you need and get a well-rounded education. Remember, this is going to be your career, not your hobby. Do it right the first time!
They offer rigging class, capstan training, and ropes training by a rescue veteran that has instructed people around the world. Someone well-rounded who trains in mountain rescue, confined space, even water rescue. Someone who has trained lineman can help. This is someone you can count on for training and a few good stories.
Tower Safety isn’t going to stop or slow down, oh no! They are adding drone training because that will be a major part of inspections and the close out packages for the future, more on that below. They also are adding a crane rescue course.
The other thing that most training companies miss for the tower climber is the fiber skills. This is something that is coming to Tower Safety because they know that the carriers require fiber skills.
You see, Tower Safetyunderstand the needs of the tower worker., It’s not just tower work you’re doing anymore, fiber work, rigging, climbing, safety, first aid, CPR, and everything needed to make sure that you can do your job and be prepared to save someone when necessary.
The training covered by Tower Safetyis all about safety and doing the job right. Education is more than just reading. When working on a tower you need to prepare for the more than latest certifications, you need to have hands on experience. This training will provide the tower climber with the training needed to do their job. The certifications will provide the tower climber with the proof that they are certified. Most customers don’t just ask if you are trained but they require proof, certifications matter.
The training provided is around tower work. TheTower Safetytower and rescue training is to provide the tower climber with the skills to work on the tower safely and to rescue a fellow worker in trouble. This training is required and should be renewed annually because changes in the industry are happening on a regular basis. The tower safetyand instruction meets ANSI Z359, NATE CTS, and OSHA standards. The instructor will work with the student to insure that they have a good understanding of tower work and safety techniques.
Don’t worry, when the NWSA standards are released, this will be incorporated into the program to make sure you are prepared for the certification test.
Let’s not forget that the OSHA training will be required by most customers. Tower Safetyoffer both OSHA 10 hour training and OSHA 30 hour training. The requirements are different based on what you job duties will be at the tower site. The key is safety training when working at a remote tower site! Make sure you are prepared with CPR and First-Aid training. Why? Because the tower crew could be at a tower site where first aid will be needed before help arrives.
Hazards are a key factor at the tower site. There are hazards you don’t see, like RF. So make sure that tower site workers have RF Awareness training.
This school goes deeper than normal training. The introduction to new equipment and why are we not using a lineman’s favorite harness, or ANSI rated aluminum carabiners, polyester vs. nylon rope is explained at this school. There is a pick-off stick to rescue someone off a boom, why is that not part of our rescue bag?
There is always the possibility of risking the life of a rescuer while getting to the victim. As you know It is best practice for the rescuer to get above the victim, but what if they attach a carabiner and rope to his D-ring by this rescue clip and carefully descend him to the ground. It keeps rescuing simple and takes the thought out of rigging and pick off.
Rescue Clip with 14 foot, high strength pole. Made of 7075 extruded aluminum tubing which resists bending. Collapses to 4 feet to easily fit in a truck compartment. Comes with three stage auto lock carabiner and attachment sling. See if the is video link helps:
Just wait, there’s more that Tower Safetyoffers that other don’t! I now that you are thinking, is this it? There is so much more that sets this school apart! With every Climber course Tower Safetywill be giving a free tablet to every student, with extras from yours truly Wade4Wireless.com, all my books will be available. These tablets show the forward thinking of Tower Safety and the availability for a Google hangout or live on meerkat with a Tower SafetyTablet (TST). The usefulness of the TST to have instant access to knots, ropes, safety, OSHA, ANSI will be an asset to the tower worker and contractor.
What do they offer, read below!
Training for the tower worker included:
Authorized Climber – 16 hours of training
Competent Climber – 16 hours of training
Authorized Rescuer/Train the Trainer-24 hours of training
OSHA 10-hour Construction minimum 10 hours of training
OSHA 30-hour Construction-minimum 30 hours of training
RF Awareness- 4 hours of training
First Aid/CPR- 5 hours of training
Tower Safetyhas branched out, following the lead of NATE, to offer crane and rigging training. Before NATE announced working with the NCCCO, I had moved in with Tech Testing, a NCCCO crane school and knew the two industries worked together but separate and then it was announced. Not sure how we can phrase that but I would prefer if we lead instead of followed NATE… ego J. Working with the NCCCO for crane operator training. This certified crane operator, (CCO), training is offered at Tower Safetyas well.
Crane operators are offered the following courses:
Crane Operator Training
Lift Director Training
Rigger Training
Signal Person Training
Forklift Certification Training
Inspection Training
OSHA
Tower Safety, being an accredited school, offers career services for students to utilize. They believe that the best defense against unemployment is to provide specialized career training and professional support. This service will provide the student with a good start in finding employment. Offering an employment services will give the people who are new to the workforce or new to the tower industry a way to connect with tower companies that are looking for trained people who have the necessary certifications.
They are developing the Drone training program. Drones are up and coming in the tower industry. They may be used for tower inspections and close out packages. However, to use drones for professional services will require training and certification. The FAA is still putting together the requirements for workers to use drones in the tower industry. Once these details have been worked out the training should be released shortly after.
Give to the Hubble Foundation because if you don’t help these families, who will? Who supports Hubble? The wireless workers and the tower climbers, that’s who! With no support from the carriers or NATE, so it’s up to you!What if it were you? Would you want help? Who would help you if you were hurt? Who would help your family, your spouse, your children if something happened to you? Do you see the people who are hurt?
I would personally like to thank all of you for all of your support and for following me. I am committed to serving the best I can. Thank you for your feedback and for making my blog and podcast a success! We’re in this together.
I written over 284 posts for the blog. I had over 194,000 views, I had over 138,000 visitors, over 15,000 views last month! Thank you!
I recorded over 160 podcasts. Over 8,000 downloads. Thank you!
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Thank you Tower Safety for all that you have done for me! 480-313-0678! Thank you for serving the industry by providing all of our tower and OSHA training!
Who is at fault, better question, who will pay for the changes when there are installation problems? I thought that I would go over a Q&A session that might help all of you deployment people out there. When putting in a system these are all issues that I have heard about in the past.
Many people ask me about the leasing and permitting side of the business. I am talking about problems that site survey people and installers may run into. Now the site acquisition people know what they are doing, so this is probably old news for them. What about the people on site? Are you going to be held responsible for problems that arise if there is a permitting issue? Remember, the problem is usually with the landlord, this is after the site acquisition teams are out of the picture. It’s the installer who gets yelled at by the landlord or gets the fine from a passing cop, not the site acquisition people! The survey team may need to do some due diligence before sending the crew out to do the installation. So here are some questions that I asked Rob Turner in Atlanta. Rob is a partner in a law firm that deals with real estate and site infrastructure and an all around nice guy. His firm is360 Venture Law if you’re interested. Hey, this is free advice from someone who deals with this daily! I have 12 questions that I wrote to Rob and he answered below. I cover lese, permitting, and problems with installation.
The Wireless Deployment book should be out next week! All the steps for small cells and CRAN to help you identify problems throughout the process, the entire process. Design to optimization covered here with an emphasis on planning.
When looking at a building, how do I find out who owns/manages the site?
Beyond a direct inquiry with the front desk security officer (if the building has one), a helpful starting point is the county tax assessor’s office. Typically, you can search property owner records with the assessor’s office. Once you determine the owner, you can then contact them for an introductory discussion (which may lead you to any property manager retained by the owner).
When planning to mount on the roof, do I still need to go through zoning and permitting?
This answer assumes that the location has been leased from the property owner and that it was confirmed that local zoning allows communications antennas on rooftops prior to the lease. Prior to any construction and/or installation, the tenant will need to: 1) confirm with the local ordinances whether additional building permits are required for the antenna installation (most likely); and 2) review the lease agreement to determine what types of consents, etc. may be needed from the landlord (note: even if consent not required by the lease, from a liability protection standpoint, the tenant is STRONGLY encouraged to obtain the landlord’s written consent to this work).
If I want to mount my small cell on a wall, say 10’ above ground, would the person that managed the roof be the contact? In other words, would the roof manager also manage the mounting to the lower parts of a building?
Always start with the underlying site lease agreement to determine what the ‘leased premises’ are and the extent of your permitted use (basically: what space can you use on the property to locate your antenna and equipment). The lease will also indicate who the appropriate contact persons are for any property-related questions. For the question above, the person that manages the rooftop is probably also responsible for managing the overall exterior of the building.
If I decide to mount my radio head in a stairway window, who would help me coordinate the mounting.
The property owner/property manager contact should be your starting point. This is important because in addition to coordinating the actual on-site work, there may be a need for this type of mounting to occur after normal business hours to avoid disturbing other tenants in the building. As noted with the other comments above, the carrier should always confirm in its lease whether landlord’s consent is required before completing any such work – especially that involves drilling into the building’s exterior structure.
If someone has to core drill through a floor and followed the drawings but cause a tenant problems, who would be at fault?
For this scenario and in all likelihood, the party that completed the drilling is going to have some level of responsibility. Virtually all communications infrastructure lease agreements include ‘indemnity’ provisions. A lease indemnity is where a tenant agrees to pay the landlord for any costs/expenses/damages suffered by the landlord from tenant’s actions. In this scenario, whether the core drilling was conducted by the tenant (or one of its subcontractors) they can certainly expect the landlord to ask them to pay for any damages they cause the other tenants within the building.
If after the installation is completed and the equipment’s fans are very noisy in a building or on a street pole, what would happen if the nearby people complained? On a street is may be someone’s home. In a building it may be a tenant. What would happen when the people complain? Who would be held responsible for this resolution?
Guidance for resolving this type of scenario will come from the site lease agreement. If the equipment is located in a building and the fans, etc. are generating noise that impacts other tenants, this will be an issue for the landlord (having to deal with its other tenants) but likely one for the communications company as well (most leases have non-interference language in them). If we look to a street pole for example and nearby neighbors are complaining, the communications company will need to confirm they met all appropriate permits, etc. for their installation and operation. Presuming they are properly permitted, they will need to factor in the potential impact on their ‘good will’ in the community by NOT taking action to mitigate the sound. Just like many matters in real estate, this is a site-specific question.
If there needs to be a new utility, (like power or backhaul), that is needed on the roof, should that be negotiated in the lease prior to the installation with the landlord?
This scenario is a common point of contention for carriers and landlords. Landlords want absolute control over their property/structures, while the tenant wants to ensure that it can construct and operate its antenna and equipment for the duration of the lease term without having to always ask landlord for permission. Most leases will contain a broad ‘maintenance & upgrades’ provision that provide the tenants flexibility for ensuring their antenna and equipment are current over the lease term. Depending on how the lease agreement established utility rights within the building (e.g., through a dedicated conduit, risers, etc.), and if the tenant requires additional space within the building to run utilities to the antenna and equipment, coordination with the landlord will be required. Note: if the tenant believes landlord consent is required, that has the potential to be a long lead time item.
When choosing a pole to mount on in a city street, how is the lease handled?
Under this scenario, the carrier will first have to determine who owns the pole. Assuming the pole is owned by a utility provider, the tenant is going to have to coordinate a lease agreement with that city’s utility provider for the actual space on the pole. Note: there are a number of other variables to address with pole mounted antenna including power to the mounted equipment and ensuring fiber access.
For poles, if fiber is on one side of the street and not on the other, how hard is it to change an asset with utility or city owned poles? In other words, does one entity generally own all the poles?
Within a given municipality, one or more utilities may control most/all of the poles. As such, a prospective tenant will need to coordinate its potential use with the appropriate utility operator. Speaking to the question on changing from one side of the street to the other, this is where a tenant should put a lot of time and effort into its pre-lease due diligence to determine where the underground utilities are located on the sides of a given road – that information will no doubt help guide the potential tenant to which poles will best serve its needs.
If fiber is needed, who decides if it has to be run overhead or underground?
The fiber question will be determined in part by: the utility easements on either side of a particular road; the particular company that will run the fiber and what types of municipal permits are required for the work, and how long it takes to obtain those permits. The companies that install fiber have to address all of those factors, along with the carrier’s needs (e.g., how many access points along a particular route) to determine whether to locate fiber underground or overhead.
If the installer mounts a small cell in the wall as per the landlords specifications and there are problems, who is at fault?
This scenario will be fact-dependent on what happened and any damages that arose from the event. Even though the carrier followed the landlord’s specs, if the carrier was negligent with its installation, it could be at fault and potentially liable to the landlord (and landlord’s other tenants). See the comment above regarding indemnity for some more perspective.
If there is a zoning issue after the fact or if the municipality fails the installation, how should each party proceed?
As a general rule, virtually all leases are structured so that if there are subsequent changes in laws and regulations that impact or limit the ability to operate a tower or roof-mounted antenna, that the tenant can terminate the lease without liability to the landlord.
So there you have it, the answers some of the questions I get asked. If you have more questions then let me know by reaching out to me at wade4wireless@gmail.com. If you would like to know more about Rob and 360 Venture Law, read on!
About Rob: Rob Turner is a partner with the technology law firm 360 Venture Law, LLP based in Atlanta.www.360vlaw.com Rob has a strong commercial real estate and communications infrastructure component to his law practice and has worked extensively with property owners throughout the country assisting them with cell tower and rooftop lease matters. He welcomes the opportunity to further discuss your particular property’s needs. He may be reached at rturner@360vlaw.com.
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I am asking you to help the Hubble Foundation because if you don’t help these families, who will? The carriers do not support Hubble and neither does NATE, so it’s up to you! What if it were you? Would you want help? Who would help you if you were hurt? Who would help your family, your spouse, your children if something happened to you? Do you see the people who are hurt?
I know that all of you have heard of the copper thieves and how 98% of them get away clean. The exception is the husband and wife team that stole batteries. Well, I talked to Craig Moran, sales manager at UAS, who says he has the answer to catching the bad guys once and for all.
Here is the problem, someone goes on the site and they steal any copper or anything they think would be valuable that they could take to a scrap yard and sell. Copper draws a higher price so they look for pretty clean copper. Then when you get an alarm or get to the site, you realize that your site has been robbed of all the copper. This causes you to worry about the next storm that goes through with lighting that could destroy your equipment because the grounding is gone. You also need to worry about the price of not only the hardware but the labor to replace it all. Those scumbags just vandalized your site, your property, and cost you thousands of dollars just so they could have beer money. Let’s make them pay! But how? Read on my friends.
Wireless Deployment Steps for small cells and CRAN to help you through the process, the entire process. Design to Optimization.
We have painted and tarred the copper to protect it. This works for most but you always have the idiots that try to cut the power lines or rip out the ground arrays because they have plenty of time at a remote site with no one watching it. Let’s face it, not many people are going to pay a security guard to watch the site, especially since they may be one of the culprits to show up later.
So what service is out there that could help us out? Well Craig called me to tell me that they have a solution. It isn’t free, so get that out of your head. It is a combination of motions sensors, video, and a service that monitors the video to make sure there is a human at the site. They would need to work with the NOC because if the person on site checks in then there is no problem, just a video of them on site. The service pays off when someone does not sign in and they enter illegally. Then the service would alert the owners or the police, whatever they are told to do. Then, in theory, the police would go to the site immediately to catch the bastards stealing from you and ruining your site!
This videofied is designed to catch criminals, via a high priority police dispatch. This works best in an on/off environment. Either you should be there or you shouldn’t.
Here are some pictures of what it would look like.
Video to the Central Station for review and dispatch – Monitored Video Alarm
Other video solutions ISOLATEthe video from the central station. ONLY viewed by owner. Usually the next day! Too late!
Most video cameras sold with alarm systems are NOT monitored at Central Station and do not deliver faster police response.
Self-Surveillance NOT video verification.
For more information contact Craig Moran, UAS, Sales Manager, 800-421-6661 ext 1283, craig.moran@uas.com, www.uas.com. UAS has been around as an integrated security company for 43 years, so they are not new.
Be smart, be safe, and pay attention!
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I am asking you to help the Hubble Foundation because if you don’t help these families, who will? What if it were you? Would you want help? Who would help you if you were hurt? Who would help your family, your spouse, your children if something happened to you? Do you see the people who are hurt?
Close out packages are one step in the process. One that really matters to get paid. If you have ever done a close out package then you know how long they can take. You need to verify everything at the site and you need to take a photo of everything on the tower. This is where you can document everything. Personally, you should have everything documented prior to hanging it on the tower and you should know all of the serial numbers before it was hung and where they are. But this isn’t a perfect world and there have been so many mistakes in the past that they need to verify everything with close out packages. They may not even be done by the installers. Maybe a close out crew or a Tiger Team that goes in after the fact. Documentation matters for so many reasons.
One thing I hear about is how many crews need to make a second trip out to the tower site to complete the closeout package. This is a common thing but wouldn’t it be nice to do it right the first time? As you all know I am a fan ofField Dailiesfor close out packages. The reason is that they have streamlined the close out process by using your iPhone, or Droid, to send the site pictures direct from the site to a document. This is a software package that uses the cloud to process the pictures and put them into the closeout document. That way the climber doesn’t have to worry about going back to the room at night and either emailing them to someone or putting them into the document themselves. It also saves the office people from looking over each picture and hoping that they are named correctly for the document. Remember if something is wrong it causes problems down the road.
I am not sure if you know but carriers really use the close out documents more than you know. They are going to rely on that document to verify their work orders when turning up the site. If there are problems they are going to reference the document to verify grounding. When they pay the crews they will review the serial numbers in the pictures and documentation to make sure that all the OEM equipment is where I should be. This is the key to all the contractors getting paid.
If there are upgrades they will refer to the documentation to verify the serial numbers so they can cross reference what hardware version the RRH is. They may also like to review the plumbing on the tower. What this is the cabling needs to be correct. Now, with MIMO and multiband RRHs, the connections to the antennas are critical. There could be 1 to 8 RF cables from the RRH to each antenna. It might not be noticeable immediately but id the cables are messed up, then coverage is messed up and then someone has to go out and troubleshoot and fix it!
So again, when usingField Dailiesyou can provide the streamline process from the tower to the closeout document. The climber can name the photo and upload it, if they have coverage, immediately to the directory in the cloud. Then from there the app will put it into the document for you. All the office people have to do is inspect, clean up, and verify the pictures are clear and accurate. It saves so much time. Anything that saves time in the process is good. Workers already spent a full day at the site, why should they sit around and spend all night labeling and posting pictures. Then if there is a problem with the internet connection or their laptop, that adds a longer delay. Just do it all in one process.
Now, the future may hold new ideas. I hear a lot about drones doing more and more. I think if logistics and installation can properly ID the serial numbers before the equipment goes up then the drones may be used for a light close out package along with post installation inspections. I really think that they can streamline the process and cut costs. If you could send one person out to take the pictures then it helps. They should save time because they won’t be climbing, just prepping the drone to fly up and inspect. I hope thatField Dailieswill come up with a drone package so they can help make that a clean and efficient process as well.
When closing out make sure that you Know theSOW before you start. Before going up in the air make sure that you understand what you are inspecting, what pictures need to be taken, and what information needs to be gathered. Thescopeneeds to be known before you start. You may need to look at not only the antennas and RRHs, but where they are, the tape measure drop, the cable connection verification, and all grounding. It is tedious, but it need to be done to verify the installation. The close out is a type of inspection of the installation. When inspecting make sure it’s done right as well as taking pictures to verify. Not only the parts high up, but the cabling and grounding coming down and the equipment in the cabinet or shelter.
What do you think? Let me know and tell me how you complete your close out packages. Will this be an asset for small cells and CRAN? Will it help out with DAS? I hear many of you are already doing it.
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I am asking you to help the Hubble Foundation because if you don’t help these families, who will? What if it were you? Would you want help? Who would help you if you were hurt? Who would help your family, your spouse, your children if something happened to you? Do you see the people who are hurt?
Did you ever climb an AM tower? I’ll bet if you answer no, you think that it’s no big deal, right? Wellcheck out this video and maybe you will feel differently. Pretty hot, right, I meant the tower, it’s a hot tower, meaning that if they didn’t put the shorting jumper on it then you would get a serious shock and burn. You can hear the AM when he pulls it off and puts it back on. By the way, RSI has anoverview of AM here.
This isn’t about the climbing of the actual AM tower though. Let’s talk about the AM tower’s neighbors. The nearby towers that can be affected by the AM power radiating and causing problems. In what way? It causes the towers to charge and can bring the noise level up. AM radio stations create serious noise for other operators. Oh, and the FCC has clear rules about what you need to do to “detune” your tower if it sits near an AM tower. In fact,LBA lays out the 13 new rules clearly here. Not only to protect yourself, but to protect the AM stations transmission pattern. It matters to the FCC and it may not matter to you unless you are bombarded with noise issues or you get shocked on your tower or maybe, the FCC will send you a citation asking to comply.
So if you own or maintain a cell tower and want to remain compliant with the FCC, how do you know if it’s detuned? Well, according to a post by Lawrence Behr found here, you install a detuning system to remain compliant. It matters for so many reasons which I am outlining here, to be FCC compliant and for safety and to minimize noise. It all matters.
AM is Amplitude Modulation and in this case we mean AM broadcast. Lots of power in the540KHz to 1700KHz. band. This may not mean much to you. I worked near AM tower for years and the main thing I remember is trying to filter out Rush Limbaugh from all of my leased lines. Yes, I had many leased lines back in the day and AM would bleed into everything. However, I digress, let’s get back to the issue of hot towers.
Well, AM towers have been around for a very long time so this is something that you may want to learn about. If you climbers ever climbed a hot tower then you know that there is a process to climb it. They will either turn down the power down or you make the leap onto the tower. If it is live, then you feel the hot spots on the tower. The LBA post has so many good tips in it.
Detuning is probably something that most of you never think about. An important aspect here is that Compliance with the FCC. If you climbed a tower that has large ground wires run down the sides, then you probably saw the tuning systems. They generally stick out form the tower a few feet. It is very obvious. I am not talking about the ground wires that you tie tight to the tower. The large wires on the detuning system makes the tower look “invisible” to the AM pattern so it does not interfere (too much) with the radiation pattern. However, if you touch them you may get a shock! For more on AM detuning, go tohttps://www.lbagroup.com/and let them know that Wade sent you there!
By the way,LBA just appointed Gary Doyleas the new VP and General Manager of LBA’s safety training unit, LBA University, Inc. (LBAU). Congratulations to Gary.
So when on a hot tower or a detuned tower, what do you need to be aware of? Do you know if the detuning system is working and tested? Call the tower owner and ask. Do you need isolation hardware to mount your hardware? You may need help. Make sure you understand the site design. Make sure the installation crew knows all about the tower before they step foot on site. This is why LBA consults for something like this, to avoid the problems before they happen.
If you are mounting RRHs, make sure you know if they need special grounding or isolation. You may needisocouplers, which should isolate the equipment properly. Find out up front. They have an article on theirTunipole if you’re interested.
This is another hazard you need to be aware of if you are climbing. If you are working at the tower then be aware of what could zap you. If you are commissioning, be aware of the noise you are dealing with. If you are aware of not only your tower, but the nearby towers and the problems they may be causing you, then you are one step ahead of the competition!
The new “Wireless Deployment Book for LTE Small Cells, CRAN and DAS” should be ready by October! It will be geared towards small cells and CRAN. If your interested, feel free to sign up for my newsletter below.
