Developing a new transmitter site can be major project. Toss in mountainous terrain and zoning board hassles; just getting it done is a major accomplishment. Jim Keightley managed to navigate political, bureaucratic, and other interests to complete a county Public Safety system in 30 months. A very few years ago, I noticed an […]

Although an engineer is not really supposed to be a landscaper, largely due to the isolation of many transmitter sites he often ends up overseeing what care is given to the land and building. Dave Dybas discusses how to solve part of the problem. Maintaining a clean tower site is often a battle […]

It seems rather contradictory: broadcasters install expensive, state-of-the-art equipment, then attach it to a tower reaching hundreds of feet in the air – virtually inviting lightning hits. How can broadcasters protect their plant? Lightning Eliminators & Consultants’ JoOnna Silberman explains. Understanding how lightning works, the threat that it represents, and the steps you […]

Every broadcast station must post information signs of one sort or another, ranging from the Antenna Structure Registration Number to RF Radiation warning signs to contact information. Of course, the signs then must be maintained. And that sometimes generates an idea or two. If you have ever managed a broadcast transmitter site, among […]

In the past few years, broadcasters have benefited from FCC’s Rule changes to simplify design and construction of directional antennas via the Method of Moments (MoM). One of the hallmarks of MoM is a sharp reduction in the field measurements needed to prove an array. Yet, many stations still take measurements for various […]

In the old days, if something went wrong at the station, someone would dial your pager pretty quickly to get your attention. But now that we have moved on to mostly empty studios and monitor everything by smart phones and email, how can you be sure that you will not miss an important […]

Most of the time, after a tower site is constructed, it is assumed it will “just be there” for as long as the station needs it. However, that is sort of like buying a car and never changing the oil or tires. Eventually something not very good will happen. Good maintenance prevents that. […]

CPR – Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation – is something you hear about all the time. But in an emergency at your transmitter site, would you know what to do? You should. CPR training is something that most of us have heard about, but many of us seem never quite got around to doing. On the […]

Perhaps the most pressure-packed part of a broadcast engineer’s life is dealing with off-air situations. Besides the pressure of figuring out what is wrong with gear that runs high voltages and/or currents, there often also is a barrage of phone calls and/or visitors asking “What’s wrong? When will we be back up?” As […]

Site security includes a good fence. But that can be a budget buster, especially for the more remote sites or those that are just on difficult terrain. Bill Putney came up with a great idea to solve the problem at his station. Here is an interesting approach that we took to install fences […]