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Dielectric receives grant to increase broadband coverage and decrease the nation's towers July 1, 2009 - Dielectric Communications, a division of SPX and a leader in broadcast antenna systems, has been awarded a grant in the amount of $2.2M from the Maine Technology Institute's Maine Technology Asset Fund to develop a wireless communication laboratory at the University of Maine. In collaboration with the University, Dielectric will work to expand its cutting-edge wireless technology platform to new applications - including a more cost-effective method of delivering wireless broadband services to fixed and mobile users in rural Maine that can then be applied in other rural areas worldwide. "Not only will the MTAF grant provide the foundation for global growth opportunities for our company, which has been doing business in Maine for 67 years, but it's a win-win for the state and the University as well," said Garrett VanAtta, president of Dielectric Communications. "We expect the laboratory to evolve into a global center for wireless innovation, which will attract new federal and industry grant funds to the University and better prepare engineering students for high-tech positions. And, since other Maine businesses will have access to the technology, the promise of wireless broadband access for all Maine citizens may soon become a reality." "The establishment of a new state-of-the-art laboratory at the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department will allow University researchers and Dielectric engineers to work toward the creation of the next generation of wireless communications devices and networks," said Dr. Mohamad T. Musavi, chair and professor of the ECE Department. The novelty of this collaborative project, Dr. Musavi said, is in the development of enhanced design, testing, and fabrication of complex wireless systems with 10 times the coverage provided by existing technology. This improvement in coverage allows a substantial reduction in the number of cell towers needed. In alignment with a desire by Dielectric and the University to develop "green" solutions, the implementation of this technology also results in significant energy savings. SBA's 10th year of listing lights up Times Square June 19, 2009 - Jeffrey Stoops, President and Chief Executive Officer of SBA Communications Corporation, presided over the opening bell ceremony on June 16 at the NASDAQ stock exchange in recognition of the company's tenth year of being listed. SBA was also featured on the exchange's multi story sign fronting Times Square. The stock immediately jumped $.25; American Tower Corporation joined in with an $.11 increase and Crown Castle trailed at $.07. Stoops recently spoke at the RBC North American Capital Markets Technology Conference in San Francisco, Calif. Prior to his presentation, RBC upgraded SBA from sector perform to outperform. SBA is the third largest owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructures publicly traded company in the U.S. TowerWorx inks India joint venture June 8, 2009 - New Delhi-based ANG Auto announced today that it has entered into a joint venture with TowerWorx of Pryor, Oklahoma to manufacture and market mobile tower solutions in the country. The joint venture - TowerWorx India Ltd - would begin operations in India during August, according to the filing the company made with the Bombay Stock Exchange. Both companies will pick up a 50% ownership in the joint venture. Mobile telephone companies in India would now be able to leverage substantial technological benefit in terms of multiple carrier capability and rapid deployment capability of the towers, according to the filing. Currently, India has approximately 130,000 towers and is said to need an additional 90,000 to meet the 2010 subscriber demand. TowerWorx is the leading US mobile tower producer with a large consumer base spread across the globe. It counts AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon among its large consumer base. ANG Auto Limited is engaged in the manufacture and export of a large number of heavy commercial vehicle components and trailers in India. The company operates out of five state-of-the art production and assembly units in North India. The company has a dominant presence as a provider of complete undercarriage solutions for trucks and trailers and is the preferred name globally of the quality of its products such s heavy vehicle spare parts and automotive trailer parts. TowerWorx is a certified woman-owned business. The company has over 20 years of combined experience in tower design and process engineering. With its diverse technical background, the company has been successful in consistently delivering custom integrated solutions to meet the varied requirements of its customers. AT&T's mobile broadband speed boost to provide needed injection for industry contractors May 27, 2009 - AT&T today announced plans to upgrade the nation's fastest 3G network to deliver considerably faster mobile broadband speeds.   The news was welcomed by many contractors that have seen a lull in certain markets for third quarter projects. AT&T said it would deploy about 2,100 new cell sites across the country. The network upgrades are slated to begin around September, with completion expected in 2011. AT&T did not identify what vendors will deploy the upgrade The upgrade to High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) 7.2 technology is part of AT&T's plan for continued investments to deliver the nation's best mobile broadband experience - the ideal combination of speed, coverage and best device line-up. AT&T says that they have the nation's fastest 3G network and have attracted more than twice the number of smartphone users than any other competitor. With its network built on the 3G UMTS technology that is commonly deployed throughout the world,  AT&T believes it can boost the speed of its mobile broadband network and offer a wide variety of devices to take advantage of it well in advance of 2011-2012, when most industry observers expect 4G LTE networks and device availability to scale. AT&T plans to begin LTE trials in 2010, with deployment beginning in 2011. In addition to the planned speed upgrade, AT&T is enhancing its mobile broadband coverage by nearly doubling the wireless spectrum dedicated to 3G in most metropolitan areas to deliver stronger in-building reception and more overall network capacity.  Also, AT&T is adding thousands of new cell site backhaul connections to support the higher mobile broadband speeds enabled by HSPA 7.2 and LTE. The upgraded network platform could allow for theoretical peak speeds of 7.2Mbps.  However, typical real-world downlink and uplink speeds experienced by customers with upgraded 3G will be less than the theoretical peak and will vary based on a number of factors, including location, device, and overall traffic on the local network at a given time. The speed upgrade is one of several ongoing initiatives to expand and enhance AT&T's mobile broadband service.  Other key projects in 2009 include: * Near-Doubling Radio Frequency Capacity. In 2008 and 2009 to date, high-quality 850 MHz spectrum has been deployed in more than half of AT&T's 3G network footprint to improve overall coverage and in-building reception, with additional markets planned for later in the year. *More Bandwidth to Cell Sites. They are adding fiber-optic connectivity and additional capacity to thousands of cell sites across the country this year, expanding the critical connections that deliver traffic from a cell site into the global IP backbone network. These upgrades will support the higher mobile broadband speeds enabled by both HSPA 7.2 and LTE. Indus first in world to have 100,000 towers May 27, 2009 - Indus Towers, a joint venture between three top telecom companies- Airtel, Vodafone and Idea- today became the first company in the world to have over 100,000 towers under its management. Bharti Airtel and Vodafone, each hold 42 per cent stake in Indus Towers, while Idea Cellular holds 16 per cent. In comparison, if American Tower Corporation and Crown Castle International - the two largest tower owners in the US -  were to merge, their total tower assets would only be half of Indus Towers' portfolio. "In a short span, Indus Towers has built a robust, scalable, asset centric operating model, which provides passive infrastructure services to all operators on a non- discriminatory basis with enhanced focus on energy efficiency," said Akhil Gupta, chairman, Indus Towers. The company is increasing its portfolio by nearly 7,000 additional tower tenants every month and is working towards a tenancy ratio of two per site. "Indus will also be opening a state-of-the-art 24x7 Tower Operating Center by July 2009, which will monitor, control and analyze all tower site related activities to provide a better network uptime to its customers," a company statement said. The company is also working with TERI (The Energy and Resources Institute, India) to explore the possibility of integration of energy efficiency measures as well as renewable energy-based supply side options in telecom shelters in India and remains strongly committed to the reduction of carbon emissions. In March, American Tower Corporation announced that it will acquire India's Xcel Telecom Private Limited. Although financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed, reports indicate that the Boston-based tower consolidator is paying approximately $80,000 a piece for the 1,700 tower sites, bringing their tower count north of 2,000. Merger of two Florida contractors canceled May 26, 2009 - The expected merger of Global Broadcast Services, LLC of Naples, FL and Tower and Land Communications of Pompano Beach, FL was called off this week. According to Darryl Elliot, of Global Broadcast Services, who was to assume the position of Chief Executive Officer of the merged firms, it was mutually agreed that each company should operate independently from each other. "GBS wishes TLC only the best," Elliot said. "Combining the two companies will result in a solid, stronger and more strategic business than any of us could have achieved independently," said Nancy Nieto of Tower and Land Communications when the merger announcement was made in April. Industry loses well-respected veteran Johnny King May 22, 2009 - Services will be held today for well-known and respected industry leader Johnny King who suddenly passed away Tuesday afternoon at age 58. King, with 19 years of experience in the wireless industry, was Vice President of Operations for Data Cell Systems of Winnsboro, LA. He was a licensed electrician and started his career with Data Cell in 1991 as a manager of construction, helping to develop the company into one of the Southwest's major turnkey construction firms. In 1996 he served as area manager for Specialty Constructors and American Tower Corporation. He was responsible for hiring, training and development of installation and maintenance teams as well as quality control and safety. Following King's guidance, many employees went on to found their own companies. His sons, Johnny King, Jr. and Dewey King  were also mentored by their father and are well respected industry managers with other companies. In addition to his sons, King is survived by his wife Linda Parker King and his daughter, Cheryl Gansemer; nine grandchildren and one great grandchild. He is also survived by eight brothers and sisters. A native of Mississippi, King had been a resident of LaPlace, La. for the past 12 years. Visitation will be held today at the Millet-Guidry Funeral Home in LaPlace from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. A service will be held at 3:00 p.m. with burial in St. John Memorial Gardens Cemetery. CommScope provides the Cowboys with one of the world's most complex indoor cellular systems May 11, 2009 - CommScope was chosen to provide network infrastructure and cellular coverage and capacity solutions for the Dallas Cowboys' new stadium in Arlington, TX, the nation's largest and most spectacular domed venue. "The Dallas Cowboys' new stadium will become one of the most visible buildings in the world and, as a part of that, we needed the most advanced communications network we could find-not just for today but also looking into the future," said Jerry Jones, owner and general manager, Dallas Cowboys Football Club. "CommScope helped us craft one of the finest high-performance networks on the planet. We have a vision for a place that reflects the emotion and competition encapsulated by the stadium, and CommScope has helped bring that to life." The state-of-the-art venue, scheduled to open June 2009, will use CommScope's SYSTIMAX® high-performance network solutions to create the world's largest internet protocol television (IPTV) installation and operate the stadium's data center and other technical operations. In addition, the stadium will feature an extensive in-building wireless communications network from Andrew that will provide complete cellular coverage in the stadium and its surrounding property for all spectators and team officials, coaching staff, employees and public safety agencies. "We are extremely proud that this first-class stadium also will be a showcase for CommScope and its advanced network connectivity solutions," said Brian Garrett, president and chief operating officer, CommScope. "This is the one of the most prominent examples to date of CommScope's capabilities to support customers with multiple application requirements, in this case wireless and enterprise connectivity infrastructure. This breadth of solutions is a differentiator for CommScope that delivers great benefit to customers such as the Dallas Cowboys." Rhonda Hunt promoted to director of business development for Sabre Site Solutions May 11, 2009 - Sabre Site Solutions, the components division of Sabre Industries, Inc., has announced that Rhonda Hunt has been promoted to the position of Director of Business Development.  A highly-motivated professional with over 15 years of experience in management, sales, marketing and business operations in the telecommunications industry, Hunt joined Sabre Site Solutions in November of 2008.  In her new position, Hunt will be responsible for the development of major accounts and the overall growth of the division.  She will maintain responsibility for her Southeast Region for the near future.  Sabre Site Solutions, Sabre Industries' catalog division, designs and manufactures both guyed and self-supporting pre-engineered lightweight structures along with a vast selection tower parts and accessories. For more information on Sabre Site Solutions, visit www.SabreSiteSolutions.com. Tower Consultants, Inc. acquires rights to Kline Towers' extensive drawing portfolio April 21, 2009 - Tower Consultants, Inc. has acquired the exclusive rights to Kline Towers' drawing collection. Kline Towers, established in 1953 by Kline Iron & Steel, of Columbia, SC, has maintained their reputation as one of the best tall tower providers in the nation. Kline has built hundreds of tall structures with the majority of those towers still in use today. OmniAmerica Wireless LLC acquired a one third interest in Kline Towers in 1997. American Tower Corporation acquired OmniAmerica in 1999 and Kline Towers later became a subsidiary of American Tower. Kline Towers was sold in 2004 to SPX Corporation and incorporated into SPX's Dielectric Tower Operations, In 2006 it was then sold to Liberty Industries LC, a privately owned company doing business as Tower Innovations in Newburgh, IN. TCI, a tower engineering and turnkey project management company with expertise in tall towers, brings over 150 years of combined tower engineering experience in the industry. TCI engineers have first hand knowledge of Kline Towers, having been prior employees of Kline Towers. Established in 2005 by Jean-Alain Lecordier (former VP of Engineering, Kline Towers) and Greg Kelish (former VP of Operations, Spectrasite Broadcast Group), TCI has successfully completed over 500 tower projects to date.  TCI is the new generation of tower engineering company that takes pride in providing a full range of tower services with unique, diverse, and cost effective solutions. TCI has its headquarters in Columbia, SC, and satellite offices in Seattle, WA and Dallas TX. "We are very proud to have the exclusive rights to the Kline Tower portfolio," said President of TCI Jean-Alain Lecordier who was with Kline Towers for 18 years. "This gives us an opportunity to provide current Kline Towers owners with an extensive range of services from structural analysis and tower modifications, to any maintenance issue a tower owner may face". "Kline Towers had a history of high quality and integrity when it came to tower manufacturing and engineering. TCI upholds that same tradition of excellence," said CEO of TCI Greg Kelish. Tower & Land Communications and Global Broadcast Services merge April 20, 2009 - Tower & Land Communications, of Pompano Beach, FL, a turnkey provider to the wireless communication industry, announced that it has merged with Global Broadcast Services of Naples, FL, a fast growing communications services company whose management team has over 80 years of combined experience in the design, deployment, installation, maintenance and up grades of broadcast, wireless, telecom and wind powered systems. "We believe that, with these two companies, our growth will be significant. Based on our experience coupled with this strategic partnership we will provide cost effective solutions and results to the most complex and schedule-driven projects," said Darryl Elliott, who will assume the position of Chief Executive Officer. Elliott further added, "I am excited to work with and lead our experienced management team and this great organization in continuing our consistent track record of delivering for our employees and customers". Combining the two companies will result in "a solid, stronger and more strategic business than any of us could have achieved independently," said Nancy Nieto who will continue to assume the position of Chief Operating Officer. "We believe this combination will further enhance our position as a national leader in innovative solutions with a top-tier customer base that will allow us to address a broader spectrum of customer needs," Nieto said. Combined the company will offer services from site acquisition and site maintenance to full turnkey construction. Nieto said, based upon their equipment capacity they will be able to build towers that can exceed 2,000 feet as well as continue their focus on wind tower erections and green energy solutions. Two tower company chiefs compensated a combined $9 million in 2008 March 27, 2009 - Regulatory filings today by American Tower Corp. and SBA Communications show that their CEO's were compensated in 2008 - according to required reporting procedures - $6,723,712 and $2,177,123 respectively. American Tower Corp.'s stock fell 31% last year, putting many employees' 2008 stock options under water, including its chairman, president and chief executive officer's options. CEO James Taiclet, Jr.'s total compensation increased $526,711 from the previous year, according the Edgar regulatory filing. Taiclet received a salary of $876,750, which marked a 5 % increase over the prior year, and he was awarded a performance-related bonus of about $1.1 million, up from $701,400 in the prior year. Taiclet also received $25,172 in other compensation, which included matching contributions to a retirement plan, a $12,000 car allowance, reimbursements for parking expenses at the company's Boston headquarters and the value related to personal use of company tickets to sports and entertainment events. In addition, he received stock options and restricted stock valued at $4,736,790 His stock options were provided with an exercise price of $37.70, higher than where the company's shares are trading now, meaning the award is currently worth less. Shares ended trading today at $32.01.The 52-week high for ATC's stock was $46.10. Whereas AIG executives were castigated for providing excessive bonuses to the same people that were responsible for the company's almost bankrupt position, Taiclet has shepherded American Tower to its best financial year since the company was founded. Jeffrey Stoops, President and CEO of rival SBA Communications Corporation received a salary in 2008 of $490,000, a $15,000 increase from 2007. He also received a $15,000 increase in his $490,000 bonus. During fiscal year 2008 SBA's net loss narrowed to $46.76 million or $0.43 per share from $77.88 million or $0.74 per share in 2007. Stoops has seen his company's annual revenue increase 16.4% to $474.95 million from $408.20 million a year ago. Parking compensation was not provided to Stoops since the Boca Raton, FL-based company does not have to use a private garage, but the executive was provided an additional $12,009 compensation. The amount represented $9,009 of reimbursements for health insurance and medical expenses not generally provided to all employees and $3,000 of company matching contributions to Stoops' 401(k) plan. Stoops also received $1,185,114 in compensation for option awards. The exercise price for the 150,000 options he received was at $32.39. SBA's stock closed today at $23.90 leaving 37,500 of them vested on February 28 valueless on that date. The 52-week high for SBA's stock was $38.50. Stoops' total compensation increased $262,228 during 2008. Tower aggregator Crown Castle International's regulatory filing for executive compensations is expected to be submitted early next month. President and CEO John Kelly in 2007 received almost $4.5 million in compensation. Kelly's salary was $495,275 and he received a bonus of $821,965. Kelly stepped down in April of 2008 and was replaced by the company's CFO, Ben Moreland. Moreland's compensation in 2007 was almost $3 million, a one-third increase over 2006. BCI is awarded major Cox Communications' design and construction services contract March 27, 2009 - Berliner Communications, Inc., a nationwide, self-performing, full turnkey service vendor to wireless communications industry, has announced that BCI has been selected by Cox Communications to assist with the design and construction of Cox's 3G wireless networks. BCI is providing site acquisition, site design and construction management for Cox's wireless sites. Cox is utilizing the spectrum it purchased from the FCC's Advanced Wireless Spectrum Auction to build its wireless networks. Cox last fall announced plans to launch mobile-phone services in 2009.  In addition to building its own 3G networks, the operator plans to resell wireless Sprint Nextel services. "Our team is excited about working with Cox on this significant milestone in their company's history," said Rich Berliner, CEO of BCI. "We bring 14 years of hands-on experience and a team of industry experts to help Cox build a high performance network to meet their timing and budget requirements. Our focus on speed, value and quality, and our constant commitment to customer service is the cornerstone of our relationship." "Through our entry into the wireless industry, it is paramount that we select providers with proven wireless experience," said Stephen Bye, vice president of Cox Wireless. "We are committed to enriching the Cox customer experience by adding greater mobility through the addition of wireless services. Our relationship with BCI is enabling us to deliver on our commitment." BCI, based in Elmwood Park, N.J., has 19 locations across the U.S. and more than 350 employees. Cox is using the spectrum it purchased in the Federal Communications Commission's Advanced Wireless Spectrum auction to build its 3G wireless networks. TCI taps Kutasi to head its business development March 27, 2009 - Tower Consultants, Inc., of Irmo, SC, has added Les Kutasi to its team as their business development manager. Kutasi will focus his expertise in the tower engineering marketplace to enhance TCI product offerings and open doors to new customers. He has over 20 years of experience in the broadcasting and tower industry in multiple functions between Dielectric Communications and Stainless LLC. "With Les's background and experience, we are very excited to have Les aboard to provide us with new growth opportunities," said President Jean-Alain Lecordier. "I have been in this industry my whole professional career and I am thrilled that I have joined a company that has a great foundation of engineering expertise and has a history of excellent customer service.  I look forward to working with old and new customers to market the products and services that Tower Consultants Inc has to offer", Kutasi said. Tower Consultants, Inc., a tower engineering company with project management capabilities has over 150 years of engineering experience in the tower industry with professional engineering registrations in over 40 states. American Tower acquisition of Xcel Telecom will jump-start its footprint in India March 17, 2009 - American Tower Corporation announced today that it will acquire India's Xcel Telecom Private Limited. Although financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed, reports indicate that the Boston-based tower consolidator is paying approximately $80,000 a piece for the 1,700 tower sites. The $136 million deal will help American Tower to strengthen its foothold in the world's fastest growing telecom market. The U.S.'s largest tower owner has been in India for a couple of years and their assets are reported to be approximately 300 towers. It is not known if one of the reasons for the low valuation is because Xcel did not have a strong tenant base and was following the U.S.'s early build out plan of providing bare steel sisters wherever possible. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter. Xcel, an Indian company founded by former BPL Mobile chief executive Sandip Basu, was one of the late entrants in the Indian tower market, but acquired or built the 1,700 sites within the past two years. The company is funded and owned by a subsidiary of Texas-based Q Investments. Last year, Xcel said that it planned to set up and own a substantial amount of towers in India and become one of the country's largest independently owned shared telecommunications providers. With the sale of its entire portfolio to American Tower, their business model has changed. Amit Sharma, executive vice-president and president, Asia of American Tower, said, "India is one of the fastest growing telecom markets with the tower market seeing a record growth. This acquisition comes with a good team of people and is in line with our plans for the country." He said the acquisition would strengthen American Tower's base in India. Combined with American Tower's existing operations in India, the acquisition will create a leading independent tower company with a combined portfolio of approximately 2,000 tower sites in 15 telecom circles. Prior to joining American Tower, Sharma led country teams in India and Southeast Asia for Motorola, as Country President, India and as Head of Strategy, Asia-Pacific. According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, as of October 2008, the country has a mobile subscriber base of 325 million. By 2010 it is expected to swell to 500 million. Currently, India has approximately 130,000 towers and is said to need an additional 90,000 to meet the 2010 subscriber demand. Last month, James Taiclet, American Tower's CEO, said that the company's strength is in buying and building communications towers and it wasn't eyeing a minority stake in Reliance Communications-controlled Reliance Infratel, India's largest tower owner. "Our goal has always been operational control of tower assets," Taiclet said. Rival Crown Castle International was also reportedly looking at a 5% minority share in Reliance Infratel. Reliance has a capex plan for building 16,000 towers in 2009. It currently has 42,000 towers. Skyway Towers' investors increase firm's equity commitment to $55 million March 17, 2009 -  Skyway Towers, LLC, a leading wireless communications tower developer based in Tampa, Fl., announced today that its investors, Tinicum Capital Partners II, L.P. and Permit Capital Private Equity Fund, L.P. have increased their equity commitment from $30 million to $55 million. Skyway will use the additional capital to continue to support its customers' requirements for high quality wireless communications towers in strategic locations.  Dan Behuniak, Skyway's CEO, said, "Since starting the company in late 2005, we've been fortunate to work with a growing list of the largest and most successful wireless service providers in the United States and be supported by two stable and constructive investment partnerships." Trip Zedlitz, a partner at TCP, said, "We've been delighted with the Skyway's success in the marketplace and its focus on meeting the needs of the wireless service providers. We are pleased with the pace and results of our investment to date and look forward to financing additional high quality towers." Skyway was founded by a management team with roots in the wireless carrier industry. It develops, owns and operates wireless communications towers throughout the U.S. For more information, visit www.skywaytowers.com. Young promoted to Crown Castle's COO post February 21, 2009 - Crown Castle International Corp. has announced that, effective immediately, the Board of Directors has promoted James D. Young, President -- Tower Operations, to Chief Operating Officer, a previously vacant position. Young was appointed President -- Tower Operations in October 2005 and has nearly 25 years of experience in the telecom industry. Before joining Crown Castle, Young served as the Region Vice President -- Engineering & Operations at Sprint Nextel Corp. ``I would like to congratulate Jim on this well-deserved promotion. Jim did a tremendous job leading the organization through the integration of the Global Signal acquisition and has been instrumental in improving our industry-leading customer service. He has shown great leadership in creating efficiency gains in our processes and has effectively deployed technology to scale our business,' stated Ben Moreland, President and Chief Executive Officer of Crown Castle. Skyway Towers acquires 60 communications towers from Towers of Texas portfolio February 19, 2009 - Skyway Towers today announced the initial closing to acquire a total of 60 communications towers from Towers of Texas, Ltd. Towers of Texas is a leading developer and owner of wireless communications facilities focused in the mid-central region of the U.S. and is headquartered in Sandia, Texas. "The Towers of Texas acquisition marks Skyway's continued growth in the marketplace said Dan Behuniak, Chief Executive Officer, Skyway Towers. "We are excited about the potential of these very attractive locations. We are also looking forward to a long and prosperous partnership with a high quality developer like Towers of Texas." "This agreement concludes a targeted but competitive process, whereby we concluded that Skyway offered us compelling value to our shareholders and a path of certainty to closure," said Charlie Bednorz of Towers of Texas. "We enjoyed working with the Skyway team and look forward to closing all of the towers contemplated in this transaction." "The Towers of Texas portfolio is an ideal complement to our existing footprint of towers" said Eric P. Bondurant, Senior Vice President, Skyway Towers. Towers of Texas was represented exclusively by Media Venture Partners in the transaction. After the closing of the acquisition, Skyway will own more than 150 towers located across the U.S.  Terms of the acquisition remain confidential, as both parties are privately held.     McCaffrey appointed to head Sabre Site Solutions' sales efforts in the Northeast February 17, 2009 - Sabre Site Solutions, a division of Sabre Industries, Inc., of Sioux City, Iowa, has announced that Tim McCaffrey has accepted the position of Northeast Regional Sales Manager for component products.  McCaffrey is a seasoned business professional with over nine years of experience in the wireless industry. He comes to Sabre Site Solutions from Bellevue Consulting, Inc., where he held the position of President/Owner, and worked on the AT&T New Site Build project in West Virginia.  McCaffrey also spent eight years with AAT Communications in site acquisition, sales and BTS project management. Prior to the wireless industry, McCaffrey worked in the chemical processing field with Honeywell International.       McCaffrey will reside in his hometown of Richmond, Virginia where he lives with his wife, Anne, and their two sons, Robert, 8; and Thomas Carter, 3.  He said he is very excited to be joining the Sabre Site Solutions team, and looks forward to growing sales in the Northeast region.   Sabre Site Solutions, Sabre Industries' catalog division, designs and manufactures both guyed and self-supporting pre-engineered lightweight structures along with a vast selection tower parts and accessories. For more information on Sabre Site Solutions, visit www.SabreSiteSolutions.com. Tower manufacturers and owners are seemingly unaffected by stagnant economy January 16, 2009 - Noted industry analyst Clayton Moran, of the Stanford Group Company, believes that that two of the largest wireless companies, AT&T and Verizon Wireless, are unlikely to pull back on wireless spending - AT&T because of the launch of the iPhone and the resulting network demands, and Verizon because they are historically very steady in building out their network. Therefore the two biggest wireless companies are unlikely to reduce capital expenditures. As such, he doubts that the tower growth outlook will change, a position taken by the three public tower company executives. A number of tower and accessories manufacturers say that initial first quarter sales are indicating that the industry is weathering the national crisis quite well and they expect to see continued growth. However, they declined to discuss how tightening credit markets are affecting their business. "Over the next five years 250,000 additional towers will be required in the U.S. just to keep up with existing demands," said Beau Aero, of GlenMartin, Inc., a global tower solutions provider headquartered in Boonville, Mo. According to Aero, current research shows more Americans are ditching traditional landlines in favor of cell phone services, based upon the results of a federal survey released in December. More than one in six American households, or 17.5 percent, depended solely on cell phones for their telephone communications during 2008, up from 13.6 percent a full year earlier, according to survey results released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And 13.3 percent of American households reportedly received all or almost all of their calls on cell phones despite having a landline telephone in their home. Moran says the data demand from wireless subscribers is driving wireless carriers to invest in their networks by building new cell sites, therefore driving good growth for tower companies. Four billion cell phones are currently in operation, representing almost two thirds of the planet's population. Aero says that this astronomical number not only means large revenue for cell phone companies, but also a bright outlook in the telecommunications industry. In 2008, Moran said the major tower companies' organic revenue growth was about 10%. In 2009, he said it will probably be more like high single digits, 8% or so, and probably will taper off over the upcoming years in part because of the magnitude of the industry. He said that the use of wireless data services grew about 50% in 2008 and now represent over 20% of carrier revenue per user. In his analysis of the public tower companies' growth and financing issues, Moran said that although the credit crunch does impact the tower stocks, a recession does not impact tower cash flow. His comments can be found here:    Cell Tower Outlook 2009 Industry continues efforts to boost networks in preparation for Presidential Inauguration January 16, 2009 -  As the 2009 Presidential Inauguration quickly approaches, wireless companies and installation contractors are continuing their ongoing efforts to enhance, increase and optimize their network capacities in and around Washington, D.C. to accommodate the expected surge in demand. "For months, wireless carriers have been working hard to prepare for what could be an unprecedented Inauguration week," said Steve Largent, President and CEO of CTIA-The Wireless Association. "Companies are going to extraordinary lengths investing significant amounts of time and money, and are doing everything within their power to boost network capacities in Washington, D.C. for this historic event." In anticipation of record-breaking crowds and huge spikes in wireless traffic, carrier companies are deploying additional technicians to monitor their networks and work with all government agencies involved in the Inauguration events, and they are taking all available steps to address capacity issues. Some of these steps include:       * Adding new radio channels to augment existing cell sites.       * Provisioning additional portable sites, such as COWS (Cells on Wheels) and COLTS (Cells on Light Trucks) to increase network capacity.       * Expanding backhaul capacity and connections with the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) to ensure maximum capacity for wireless users within the physical limits of spectrum and the sites available to carriers.       * Enhancing in-building wireless coverage at key locations throughout Washington, D.C. "Despite all the industry's efforts to increase network capacity, it's really important for the public to understand that unusually large crowds can generate congestion and communications delays," Largent continued. "Think of a wireless network like a highway. Even though we're building more lanes, if millions of people jump on the road at the same time, there could be a traffic jam. For this reason, we want to remind Inaugural event attendees to do their part in decreasing network demand by texting instead of placing voice calls, and holding off on sending cell phone pictures or video until after the events are over."

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