Sojitz Corporation, a Japanese conglomerate with a stake in Utah-based tower manufacturer IsoTruss® Inc., has announced this month it will infuse $63.36 million into a Philippines tower operator, LBS Digital Infrastructure Corp. (LBSD).
The Philippines has the highest daily internet usage in the world with an average of 10 hours a day; however, it has a lower ratio of telecom towers relative to its population in comparison to neighboring countries. Additionally, it is just beginning 5G deployment and is expected to see a rise in demand for telecom towers and small poles.
“Market analysts view this latest Sojitz Corp. maneuver as a sign of an economic boom in the rapidly growing Philippine telecom sector,” wrote Val Villanueva, columnist for BusinessMirror. “Sojitz could not have chosen a better tower company. LBSD has been one of the country’s leading cell tower builders, which has practically built and operated the majority of the industry’s cell towers.”
In October 2020, Sojitz invested in IsoTruss, an engineering, design, and manufacturing services provider that manufactures carbon fiber structures. With that investment, Sojitz acquired exclusive sales rights for IsoTruss products in Asia. In addition to plans to establish production bases in Asia, Sojitz said it aims to build partnerships with mobile network operators and telecommunication tower companies in the region. In November 2019, Sojitz acquired a stake in a tower company in Myanmar.
“The installation of carbon fiber towers manufactured by Sojitz Group subsidiary IsoTruss will result in added value to LBSD’s telecom tower business,” Villanueva wrote.
IsoTruss carbon fiber lattice cell towers are designed, engineered and tested to last at least five times longer than steel towers, which may have to be replaced more often because of corrosion and other environmental factors, according to the company. This is important for the Philippines, which averages monthly relative humidity between 71 percent and 85 percent.
IsoTruss announced this week that it is ramping production of its carbon fiber lattice cell towers, which are designed to reduce the weight of wireless site deployments to increase sustainability and lower initial capital outlays, labor, shipping and installation costs of 5G deployments. The towers offer “significant advantages through the reduction in carbon emissions versus steel build-outs,” according to Cromwell Wong, Chief Operating Officer of IsoTruss®.
IsoTruss said that its carbon fiber cell towers are twelve times stronger than steel, depending on the design, and range in height from 20 feet to 138 feet. Because carbon fiber is a lightweight material, IsoTruss said its cell towers are less expensive to ship as compared to steel towers. Installation demands a smaller crane or even a ladder, which decreases the expense and environmental impact of heavy equipment and large installation crews required for steel cell towers, according to the company.
“The designs that we’re producing feature really lightweight, super strong, eco-friendly solutions with the aim of building the sustainable infrastructure of the future. IsoTruss offers significant advantages through the reduction in carbon emissions versus steel build-outs,” Wong said.
The original IsoTruss grid design, based on isosceles triangles, was invented by IsoTruss Chief Technical Adviser and Brigham Young University Professor Emeritus David W. Jensen, Ph.D. He said, “The IsoTruss combines high performing carbon fiber composite materials with a very efficient geometry to allow those elements to carry the load efficiently, allowing extremely low weight and extremely high performance.”
By J. Sharpe Smith Inside Towers Technology Editor
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