Station engineers or owners should ask themselves these tower-related questions to prepare for an Alternative Broadcast Inspection Program (ABIP). Does the tower location, height, marking and lighting match the information in the FCC’s Antenna Structure Registration (ASR)? The FCC encourages broad participation in the state association’s ABIP programs in order to reduce the need for agency inspections and to raise the level of compliance throughout the country.
ASR numbers used to be posted on or next to the tower. Now, the rule states that it has to be posted so it’s conspicuously visible to the public. “The FCC generally views this as being posted on the fence or the gate into the facility,” says consulting engineer Tom Ray of Tom Ray Broadcasting Consulting, LLC (tomrayconsulting.com). The 45-year broadcast veteran is the former VP/Director of Engineering of Buckley Broadcasting and Chief Engineer of WOR-AM, NYC. He once inspected a station and discovered the tower was 1,000 feet from where it was supposed to be, according to its ASR.
He’s been conducting ABIP inspections for nine years, starting with the New York State Broadcaster’s Association. He’s now doing ABIP’s for Maryland, Delaware, D.C., Virginia, North Carolina and Iowa. He spoke last week to Chapter 37 of the Society of Broadcast Engineers.
Ray also looks to see if the paint is “up to spec,” meaning “not very rusted” nor flaking or peeling. He carries an FAA chip with him to ensure the tower paint is truly aviation orange and white, “not pink and rust.”
He checks to ensure AM, FM and TV towers are properly fenced and secured. He’s often asked what constitutes “a proper fence.” He says, “according to the FCC, the fence should be designed such that a concerted effort” would need to be made, “to gain access to the tower.”
For AM towers, there needs to be reasonable access to the tower base, and ground radials need to be “in decent shape” and buried properly. “At the base of the tower, you should be able to see them come out and go into the ground,” he says. Ray says at one station he inspected, the weeds were so overgrown he couldn’t see the tower base. This station also had a tree growing next to the tower.
For AM, FM and TV towers, there must be adequate RF signage, with posting reading “RF Radiation Hazard” or “Danger High Voltage.”
To schedule an inspection, contact your local broadcast association. “Please be ready,” Ray asks. “The ABIP is designed to find something you may have missed — not to help you whip a neglected station into shape.”
“I view this as an educational opportunity on both sides,” says Ray. “If you are not going to pass because something is out of tolerance and you truly don’t know how to make it right, please ask me and I can most likely tell you. I’m happy to help.”
By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief
Reader Interactions