The best thing a mount manufacturer can say about its products is that they are safe and appreciated by the people who install them on towers or rooftops.
“We get feedback from tower technicians that they like our mounts because they are easier to install,” Larry McHugh, Senior Vice President of Sales and Business Development, Sabre Industries, told Inside Towers. “Additionally, the design and packaging streamline the process of fitting them on the towers.”
Sabre Industries’ tower accessories cover the gamut of tower mounts, roof and wall mounts, tower mount components, monopole mounts and components, antenna mounting pipes and kits, and tower ice shields.
“We understand not only the tower part, but also how it works together with the other tower accessories and mounts — from the ground up,” said Carlo Franceschino, P.Eng., Vice President of Engineering Solutions at Sabre Industries. “And what we’re always trying to do is look for the best overall value for our customers.
Designed for Reduced Wind Loading
Effective projected area (EPA) is a critical factor when Sabre designs and manufactures anything that is mounted on a tower structure. The EPA is used to calculate the wind load that an accessory is going to create on the supporting structure.
“We look at how those members are arranged — what direction they will be with respect to the wind — in calculating the overall effective projected area, which we then use to calculate the drag and the wind force on that object,” Franceschino said.
Compared with mounts from other manufacturers that have the same capacity, Sabre will typically have up to 126 percent less EPA, according to Franceschino.
“Our EPAs could be anywhere from 4 square feet to 21 square feet less, depending on the mount and on the situation,” Franceschino said.
Lower EPA reduces the drag on the mount, according to Sabre. As a result, the impact on the tower is reduced. If the tower company’s prices are based on windloading, a lower EPA load could reduce the amount the carrier spends on leasing space on the tower. Additionally, it may allow a tower owner to avoid a structural upgrade on the tower, because the amount of additional stress on the tower caused by the mount is decreased.
“That’s a very large financial delta if the EPA of your mount is such that you’ve overstressed the tower to the point that a structural upgrade is going to be required,” McHugh said.
And it is not just a cost factor. The process of completing a structural upgrade on a tower can take up to six months. “This has a significant impact on the carrier’s ability to quickly provide coverage to its customers,” Franceschino said.
There are certain keys to designing low-EPA mounts. Flat areas have a high drag coefficient, and round shapes are the most efficient shape in terms of wind resistance, but that’s only part of the equation. Sabre’s mount designs are created in 3D modeling software, and finite element analysis is used to optimize connection designs. The end goal is the lowest EPA, the most efficient design and the best overall value for the customer, according to Franceschino.
“There are several things that roll into getting the overall EPA,” Franceschino explains. “We have to look at things like outside dimensions, thickness, material grades, bracing configuration, and connection designs, as well as how different members are connected.”
Engineered and Made in the USA
Along with having low EPAs for each component, Sabre also differentiates itself by performing all of its engineering in-house. In fact, its engineers are licensed to stamp for permits and drawing packages in every state as well as Puerto Rico and some locations outside of the U.S.
“That provides us with a quicker turnaround,” McHugh said. “We are able to complete some custom designs for customers that have unique requirements on their towers or on their mounts.”
Plus, all of Sabre’s mounts are made in the U.S. This allows the company to guarantee the quality of the workmanship and the quality of the steel that goes into its products. It gives Sabre control over the process from end-to-end, which reduces lead times and provides increased ability to manage the inventory.
Conclusion
Like McHugh, Franceschino receives his share of compliments as he travels the length of the country talking to many different customers, installers, and A&E firms. “We just get a lot of positive feedback on our designs, whether that be for their strength, ease of installation, or especially our safety,” he said.
But Sabre’s mounts are designed to be appreciated long after they are initially installed. They are made to be readily accessible for the next technician who performs maintenance on the tower. “It’s not just that initial install, but it’s the ‘X’ number of times over time that mount is going to be accessed for equipment additions on that structure,” Franceschino said. “We want to make it easier for everybody that works on that tower in the future, while also reducing the possibility of needing a structural upgrade.”
For more information, email [email protected].
By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor
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