FDH Tech Talks

On this episode of FDH Tech Talks, FDH Chief Engineer Dennis Abel, PE, and Director of Technology Solutions Rakesh Khan, PE, discuss the evolution of one of FDH's signature innovations related to nondestructive testing, or NDT.NDT is the practice of testing critical infrastructure assets like tower structures, wind turbines, water tanks, bridges and more, without disturbing or putting out of service the asset being assessed.FDH's history of innovation in the use of proprietary dispersive wave propagation (DWP) techniques for enhanced NDT has set the company apart. That innovation continues today with the development of a new portable data acquisition device that enables clients to perform NDT in the field on demand with their own crews.“NDT technology as a whole has really evolved not so much in the physics of testing and the acoustic excitations or the electromagnetic behavior, [but in] the software and the hardware that we're able to use to collect better data in the field,” Khan says. “What this really amounts to is we're able to see in the field a lot of what used to take several hours of analysis time in the office to get a good look at.”FDH has designed this new NDT solution to help field crews quickly determine the type of NDT method required for the structure they are assessing and assist in the capture of clean data by incorporating artificial intelligence.While NDT is critical for assessing current structural condition, it becomes even more valuable when paired with structural health monitoring, or SHM. SHM involves the installation of sensors to continuously monitor variables that contribute to degradations or failure of individual components and/or the entire structure over time. The symbiotic relationship between SHM and NDT allows for a more complete picture of the health of infrastructure assets.“Structural health monitoring involves measuring the physical responses of the structure [to variables such as] gravity loads, wind loads, and seismic temperature. … These kinds of responses…. if they exceed a predefined threshold…. may indicate there's a problem with the structure, such as too much bending or sway,” Abel says. “The owner or operator can send out engineers or technicians to inspect the structure for specific problems. So that's where our NDT services would come in… to identify exactly what the problem is.”

What if you wanted to download a movie to watch on your next flight, and instead of taking several minutes on the airport WiFi, it could take seconds on your mobile device? 5G technology is set to make that happen, but first the infrastructure to support this next generation of network connectivity needs to be deployed.That's where FDH comes in, putting its expertise to work by helping service providers deploy and maintain their infrastructure. So eventually you won't have to wait to download that movie.“You see antennas and radios frequently being swapped out,” says Dana Clauson, AE Services Manager at FDH. “Most of the time, they're doing away with TMAs, which are tower-mounted antennas, and radios are being decommissioned, and they're replacing them with integrated antennas, antennas that have radios built into them, that have the ability to use multiple different bands the carriers need.”“These are many of the things we're seeing over time on the macro side,” he continues. “And … a lot of small cells are also being added in to supplement those bigger, more densely populated areas that really require the bandwidth the networks are trying to support.”The transition to 5G requires not only improvement to technology, but also an understanding of the concerns and needs of local communities and the government officials who represent them during the rollout process. “One of the changes with 5G is our clients, the carriers and the tower owners – they're very used to just replacing equipment that's on the tower. With this new 5G technology, there are these additional steps of running the fiber and finding different locations for the equipment to go on that's not a standard tower,” says Krystyn Perez, PE, FDH Vice President of Engineering. “There are a lot of jurisdictions that were not originally a big fan of having a new panel on every light pole in the city every 200 feet, so a lot of those things have come up with the 5G change.”Perez adds, “We've taken a lot of steps to make sure we understand the technology, understand what the jurisdictions are going to require for approval of these installations, and understand what the carriers are trying to do with their site locations so we can do what we need to help them get their site installations approved.”“We get calls all the time with challenges that seem insurmountable to our clients,” says Chad Barham, Director of Client Services. “A lot of our efforts on the client services side are defining what the clients' biggest issues are and defining ways to overcome them.”

FDH is hiring a Tower Technician III based in their Cedar Hill Texas facility. FDH Infrastructure Services is an industry leader in engineering, construction, and field services for critical structures and facilities. Among critical infrastructure owners and managers, FDH has earned a superior reputation for delivering innovative, high-quality engineering, nondestructive evaluation, and construction services. The Tower Technician III position will be responsible for the inspection and maintenance of towers, which includes climbing and working on towers without supervision. SO a sense of adventure is a must-have! To see the full job description visit MarketScale.com/b2bjobs or FDH-is.com FDH provides a comprehensive benefits package, including healthcare, dental, vision, life as well as disability insurance, and a 401(k) plan with company match. Additionally, Flexible time-off plans encourage a healthy work/life balance for all employees. If this position sounds like a good fit for you or someone you know, visit marketscale.com/b2bjobs to apply.

FDH is hiring a Tower Technician III based in their Cedar Hill Texas facility. FDH Infrastructure Services is an industry leader in engineering, construction, and field services for critical structures and facilities. Among critical infrastructure owners and managers, FDH has earned a superior reputation for delivering innovative, high-quality engineering, nondestructive evaluation, and construction services. The Tower Technician II will be responsible for Performing general repairs, maintenance, upgrades and modifications to broadcast towers and other structures with limited supervision. This position requires a Minimum of 2 years of broadcast Tower Climbing experience as well as the ability to maintain an effective working relationship with workers, other department employees, and the general public. FDH provides a comprehensive benefits package, including healthcare, dental, vision, life as well as disability insurance, and a 401(k) plan with company match. Additionally, Flexible time-off plans encourage a healthy work/life balance for all employees. If this position sounds like a good fit for you or someone you know, visit marketscale.com/b2bjobs to apply.

FDH is a pioneer in nondestructive test, or NDT, methods, which have been applied to tower structures, wind turbines, water tanks, bridges, dams and levees. The company's NDT crews have been all over the world, working on structures in every conceivable terrain. Leveraging more than 25 years of experience and 25,000+ field investigations, FDH has developed a data acquisition device and service plan that can put that expertise directly into your hands. Now, with NDT-as-a-Service, FDH provides the equipment and training required for its clients to perform their own NDT testing, capture clean data and transmit data quickly to FDH for analysis. And, combined with structural health monitoring, NDT-as-a-Service can help ensure long-term performance assessment and resilient infrastructure without contracting FDH for a field analysis. Once data is collected, FDH's expert team of signal analysts and engineers can evaluate structural condition and, where necessary, recommend solutions for restoring structural capacity. Typically, within 24-48 hours of receiving the data, a comprehensive report is in your hands. With NDT-as-a-Service, your data is stored securely in the cloud for easy access, providing greater visibility to the integrity of individual structures and overall network performance. One strategic partner, one robust device, and three simple steps – NDT, data capture and data knowledge. With that combo, FDH is putting the power of our newest innovation into the hands of its clients all over the world. If interested, contact FDH today to learn how NDT-as-a-Service can help you take a giant leap forward in the evolution of your operations and maintenance programs.

FDH Infrastructure Services got its start in the same way so many other solutions-based companies do -- solving across a critical problem. On this new episode of FDH Tech Talks, host Tyler Kern sat down with company co-founder Darrin Holt, a civil engineer from North Carolina State University who developed the proprietary nondestructive test (NDT) method the company is known for, and vice president of foundations infrastructure and nondestructive testing, Amir Rakha, a computer science engineer from Iowa State University, who is commercializing the company's proprietary methods for new markets.The two pivotal figures shared FDH's university research roots and discussed in depth how it was launched as a partner to the North Carolina Department of Transportation to identify a means for determining the length of timber bridge piles."Determining how deep a timber piling is in the ground without digging it up is not a very easy thing," Darrin said. "It'd never been done before with a bridge still on top of the piling and the piling remaining in service."The Raleigh, North Carolina-based company develops innovative testing and monitoring solutions for evaluating the condition of our nation's critical structures, such as bridges, dams, levees, transmission towers, telecommunications and broadcast towers, and wind turbines.In this episode, Amir also discussed new markets that are using the nondestructive method, including cell tower foundations in Southeast Asia and assessing the tension of anchor bolts for wind turbines in the U.S."If you think about a wind farm that has 100 towers, there's about 140 or so bolts on each tower," Amir explains. "If you multiply 100 by 140, you get a big number. Then you multiply that by the 30 minutes it takes to test, that's an enormous amount of time and money spent."

What is the state of women in STEM today? Are enough women being mentored and encouraged to pursue STEM careers during their secondary and college years? The consensus is, there is a need for women and young people to pursue STEM jobs. With plenty of opportunities out there, women must play a crucial role in filling STEM jobs. At FDH Infrastructure Services, that's a top priority.Vanessa Hatcher, Civil Engineer, Klarissa Ramos, Project Engineer 1, and Nicolette Egan, Project Engineer II, join today's FDH Tech Talks podcast to share their engineering stories, challenges entering the industry, and what individuals and companies can do to get more women into STEM jobs."STEM is one of the base educational aspects that we have. It's one of the best ways of learning how to think," Hatcher said.Hatcher discovered civil engineering through her love of water parks. Egan became interested in STEM during high school, and later, she pursued engineering in college. Ramos' love of engineering came from her family, who were involved in STEM careers.“During my high school years, I attended an engineering camp at NC State. I loved all of the experiments that we did. That is when I knew this was something I wanted to do in the future," Ramos said.The importance of female peers in a STEM work environment is something the three women agree is a critical component for success."Having the opportunities to discuss issues that come up, troubles with a project, with people who are not only my peers, but also my counterparts, is really awesome," Egan said.

“Being up in the air… it's exhilarating….there's nothing better.”This special edition “jobcast” features current jobs with FDH's broadcast division, Stainless. Tower technicians and crew leaders are essential positions that maintain and construct broadcast towers, operate and interpret various technical instruments and documents, and most importantly, demonstrate a penchant for safety and instinct as they climb heights up to 2,000 feet. Don Doty, director of broadcast services, and Jerry Folk, director of broadcast operations, discuss the exciting career paths for those who pursue these sky-high positions.

The sky's the limit for this tower technician position with FDH Infrastructure Services. On this new episode of the FDH JobCast, we sit down with Jerry Folk, Director of Broadcast Operations and Don Doty, Business Development Manager, to discuss the open role of Tower Technician II, III, and Tower Crew Lead, all essential pieces to the larger tower operation and inspection puzzle. These positions will help maintain and construct broadcast towers, operate and interpret various technical instruments and documents, and most importantly, have a penchant for safety and instinct as they climb heights up to 2,000 feet.While most people will never experience what it's like to scale a sky-high communications tower, professionals in this industry know the unique role this position fills."Being up in the air... it's exhilarating," Folk said. "Once you've been aloft, just there with a light wind and a beautiful blue sky day, there's nothing better. It's very comfortable, almost calming, once you get used to where you're working."Folk and Doty shared insight into the company's culture around the water cooler, so to speak, and answered one of our signature questions -- If FDH was a band, what band would it be -- with a classic rock band favorite and a good pun for the job."At the end of the day, you're spent physically and mentally because of your situational awareness, knowing that every step is important where you take," Doty said. "But when you get down at the end of the day, you've got a sense of accomplishment and you feel it."Job basics: Location: United States Hours: Six days a week Travel involved: Yes, a lot Experience: Entry level if the job aptitude is right Educational requirement: High school diplomaIf you'd like to apply for this position of Sales Account Manager, click here.

As cities across the country slowly adopt 5G wireless and broadband technology, and as the FCC's broadcast repack continues on, tower inspections are getting more attention. These inspections are a necessary step to ensure that these critical broadcast assets are safe, durable, and able to deliver the performance necessary for a frictionless transition; but are tower operators properly educated on what to look for?On this episode of FDH Tech Talks, FDH Infrastructure Services' Don Doty, director of broadcast services for the Stainless division, and Gregg Fehrman, vice president of field operations, return to share their insights on an essential but little-discussed component of the 5G rollout.Fehrman informed listeners that a general inspection is a high-level examination of a tower that identifies obvious damage or issues, while a condition assessment is a more thorough, in-depth review of the structure and all its components. Conducting these inspections takes special skills, or as Fehrman put it, “Experience is the number one factor that makes for a good inspector.”In his view, without experience in field operations or inspections, it's tough for someone to deliver a meaningful assessment of a tower's health.Doty added that tower inspections are physically challenging, so an inspector must possess the ability to ascend and descend structures as high as 2,000 feet and do it in a reasonable amount of time. The reality is that there remains a lack of qualified personnel across the industry who have the experience, credentials, and physical agility necessary to be an effective tower inspector.5G wireless deployment is going to take a massive addition of people to the workforce, and getting that many qualified people will require tremendous resources and education. However, this need presents great opportunities for young people to start a career.“It's a good field to be in and you're always going to be in demand if you do a good job,” Doty said.Part of the reason for the high demand is that insurance companies and jurisdictions are requiring more regular inspections to verify the safety and integrity of communication towers. Identifying problematic corrosion in advance of it becoming a significant issue can prevent a more serious problem like tower collapse, and so while these inspections are reactionary to the repack, they've done a good job of reminding operators why they're so necessary.“[When companies] catch things in advance, the fix is a lot cheaper now than it would be ten years from now," Fehrman said.

Many of the roads and bridges Americans use every day were built just after World War II. While technical marvels at the time of their construction, our nation's critical infrastructure assets are pushing 60, or even 70 years old, and nearing the end of their service life.On this episode of FDH Tech Talks, we sat down with Dr. Armita Mohammadian, a research engineer at FDH Infrastructure Services [https://www.fdh-is.com/] who shared some news that may come as a shocker. Every four years, a government agency grades America's critical infrastructure systems, and in the latest 2017 report, the infrastructure we rely on daily received a dismal D+.It's no surprise why the infrastructure scored so low; replacing bridges, tunnels, roads, and power turbines is a costly proposition that is challenging to garner financial support. But Dr. Mohammadian laid out that her company provides a lower cost alternative; FDH performs non-destructive testing (NDT) and applies proprietary methods to assess the conditions of aging infrastructure without destroying its serviceability.Once the data is gathered and evaluated, FDH's client-driven R&D team will then develop custom solutions to maintain and strengthen the infrastructure, eliminating the need for costly replacement. FDH also applies its methods to newer infrastructure assets like wind turbines. The company helps assess, maintain, and monitor their structural health so that power generation proceeds without interruption."We have the ability to help our customers reliably strengthen their infrastructure system and also save some money," Dr. Mohammadian said. "That's very exciting, and it's what I love about my job."

America is just under 250 years old — relatively young as far as countries go. But the infrastructure and buildings that make up our civic networks are reaching old age. This spells danger and a shrinking lifespan for older structures we still use every day. Luckily, there is a way to test foundations without harming the infrastructure using electromagnetic and dispersive wave propagation (DWP). This form of testing is referred to as nondestructive testing of critical infrastructure (NDT).  On today's FDH Tech Talks, we continue our conversation on NDT practices with Rakesh A. Khan, PE, CWI, director of nondestructive testing services for FDH. Rakesh's experience as a geotechnical engineer shines as he explains the application and value of NDT.  Buildings aren't the only structures in American communities nearing the end of their lifespan. Power grids, dams, and bridges also need to be reinforced and evaluated for aging. This monitoring can all be done with NDT. Catching these instabilities before they become dangerous problems is perhaps NDT's greatest value. NDT is a preventative measure that Rakesh said, “can save DOT's millions of dollars.” Rather than replace an entire structure, NDT helps identify where it can be reinforced so that the structure can be used for more years to come.  But more than preventing our old structures from failing, NDT helps us build strong structures that will last well into the future. Rakesh, a certified welding expert by the American Welding Society, explains that DWP identifies strong welds of steel structures so that skyscrapers are built to last.

Several years ago, a student and some professors at NC State were discussing current methods of bridge testing, and they realized that, scientifically, there was a much better way to see if piles were damaged. FDH Infrastructure Services was born, and from the beginning, prided itself on finding creative and top of the line solutions for nondestructive testing of critical infrastructure.  On this episode of FDH Tech Talks, we're joined by Laura Guy, director of infrastructure and nondestructive testing at FDH, who breaks down the company's proprietary form of dispersive wave propagation for NDT, and how their technology improves on the general industry standard.  NDT can pick up anomalies in infrastructure foundation including voids, cracks, changes in density, or any other small abnormal detections. This is a much better alternative to destructive testing, which can tear up the slab or foundation to assess the situation (a costly and time-consuming burden). “It does negatively impact the foundation, and nobody wants to do damage to a foundation that is already being questioned,” Guy said.  Generally, this testing is done with waves, but sometimes they can miss smaller cracks, or are unable to determine the true size of voids without further testing. FDH uses dispersive wave propagation, which allows the waves to actually disperse, detect smaller faults in the structures, and get an idea of what's going on around the accelerometers that are placed on the foundation. It can really determine the length or depth of a foundation and has even been used to encourage more reverse engineering and detailed data for the beginnings of projects.  Listen to Guy explain how dispersive wave propagation is being used in the telecomm and transportation industries, particularly in cell phone towers and bridges, and where the future and refinement of this testing method lies.

Cell phones have become more than just a valuable tool; they have become a way of life. But what happens when our national broadband use becomes more than what our tower infrastructure can handle?  Recently, the FCC put forward a repack to re-assign several broadcasters to different channels. This transition, which began in November 2018, is moving most down into the lower groups to free up channels 51-83 for the National Broadband Plan, which allows more 5G and broadband access for wireless carriers.  On this episode of FDH Tech Talks, host Daniel Litwin, the Voice of B2B, interviews Don Doty, Business Development Manager, and Gregg Fehrman, Vice President of Field Operations, for the Stainless Division of FDH Infrastructure Services. Doty and Fehrman unpack everything related to this repack, including how the government allocated $1.7 billion to move these channels, the three-stage process that took place to reverse-auction each network's “spectrum” of channels, and the fiscal impacts for these networks as well as the businesses, like FDH Infrastructure, that are working so hard to relocate them.  The two discuss the construction challenges of this plan, including what it's like modifying up to 50-year-old structures to meet newer codes. In this podcast, FDH experts talk about the fact that certain infrastructure companies had years of idle time and are now scrambling to take care of all of this new work, the focused training involved for the tower workers, the difficulty to do this in certain parts of the country or within inclement weather patterns, and what all of this will mean for the consumer.

Armita Mohammadian, PhD, PE, senior research engineer, discusses FDH Infrastructure Services' nondestructive testing (NDT) capabilities and the partnerships that drive them. FDH is a pioneer in the research and development of NDT methods involving dispersive wave propagation. The company was founded in part on its innovative NDT methods for determining the length of unknown bridge pile foundations. Since then its proprietary methods have been applied to dams, levees, towers, and wind turbines, among other structures and foundations.

FDH's Dennis Abel, PE, Chief Engineer, discusses the implications of the Revision H standard on the tower industry one year since its October 2017 publication. Officially titled “ANSI/TIA-222-H: Structural Standard for Antenna Supporting Structures and Antennas and Small Wind Turbine Support Structures,” the standard, which became effective January 2018, provides guidance on minimum load requirements and design criteria. Revision H creates changes relating primarily to wind loading, existing structures, steel and concrete strengths, seismic analyses, mount analyses, and inspections and mappings.

Steven R. Strickland, director of construction management, joined this AEC podcast to provide insight on American concrete production, the best kinds of sand for certain projects, and his take on the realistic future of sand use. Mr. Strickland was invited by MarketScale to be part of its industrywide AEC podcast on Building a Greener Future. This podcast is the second of a two-part episode. Scroll forward to 32:40 on the timeline to begin.