AeroSolutions L.L.C. has found its niche in the oft-neglected wireless tower infrastructure industry. The company said it is being discovered by bigger players that increasingly rely on its expertise to forge their own successes in the wireless business.
Steel tower structures physically deteriorate in the face of age and environmental factors like wind, lightning and sun, requiring them to be structurally upgraded or sometimes completely rebuilt to remain usable and safe.
Traditionally, upgrading the structures is costly, time consuming and dangerous because it requires welding new steel parts onto a working tower, which often means taking customers off the air to complete the upgrades and putting work crews at serious risk.
Enter AeroSolutions, the engineering team behind AeroForce Systems, a lightweight material-originally crafted for the marine and bridge industries-that does not require welding and is equally, if not more durable, than steel. Because of the time and cost savings from the reduction in required labor alone, AeroSolutions’ product is catching on.
AeroSolutions is now attempting to make its name known across the industry through an installation partner program. AeroSolutions considers itself a turnkey construction management company and is not a general contractor, emphasized Jim Lockwood, chief executive officer.
Rather, the company has set up a certification program whereby it certifies general contractors and engineering firms-companies and individuals-to become AeroSolutions’ installation partners. Certification includes classroom training in composite technologies and hands-on field training.
The non-exclusive network means more flexibility for AeroSolutions’ customers, who often already have preferred installation partners, and it benefits AeroSolutions because it means more teams across the industry can market and deliver AeroSolutions’ products.
So far, Berliner Communications Inc. and Alpha Telecom Services have been certified in the network of contractors. Three more companies should be certified by the end of this month, and Lockwood expects 30 companies to be in the installation partner network by the end of the year.
In addition to tower structures, AeroSolutions has created solutions for rooftop sites. According to Lockwood, AeroSolutions’ foundation for rooftop mounts weighs just 4 pounds per square foot, a huge advantage compared with otherwise-required reinforced concrete or steel, which can be hazardous to place on rooftops because of weight alone.
AeroSolutions’ materials have also been used to cover coaxial cables at tower sites to protect them from erosion and to make the sites safer. The company also provides panels for cabinets at tower sites. The ballistic panels weigh about 120 pounds per sheet vs. concrete slabs that would require a small crane to install, said Lockwood.
Although companies are mainly attracted to AeroSolutions for its low-weight, high-durability and overall cost-saving materials, Lockwood said business has also picked up in the face of increasingly stringent zoning regulations, because its solution does not change the appearance of the existing tower, but still can enhance it to provide better coverage and hold more carriers.
The company has master agreements in place with the five largest tower companies in the United States: Crown Castle International Corp., American Tower Corp., SBA Communications Corp., SpectraSite Inc. and Global Signal Inc.
AeroSolutions garnered $1 million in sales in its product’s first full year on the market, expects to make $4 million this year, and $12 million in three years, said Lockwood. The company plans to target more carriers and spread its wings geographically into Europe and Latin America.
To that end, AeroSolutions recently made Clint Cooper director/vice president of strategic business development and named him to the company’s board of directors.
