RF Shorts for May 30, 2013

By Doug Lung
published

Richmond Stations Feel Impact of Dielectric Shutdown
Broadcasters in Richmond, Va. are feeling the impact of SPX's shutdown of Dielectric Communications. Peter Bacque reports in the Richmond Times Dispatch Richmond television stations' antenna fix faces more delay that “fixing the antenna serving three Richmond television stations has run into another problem — the company that was to repair the large antenna is going out of business.” The antenna serves WCVW, WRIC-TV and WRLH-TV.

“It's a big job to begin with, but this has put a crimp in things,” said Victoria Regan, WRIC-TV's general manager. “We're considering every possible option. It may have come to a standstill on the Dielectric front, but not in finding other ways of getting it fixed.” 

The stations are currently operating with a temporary antenna, as the main antenna on the 1,000 foot tower was damaged beyond repair on March 6. 

I'm continuing to hear rumors that another manufacturer will be purchasing the Dielectric IP and equipment, including reports that potential buyers were at the Raymond Maine facility last week inspecting equipment. I'm sure these Richmond TV stations and other Dielectric customers are hoping a buyer emerges soon to resurrect one of this country's largest suppliers of TV transmitting antennas and transmission line.

Comments and RF related news items are welcome. Email me at dlung@transmitter.com.

Doug Lung
Doug Lung

Doug Lung is one of America's foremost authorities on broadcast RF technology. As vice president of Broadcast Technology for NBCUniversal Local, H. Douglas Lung leads NBC and Telemundo-owned stations’ RF and transmission affairs, including microwave, radars, satellite uplinks, and FCC technical filings. Beginning his career in 1976 at KSCI in Los Angeles, Lung has nearly 50 years of experience in broadcast television engineering. Beginning in 1985, he led the engineering department for what was to become the Telemundo network and station group, assisting in the design, construction and installation of the company’s broadcast and cable facilities. Other projects include work on the launch of Hawaii’s first UHF TV station, the rollout and testing of the ATSC mobile-handheld standard, and software development related to the incentive auction TV spectrum repack. A longtime columnist for TV Technology, Doug is also a regular contributor to IEEE Broadcast Technology. He is the recipient of the 2023 NAB Television Engineering Award. He also received a Tech Leadership Award from TV Tech publisher Future plc in 2021 and is a member of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society and the Society of Broadcast Engineers.