PLDT, Smart deploy first carbon fiber towers in Philippines

by Richmond Mercurio (The Philippine Star), 30 May 2021

MANILA, Philippines — Telco giant PLDT Inc. and its wireless arm Smart Communications Inc. are deploying the country’s first carbon fiber cell site towers on urban rooftops to boost their network rollout.

Mario Tamayo, PLDT and Smart senior vice president and head of technology, said the deployment of carbon fiber towers would support the telco’s LTE and 5G rollout.

He said carbon fiber towers are especially advantageous in metro areas where the demand for LTE network expansion and new 5G rollouts require lighter tower solutions that can carry equipment to serve at full capacity.

Carbon fiber towers are significantly lighter than steel towers, easier to transport and install, are made of non-corrosive materials, and require almost no maintenance, according to PLDT.

The telco said these towers are ideal to be deployed on rooftops and coastal sites.

Carbon fiber towers are also expected to reduce PLDT and Smart’s impact on the environment, contributing less carbon dioxide and occupying less land area, translating to more efficient land use.

“Not only would these towers help roll out our network faster and more efficiently, these also reduce our companies’ environmental impact, as the manufacturing process emits up to 70 percent less carbon dioxide, compared with steel of comparable strength,” said Meinardo Opiana, head of transport network and support facilities planning and engineering at Smart.

“These towers also help our network become more disaster-resilient. Their non-corrosive nature, coupled with their ability to withstand strong winds, makes them ideal for coastal municipalities, where strong typhoons are now more common because of climate change. Their lightweight material, on the other hand, reduces the potential hazards of structural overload for rooftop towers that are already burdened by huge antennas and new tech rollout,” Opiana said.

Smart has fully installed its first carbon fiber tower in Quezon City recently.

PLDT said its carbon fiber tower rollout is part of the group’s nationwide network expansion program.

To date, Smart’s mobile network covers 96 percent of the population from Batanes to Tawi-Tawi.

PLDT’s fiber infrastructure, on the other hand, is the country’s most extensive at more than 478,000 kilometers as of end-March.