Hiding in Not-So-Plain Site

Carriers will be the first to tell you that plastic pine trees aren't just for Christmas. The fake foliage is just one of many creative ways to disguise antennas in residential and urban areas. Although the trees opened the door to cell sites in suburbia, carriers initially were disappointed with their performance. Now, with zoning boards demanding disguised sites more than ever, carriers see the need for stronger, longer lasting and varied disguise solutions.

About five years ago, sites disguised as pine and palm trees hit the wireless industry. Because they were still relatively new and untried, they remained a last resort. Back then, only a few carriers used them. Eventually, these first-generation trees developed problems. Carriers complained that the plastic trees didn't hold against the elements and needed frequent repairs. Rubber bark fell off because the glue wasn't strong enough. Other vendors saw how flimsy the plastic was and tried using rubber-clad steel materials in their trees, which resulted in RF signal interference. Some imitation pine-tree needles acted like miniature antennas and interfered with the main signal. There were even problems with entire branches falling off, making the site look more conspicuous. To add insult to injury, vendors charged carriers three or four times more for a disguised site.

Although many of the problems are now solved, the experience was enough to make some carriers think twice before racing out and getting camouflaged antennas.

"It isn't a silver bullet," said Karl Drews, AirTouch manager of network programs. "Even today we don't go straight to disguised sites, unless we know the zoning administrator is going to require it. Costs are higher, and the sites are more difficult to maintain."

Disguised sites' extra maintenance and high cost is still a common complaint from carriers. A disguised site can cost up to $250,000 and requires 25% to 50% more maintenance than a traditional site. AirTouch recently planted 12 additional palm trees to help conceal one of its plastic palm sites in California. Now the company has to deal with the added maintenance caused by the disguised site as well as irrigate a grove of living trees.

Yet Larry Hibler, Larson Utility Camouflage director, said maintaining a disguised site is not much different from the extra maintenance needed for a standard painted pole. He admitted the first disguised sites needed more maintenance because the materials weren't as sturdy. However, with stronger materials in place, the primary maintenance on today's sites is merely touching up paint.

BUILT TO LAST Plastic is the material commonly used in today's disguised sites, just as in the past, but now it is stronger and more durable. With modern advances in technology, materials also have become more RF-permeable.

Stealth Network Technologies' latest disguised site material, a foam structural insulated panel called StealthSkin V (SSV), has been tested by NASA and Hughes Space and Communications. According to Ken Wedholm, Stealth Network Technologies southeast region sales manager, test results show the product goes above and beyond standard RF materials in performance and strength. When shooting through an SSV-constructed panel, signals show less than 0.05dB loss. The material also can withstand and exceed all wind loads posted in the country.

SSV may be considered one of the best disguise materials on the market today, but it comes at a price. Created for use only in PCS networks, SSV costs about 40% more than regular materials. Wedholm said if you're going to go through the hassle of building a site in an area known for planning and zoning problems, you should get the best RF performance you possibly can.

"There's no sense in a carrier spending the umpteen thousand dollars to acquire a site, only to get poor RF performance," Wedholm said. "It defeats the purpose of having the site."

Hibler said all material used in disguised sites affects the signal in some way. That's why Larson, Stealth and others conduct extensive RF testing before marketing products.

RF performance, although important, is not the only issue carriers are interested in. On average, disguised sites, especially trees, have not stood up to carriers' expectations. Several carriers expressed concern over the projected life span. AirTouch bought a palm tree (not from Larson) about four years ago, and the fronds started to break down after three.

One vendor said one problem with disguised sites is that most materials are made of plastic, and carriers want something that resembles galvanized steel, but steel is not RF-permeable. Larson's Hibler said his company makes its trees out of only "RF-friendly materials." Extra-strength PVC tubing composes the basic skeleton of the branches, which the company then coats with an artificial epoxy bark and paints with a non-metallic paint. Hibler said he is confident that Larson trees can last a long time. He said the company has one tree in Tucson that has been standing for about six years with no problems.

A CARRIER'S WISH LIST In addition to longer-lasting disguise solutions, carriers naturally want lower-cost options. Jim Nachman, U.S. Cellular RF engineer, said cell-site trees can cost as much as $1,000 a foot and that cheaper solutions such as flagpoles still cost twice as much as monopoles.

But Stealth's Wedholm said it is unfair to compare disguised sites with traditional ones.

"Disguised antennas are usually the only way a carrier is going to get a site in a certain locale; to compare that to a site it can't have is like comparing apples to oranges," he said.

Doug Goodson, U.S. Cellular group engineering manager, said his company uses flagpoles and church steeples not only because they are closer in price and maintenance to a traditional site, but also because vendors don't make a variety of disguise solutions that cellular carriers can use. He said that most of today's more creative disguises are built to fit PCS-size antennas, not large cellular antennas. Stealth, however, does offer options for cellular carriers.

Today, carriers are working with vendors and landlords to create their own disguise solutions. AirTouch had Pacific CellSite Systems create a 3-sided, 60-foot pylon with an antenna in it located near the John Wayne Airport in California. The same company also made a Washington-Monument type of structure that AirTouch developed with the landlord of Irvine Spectrum, a shopping center. Unlike disguised trees that blend into a tree line, the tower is far from hidden. The shopping center uses the structure as signage, and Air-Touch spent $120,000 in lighting equipment to accent the obelisk with holiday colors at certain times of the year.

Stealth's latest designs include a mock ranger station and an old-fashioned wooden-style water tower. The ranger station resembles the elevated huts rangers use to look out over forests for fires. Built on four stilts, an entire site can be housed inside a log-cabin-looking structure.

Although the mock ranger station is located in a rural area where zoning restrictions are usually more lax, the community requiredAT&T Wireless to disguise the site just the same. Stealth also has replicated windmills with spinning blades and brick or stucco-style chimneys all made of fiberglass to disguise a cell site. Stealth's Wedholm said the possibilities are endless. If carriers come up with a new idea for a disguise solution, Stealth will do its best to try and build it.

If palm trees and pine trees don't work for you, Larson has giant saguaro cacti and 6-foot high boulders that can hide your antennas. Hibler explained that the cactus works great for network coverage, but that the boulders are reserved for special applications, because their coverage is very specific. As with the all camouflaged sites, carriers said they want custom designs to be high-performance, low-cost structures.

FUTURE SITES Vendors said the future price of disguised sites will come down because demand will go up. Zoning boards are demanding disguise solutions with greater frequency. Some carriers said it won't be long before most of their networks will use disguised sites with traditional towers remaining only in extremely rural areas.

That vision, of course, is music to many vendors' ears. According to vendors, the reason disguised sites are so expensive is because they are a niche market. Most carriers only order one at time, which makes it hard for vendors to offer discounts. But in just the last several months, disguised site vendors have enjoyed increased business.

Carriers concerned about warranties also could find a brighter future. Industry-wide, disguised site warranties regularly last for only one year. Drews said he wants a 5-year standard warranty with an option to purchase an extended warranty, something many vendors do not provide. Currently, Larson offers a standard 1-year warranty. Extended warranties are available for preferred customers only. Larson's Hibler said that could change when the market changes. With the predicted disguised antenna boom, vendors will have to differentiate themselves from their competition and offer their customers more of what they want. Now is the time to build relationships with disguised antenna vendors. When the time comes to buy, you may be first in line for some great deals.