Puerto Rico. Dielectric's global business continues to expand through obtaining key customers, and the CALA region represents an especially strong activity region for the FM radio business.
The Educational Media Foundation (EMF) has joined Dielectric's CALA commercial push with the installation of a listener-funded DCR-M for WJKL-FM, a non-commercial station serving the island of Puerto Rico.
EMF worked closely with Dielectric on a broadband antenna design to support WJKL on 105.7 FM and a second station (104.7 FM) in the future. The centrally powered DCR-M adapts to both frequencies (with a separation of 1 MHz) through a special tight-space design that eliminates the need for field adjustments in the future. EMF also added a new two-station branch combiner specially designed to serve both transmission frequencies and avoid problems of intermodulation of the signal mix within the transmitters.
Mounted laterally to a tower on top of a mountain with a radiation center 118 feet above ground level (1787 feet above sea level), the DCR-M was specified to withstand Puerto Rico's often stormy weather elements, which are amplified during hurricane season. In fact, the project was delayed due to several strong storms, including Hurricane Maria in 2017, which caused widespread devastation on the island. The project was reactivated once power was returned to the remote site and the overall infrastructure was restored.
"Dielectric's robust antenna design meets our tower's weight and wind load specifications while building the right protections for continuous operation in our harshest weather conditions," said Kim Allison, director of site development, EMF/WJKL-FM. "This was of great importance considering the remote location of the tower. We were also very pleased with Dielectric's collaborative approach with our other partners, which ultimately delivered the antenna system needed to accommodate a second FM station."
Dielectric worked closely with Sabre to develop a custom mounting system that could support the unique design of space between bays. This included a separation pole for the conical tower architecture and a support design that eliminated the complex anti-rotation elements for the antenna bays. Dielectric also added its "funky elbow" design to reduce the DCR-M's ground radiation, through a robust inter-bay power system that optimizes signal coverage without directing radiation down from the tower.
Dielectric Vice President and General Manager Keith Pelletier notes that Dielectric worked closely with EMF, Sabre and local contractors in Puerto Rico to ensure that deadlines were met and that logistics were well coordinated. Everything was shipped in a single container to reduce costs, and Sabre designed the separator pole into short modular sections to fit dielectric's antenna perfectly.
"This project was a labor of love for Dielectric considering the unforeseen delays and challenges EMF faced on the way to installation," Pelletier said. "We are grateful for the opportunity to support EMF and its mission to bring Christian radio programming to audiences throughout Puerto Rico."
