Hatfield & Dawson provides engineering consulting services nationwide for a wide range of broadcast clients, from non-commercial stations and stand-alone operations to large broadcast groups.
These services include:
AM Broadcasting
FM Broadcasting
TV Broadcasting
Due Diligence
AM Broadcasting
Hatfield & Dawson are among the world's most experienced and knowledgeable engineers in medium wave allocation, propagation, and antenna design and implementation matters. The firm's principal engineers have pioneered the use of modern computational analysis methods to ensure that the design and implementation of medium wave antennas is as economical as possible. As a result, we have successfully designed antennas that met their design specificationswithout any incremental adjustment requirements. Our experience extends from low power AM systems for sports stadiums, airports, and college campuses, to the million-watt transmitting systems of the Voice of America.
For AM broadcasters, our services include allocation studies for new stations and station modifications, partial- and full-proof-of-performance field strength measurements, FCC application preparation, and on-site measurements and inspections. Our staff has extensive experience with diplexed and even triplexed AM station operations, including system implementation and tune-up.
FM Broadcasting
Our location in the western United States has given us a large amount of experience with VHF and UHF radio propagation under a huge variety of circumstances. As a consequence, we have expertise in the analysis and design of FM transmission facilities under almost every conceivable circumstance. We use automated propagation calculation techniques, measurement, and theoretical analysis to evaluate proposed facilities as well as to optimize existing ones. Our experience in numerical analysis methods allows us to predict the performance of antenna systems with a high degree of reliability.
Because we have been attentive to FM allocation matters over virtually the entire history of FM broadcasting, we have a record of solving unusual allocation situations, including the unique challenges associated with allocation matters along the Canadian and Mexican borders. Our experience in the use of field measurement data and propagation calculations in FM licensing cases is equally extensive.
For FM broadcasters, our services include allocation studies for new stations and station modifications, FCC application preparation, and on-site measurements and inspections.
TV Broadcasting
Many of the same factors that make up our expertise for FM broadcasting apply to television as well. In addition, our techniques for appropriate antenna design and specification for UHF television allow confident prediction of facility performance.
For TV broadcasters, our services include allocation studies for analog and digital stations, FCC application preparation, and on-site measurements and inspections.
Due Diligence
Brokers and financial institutions are experts at financial analysis. Brokers know that financial details supplied by sellers need to be verifiable and believable. If they aren't, the broker's reputation and relationship with the buyer can be destroyed. Financial institutions know that if they finance a transaction whose basic value assumptions are invalid, they can lose the basis for their security instruments.
It's much harder for brokers and buyers and their representatives to analyze the technical and administrative details of a broadcast or communications property. Frequently, buyers use their own personnel to make these evaluations. This doesn't always give the broker or financial institution enough information to be completely informed--or to be protected against possible future problems.
An even greater problem is evaluation of potential facility improvements. Blue sky representations by sellers may turn out to be very dark and stormy realities for a purchaser.
There are substantial benefits to be gained from a thorough technical review of a proposed transaction. Some are obvious; equipment condition and suitability can often be evaluated easily. What's much more difficult to determine are subtle problems that can be disclosed only by a careful inspection of facilities or licensing documents. Here are a few of the kinds of problems we've uncovered.
Due diligence technical inspections cost very little. You wouldn't broker or finance a real estate transaction without a title search. You shouldn't broker or finance a communications property transaction without a thorough review of the licensing details and technical facilities by a qualified expert.