Kathy Chung
Portfolio Director
Kathy Chung
Working here, I have come to realise that with the right planning and people, nothing is impossible.
As an example, in 2016, we were set an ambitious 2 year project. The objective was to improve Digital TV services and launch Digital Radio in Hobart, Tasmania. To achieve this we needed to replace antennas at a transmission site at Mt Wellington.
Approaching the task, it was assumed that we would need two antennas; one for Digital TV and one for Radio. Upon removing the old Analogue antenna and interlaced DTV/FM antenna it became apparent that we actually only had enough space on the structure for a single one, not a pair. An added challenge was that the installation needed to proceed in a World Heritage Park. Under no circumstances could waste be allowed to impact the area. Also the weather conditions experienced were often extreme and included snow and high winds. It was a highly complex task, filled with many difficult challenges. To add one further complexity, some structural maintenance was also needed to be carried out. This included work on two separate tuned liquid dampers that were perched at great heights (110m and 130m). Such a task had never been done by BAI before.
To solve the lack of antenna space issue, a specially fabricated, single interlaced antenna for Digital TV and Radio was created after an exhaustive design process. To manage the high winds and conditions, detailed planning was put in place. This included moving in a 33m high guyed antenna as a temporary measure to keep transmissions running for Hobart while new works were undertaken. On the dampers. which needed maintenance, 3,600 litres of liquid was safely drained and refilled. That was completed without any spillage or impact on the Heritage park. The project itself was delivered ahead of schedule and below budget. Our customer was thrilled.
To be a part of this project with its combination of engineering disciplines and see it to its completion, demonstrated just how much passion, pride, strength and can-do attitude we all have. Since then I’ve been involved in a separate antenna replacement project in Queensland at our Brandon Transmission site. There, a 198m tall MF mast (built in 1959) was replaced with a 236m tall mast. Again, an incredible project, completed by an amazing team.