Carbon Fiber Reinforcement Technology | Lexington Park, Maryland
Project Description:
The 320 foot tall guyed tower required leg strengthening to resist buckling from its base to 260 feet in height and rotation of the tower by 60 degrees. The existing coax cable supported from the legs was a serious fire hazard if the proposed welded steel half pipe originally designed was installed. Aero value engineered the existing design to a reinforcing system using carbon fiber shells bonded to the tower legs. Each leg was strengthened using two 150 degree half shells structurally adhered to a roughened galvanized surface. The shells were manufactured by Aero affiliate Comptek Structural Composites, Inc. using vacuum molding. Each shell was 18’-6” in length with a wall thickness of .125 inches. The structural adhesives were placed onto the shells on the ground prior to raising an placement. Following the installation of all carbon shells, a polyurethane wrap was helical wrapped around the reinforced leg members as added protection. To facilitate the sites available land space with the installation of new guy cables, the entire tower was rotated 60 degrees around its axis.
Aero Solutions Role:
Aero was the Design/Builder responsible for developing the engineered solution, material fabrication/manufacturing and installation.
Technical Description:
Tower Type: Three leg guyed tower
Height: 320 feet
Client: Crown Castle International
