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WORST SCENARIOS FOR HARRIS BCD

J

JRZFM100

Just thinking of worst merger and acquisition scenarios possible for the future of Harris BCD-

(1) Itelco/RVR

(2) OMB Sistemas Electronicos

(3) Broadcast Warehouse

(4) Wilkerson / Television Technology Corp.

(5) CCA

(6) QEI

(7) LPB

(8) Fidelipac

(9) Cart Mart (Loop 820, Ft Worth, Texas)

Albeit, admittedly the last few of these companies don't actually exist anymore.

Anyone remember the name of the broadcast transmitter company in South America that Continental took over circa 1995 - they would be a bad suitor as well.

Others?
 
And I forgot, ECRESCO, a Euro broadcast transmitter manufacturer, the parent or a company closely related to Audemat-Aztec.

They have had a 5kW and 10kW WATER cooled FM transmitter in their recent product catalog, circa 2008.

A few years ago, they asked me if I was interested in going to live in France for up to one year to learn the RF product line, as they (Audemat-Aztec) had big plans to introduce and roll out radio transmitters in the US.

Water cooled? 5kW? in 2007? Yep, every FM station in the US that I have ever seen had a cooling pond perfectly suited to that purpose. And just think how much electricity costs for HVAC could be saved if we all reverted to water cooling....

Inside city limits, I'd have to get a licensed plummer to install and maintain the cooling.

Put ECRESCO on the list as a very bad suitor for Harris BCD!
 
What the heck would you need water cooling on 5kW for?? Was this a tube job? My SS 5kW transmitters throw off very little heat. The AC in the building could take care of 5 of them running at the same time...

I'm thinking it was more like water cooled PCs, where there is a heat exchanger and circulator pump in a closed system.

http://www.ecreso.com/fm-radio-products-19-54-1.html
 
From the Ecresco link above, environmental specs for their 5kW:

ENVIRONMENTAL Cooling 40 l/min
Click to expand...

That looks like a flow rate of 40 liters per minute? That would be a lot of liters!

They do state that liquid cooling is superior to convection cooling, therefore offering superior life.

I still think you'd need a cooling pond. Seems like I remember seeing I/O plumbing fittings coming out the top of the 5kW in a picture.
 
You don't need a cooling pond, just a heat exchanger outside the building. The plumbing's not all that complicated even for a higher-powered rig. Continental has built a handful of 816-series water-cooled transmitters. I saw one in use last year at WSKY 97.3 outside Gainesville, Florida. It runs quietly and very efficiently, and doesn't require the kind of heavy-duty AC that a typical air-cooled box needs in Florida summer heat.
 
Liebert is one US manufacturer of outdoor dry coolers, specifically designed to transfer heat from a cooling liquid to outside air. There are other companies which make sure heat exchangers, and it doesn't take a physically large one to disspiate the heat load of a typical transmitter.

A four fan dry cooler is about all it takes to cool the water loop for a 250kW HF transmitter and the dummy load dry cooler is a five fan unit.

One problem with a cooling pond, at least in a one loop system, is the water gets exposed to the outside environment and then contaminates the cooling system inside the transmitter. A liquid to liquid heat exchanger could be used in a two loop system using a cooling pond. There could be one minor advantage to a cooling pond system, for if the humidity is low enough, that the return water from the pond could be cooler than the outside ambient air due to evaporation. Of course, this would require a certain amount of make up water.

In certain water cooled situations, with unique temperature and air conditioning operating levels, a water cooling system might actually bring heat into the building. Consider a building environment where there is very ample air conditioning, and an extremely high outside ambient air temperature, the return water temeprature in a heat exchanger system would never be lower than the outside ambient air temperature, thus the building air conditioning system could have to deal with the heat load of the return water!
 
Scott Fybush said:
You don't need a cooling pond, just a heat exchanger outside the building. The plumbing's not all that complicated even for a higher-powered rig. Continental has built a handful of 816-series water-cooled transmitters. I saw one in use last year at WSKY 97.3 outside Gainesville, Florida. It runs quietly and very efficiently, and doesn't require the kind of heavy-duty AC that a typical air-cooled box needs in Florida summer heat.
Click to expand...

Scott do you (or any body else) have any info on WFLI's old water cooled transmitter. I know it was WAPE's "sister". When I went over to Look Out Mountain studio's / transmitter site a couple of times in the mid-1970's to pick up or deliver commercials, (reel to reel back then) there was a not so small "chiller" with water running in it. They had a large antenna farm on the other side of the building. IMHO it was the best "music" AM station I have ever heard.
 
Kent,

I agree that TFT would be a worst scenario for M&A of Harris. I actually had TFT in the original list along with CCA and QEI, but took them off the list because they are still in business, unlike Cart Mart.

Funny, a million years ago I worked for one of the big three transmitter mfgrs who was considering the acquisition of TFT. So I had access to a complete set financials for TFT circa 1994. And as I recall, TFT was really only a loss leader for its owner (I forget his name) as the owners real source of income was real estate income from apartments.
 
TFT additional.... Nevermind
 
TFT to me is minimal at best. I have the misfortune of a set of their STLs (8300s I think). A CHEAP piston cap in the transmitter really created an issue one time. Long story, but when the station first went on the air they bought a new set of this "hunnys". The original set, the set sent after that, and the ones after that didn't work. So, they sent loaners out. The station eventually kept the loaners as they actually worked, unlike the new infant mortality beasts they kept sending. Advance that several more years down the road... When I got here I noticed when I closed the back door on the rack or disturbed it a bit, the damn thing would go off the air. The cheap-assed piston capacitor was worn out from adjusting it to different frequencies I guess. Thank God for friends with junk parts. I had it back up and going the next day. Thankfully I also had a old backup Moseley to use in the mean-time.
 
And each TFT piece of equipment is on my company's books as a POS 650. POS 650 is line item for equipment that has been constant trouble and/or non supported. This line item can be replaced sooner than planned and written off the books. Each TFT item should have come with a prescription for Prozac and a free case of Whiskey. The gear which drives engineers everywhere nuts.
 
I think the worst owners, would be investment bankers from NYC...and let me tell you why.

Harris needs a jump-start in technology...including a price drop... now.

Whomever buys them, is buying a whole bunch of 'support' from products in the field.
And, if you don't support them, well...that's just 'bad will'. So, you better make sure, you keep
your warranty / repair / service staffers...and phones answered 24/7.

Italy's been eating their lunch in smaller countries. Nautel has been taking care of business
in the US, Canada (naturally) and now, South America.

So, if you buy the place, on the prospect of selling them again in five years...forget it!
If you don't have broadcasting in your DNA, don't waste your time. And, how far has 'Made In
America' meant to any of us, lately...? Price is king...especially in this era of 'no financing'.

And, if they won't let you license the "Harris Brand Name" for the next 20 years...at least give us
a name like "Gates Transmitters" instead of Acme Deathstar MW-10C!

Don't worry, you won't find QRK turntables, buying the place... it's gonna take some serious bread, and there aren't many folks out there.... and don't mention Google, either... they sure did a bang up job on their venture into automation systems!
 
I really think the new ownership will be selling products under the Gates Radio Co. brand. Which is really a good brand to revive. And we'll have a Division Of Blank below. So, we might soon be seeing new Gates Flexivas and other gear.
 
Don't badmouth the TFT! ;D
Once you got them running with modifications (factory & tinkering) they keep on going.
Have two sets of TFT 8300's coming up on 28 years in service!
Replaced all the electrolytics twice now.

Even the old TFT AM mod monitor is still going after 32 years (and lots-o-caps).
 
wtrw said:
Price is king...especially in this era of 'no financing'.
Click to expand...

Harris might be attractive to a GE Capitol. General Electric Capitol was (before the financial melt down) was a huge profit center for GE. (There will many master thesis written about GE and Warren Buffet saving them but that is another thread.) GE fiances jet airliners (with GE engines). You think radio stocks are bad look at the airlines in the last decade. I don't know if there are enough dollars to get GE's attention.

IMHO CIT would be a perfect fit.

http://data.cnbc.com/quotes/CIT/tab/4

They do a lot of equipment financing world wide.
 
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