Leadcom: The marriage of passive and active infrastructure management

The advent of a new class of specialist passive infrastructure tower operators and service providers for Africa should not detract from the strategic integration of passive and active assets. TowerXchange spoke to Ofer Ahiraz, CEO of Leadcom Integrated Solutions, an international leader in the provision, management and implementation of telecommunications network deployment services and solutions, with an extensive footprint of more than 20 countries in Africa and Latin America. Leadcom uniquely combines capabilities in telecoms, structural and civil engineering, enabling them to offer RF design and implementation as well as tower design, site surveys, upgrade and maintenance.

TowerXchange: Where does Leadcom fit in the telecoms infrastructure ecosystem? How does Leadcom differentiate itself from its competitors?

In 1982 Leadcom started operating in the domestic market, adding international operations in 1995. In 2007 we acquired Ytelcom, expanding our footprint in francophone Africa. We’re now the only company covering Africa from East to West with a continuous geographical footprint. This enables us to support projects in neighbouring countries by sending qualified telecoms, structural and civil engineers. All Leadcom subsidiaries in Africa have ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 certification, giving us unique, high standards for quality, safety and the environment.

MNOs and towercos are looking for regional partners who can support them in multiple markets with the same quality, specifications, and understanding of telecoms infrastructure. Leadcom is able to duplicate one framework agreement to provide the same outstanding service level everywhere to customers such as Airtel, Tigo, MTN, Eaton Towers, American Tower and Helios.

Leadcom offers a wider product and service portfolio than just tower design, site build and maintenance. Most of our employees come from the telecom industry, so we know how to deal with active equipment, from base stations and in-building solutions to microwave links and power equipment (where we design and deploy solar, wind or combination hybrid solutions). We’re unique in providing services for both active and passive infrastructure – most of our competitors specialise in only one field or the other.

Let me give you some examples. In Ghana we are supporting a towerco who acquired some rusty, poorly maintained coastal towers. Leadcom undertook a full swap of these towers, using temporary towers to accommodate the microwave and base station equipment, maintaining full service while we dismantled the old rusty towers and constructed new ones according to the client’s specification.

In another example, we combined RF and civil engineering knowledge to deliver IBS (in-building solutions) for multiple operators, sharing active infrastructure to provide excellent coverage within a hospital, mall or hotel.

TowerXchange: Do you anticipate Africa’s towercos diversifying into sharing DAS and rooftops?

We’re still in the very early days of rooftop and DAS sharing in Africa. MNOs aren’t sharing them, while towercos are focusing on towers and co-locations.

I think rooftops and DAS sharing will be an attractive option for in Africa in the next one or two years, and Leadcom is positioned to be a major player in this market given our proven experience with active sharing of remote units, fibre optics and DAS in South America.

For example, Leadcom is working closely with a towerco in South America to offer road coverage in a nature reserve where no towers or electricity are allowed. Leadcom has done the RF design, implementation, and built the outdoor DAS solution, for which the towerco has provided the capex, leasing capacity to MNOs.

TowerXchange: What’s the balance of your business between operator-captive and independent towerco-owned sites?

Towercos are relatively new to Africa, but have become increasingly important since 2011 with the American Tower / MTN and Helios / Tigo transactions. Since we started rollouts in 2002-3 with Tigo, Leadcom have built 3,000-5,000 sites in Africa, many in logistically demanding countries such as DRC, Chad and Niger where in some cases we had to charter aircraft and boats to transport towers to remote areas. We have the specifications and drawings for those sites, making us a strong partner for the towercos.

TowerXchange: Does Leadcom manage delivery logistics in-house or use subcontractors?

Leadcom’s supply chain has gained vast experience in logistics in Africa over the years. For shipments from port to the site we use pre-qualified third parties. We have a shipping agent supporting us, and we constantly evaluate and monitor the performance and efficiency of our subcontractors, as getting sites up on time is heavily dependent upon logistics.

TowerXchange: By what magnitude does capex and opex rise in Africa as you move from well-connected urban sites to remote rural sites? 

Capex and opex can increase by double-digit percentages, and indeed can even double in some countries, as you move from urban to remote rural areas, depending on how difficult it is to reach the site. But the cost doesn’t just come from logistics, it’s also to do with the lack of available raw materials. At some locations we can’t find sand, concrete or even water locally, so these materials, and others have to be trucked in from the closest available place. Much also depends on the availability and capability of local workers to support a project.

TowerXchange: How do you survey and strengthen a legacy tower to add capacity for additional tenants?

The initial starting point is having the detailed designs of a tower to analyse on our software platforms. However, in most cases the towercos do not possess the tower designs and drawings for each and every site, so we have to send our expert to measure and evaluate every part of that tower on-site, and there can be thousands of parts in a 90-100m tower.

We also have to identify the current load on the tower. Many operators didn’t maintain a strong database every time they swapped GSM 900 MHz for 1800 MHz equipment or added 3G or microwave equipment, so it’s important to map the existing load on the tower and the location of the load. Leadcom’s structural engineers can then run simulations to identify any potential additional load capacity on a tower. Unfortunately we often find overloaded towers, which the tower owner needs to take measures to strengthen.

Once we’ve defined the status of tower in terms of capacity (under or over loading), we can project the additional load from adding one or two further tenants’ equipment. We can determine whether the tower can support that load in his present condition, and if not, what is required in order to strengthen the tower. Ultimately we can quote a full package of materials and services required to upgrade the tower to the required new capacity.

Let me give you an example where Leadcom were able to upgrade a towerco’s assets in the most economical way. We were provided with a request to replace an overloaded tower. Leadcom were able to offer and deliver a competitive solution to maintain the existing tower and only replace some elements, saving significant capex. This was probably the most complicated exercise we undertook last year as it involved replacing the legs of the tower, a unique procedure where we upgraded three legs to heavy duty legs, whilst keeping the tower in place and saving the asset for the towerco without dismantling the active telecom equipment. There was no interruption in service for the tenant during the whole process.

TowerXchange: Thanks for your time Ofer. How would you summarise Leadcom’s product and service offerings as applicable to the African tower industry?

Leadcom provides a comprehensive portfolio of products and services to the tower industry. We’ve assisted with site surveys for due diligence; tower audits, mapping and structural analysis; the design, supply and implantation of tower strengthening; tower replacement; the design, supply, site acquisition and installation of co-location and turnkey build 2 suite sites; we provide preventative and corrective maintenance services and this is only part of our offering.

When tower companies start to look at active equipment, as American Tower has done in the US, Leadcom’s experience and knowledge in active as well as passive infrastructure will mean towercos can continue to enjoy Leadcom’s support, with no new partner needed!