CDMI

Creative Design and Machining, Inc. branched out in 1996 to form CDMI, dedicated to in-house engineering, design and drafting capabilities.

CDMI developed and patented the Lite-Site as a portable, standardized, self-contained wireless cell site. The Lite-Site has been used in various communication and non-communication applications where deployment is difficult and time sensitive.

The Lite-Site is a modular system consisting of a base frame (ballasted foundation), monopole, antenna mounts and fence that creates infrastructure for the communications industry. The technology is aesthetically pleasing, according to the company, as well as PE certified. The temporary or permanent site can be put up in one day upon approval, which can help speed up zoning/permitting, delivery and installation.

Mike Sowden, director of wireless infrastructure for the Pennsylvania-based company, said that CDMI’s service area is nationwide, and in some cases it ships internationally.

“We specialize in quick deploy cell sites—that’s our product line—and what we’ve found is that the carriers utilize it for a host of different applications,” Sowden said. 

‘Needs can range from water tank maintenance to event coverage of weekend festivals, state fairs or raceways where there are no DAS systems. The Lite-Site has also been used for disaster recovery areas, and the company is planning exciting future projects such as the upcoming presidential inauguration, the East Coast Sturgis motorcycle rally, remote location build outs in Wyoming and more. When the event is over, you can move the Lite-Site to the next location or it can be used as a permanent PE certified site.

“We also manufacture COW antenna mounts,” Sowden said. “We’ve designed standardized configurations of poles and foundations, and we’ve got some up in remote Alaska where they can’t get equipment in to do foundations systems. Also, they’re big on reservations because they don’t want to dig and disturb the soil.”

Additionally, CDMI can design and/or fabricate to customers requirements both one off and low or high volume products. CDMI is known for high quality and quick delivery, and the Lite-Site is removable, reusable and re-deployable technology that gives customers options to stay with the times. Even if they need to decommission the site, it’s just as easy to take down as it was to put it up.

As the company goes through regular engineering updates to stay in sync with current codes, Sowden said that they recently discovered they gained more capacity out of the structure than they previously thought.

“W=e can either get higher up in the air or deploy more antennas up in the air, so that helps our carriers too. Going from a three-panel array or a nine to 10 panel antenna is huge,” he said.

For more information, visit http://cdmiwireless.com/.