How Much Do You Know About Microwave Towers

Microwave tower, also known as microwave communication tower, is a tower structure mainly used for microwave, ultra short wave and wireless network signal transmission and transmission. The main information is as follows:

Core functions and purposes
Signal support: Set up communication antennas to high points to expand signal coverage and ensure communication quality.
Application areas: Widely used in mobile/China Unicom/public security/military/railway/radio and television departments, responsible for microwave and ultra short wave signal transmission, and has served as a backbone equipment for power communication to support power grid dispatch, emergency communication, etc.
Structure and Design
Materials and processes:
Tower structures often use angle steel or steel pipes, with bolted connections between components.
The surface is treated with hot-dip galvanizing for corrosion resistance, enhancing weather resistance (design life ≥ 30 years).
Wind resistant design: Wind load is a key design parameter, involving factors such as wind resistance coefficient and body shape coefficient. The design wind speed is usually 32 meters per second.
Seismic standard: The seismic intensity is generally 8 degrees.
Classification and Site Selection
According to the structural form:
Self standing towers: including angle steel towers (economically applicable, most common), steel tube towers (such as three tube/four column towers, with small root openings, suitable for narrow spaces), and single tube towers (aesthetically pleasing, used in scenic areas).
Cable tower: It requires a small amount of steel but occupies a large area, and is easily damaged by external forces. It should be used with caution for microwave transmission.
According to the construction location:
Ground tower: mainly made of angle steel tower, there are also steel pipe tower, single pipe tower, etc.
Roof tower: using angle steel tower or elevated structure, it is necessary to verify the building's load-bearing capacity and repair the waterproof layer; If the height of the antenna exceeds the roof by ≤ 10 meters, a weighted concrete pier or a simple iron frame can be used to fix it.
History and Development
Construction peak period: late 1980s to early 1990s (such as the construction of 9 buildings in Puyang Power Grid from 1988 to 1989).
Technological substitution: In the 21st century, due to bandwidth limitations and susceptibility to interference, it was gradually replaced by fiber optic communication (such as Puyang Power Grid's withdrawal from the power communication network in 2010).
Retired disposal: Some corroded tower bodies have been dismantled (such as 6 in Puyang by 2025), and some have been converted into lightning protection devices for reuse.
Other characteristics
Multi functionality: The rooftop tower serves as both lightning protection grounding, aviation warning, and building decoration.
Construction method: Standardized production in sections, mechanical lifting or manual assembly of individual parts.

industry trends
New structures, such as three tube communication towers (equilateral triangular section steel tube towers), have gradually become one of the mainstream in the market due to their small root opening and small footprint.
Transformation direction: Communication towers are evolving towards "social towers" and "digital towers", expanding applications such as smart cities and environmental monitoring.

As an important carrier of communication infrastructure, microwave towers, although partially replaced by optical fibers, still have value in specific scenarios (such as remote areas, emergency communication) and new structured applications.