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NATCA NATIONAL OFFICE DEPARTMENTAL UPDATE December 16, 2017-January 5, 2018 LABOR RELATIONS DEPARTMENT AGENCY BRIEFING ON FAA ORDER 6930.28, MAINTENANCE OF TOWER, MAST & POLE STRUCTURES On Dec. 13, 2017, the Agency briefed NATCA regarding its intent to make changes to FAA Order 6930.28, Maintenance of Tower, Mast & Pole Structures. This Order provides guidance and prescribes technical standards, tolerances, and procedures applicable to the maintenance and inspection of tower, mast, and pole structures. It extracts from, updates, and consolidates the tower, mast, and pole structures information contained in FAA Order JO 6930.25A (December 15, 2006). NATCA is concerned that the Order uses the term "engineering personnel" which could refer to an employee who does not have the necessary engineering expertise relevant to the work to be conducted. NATCA is also concerned that this Order requires BUEs to work with a new database that could be confusing. NATCA submitted a comment requesting that the term "engineering personnel" be defined as "an engineer qualified in the specific design methods and materials to be used." This is the standard used in the Telecommunications Standard TIA-222G. NATCA also requested to participate in developing the trainings related to the proposed changes, and at a minimum would like to see and comment on the trainings prior to implementation. NATCA POC: NAS Implementation Manager Dominic Petreli, and Labor Relations Attorney Suzanne DeFelice. SSM-RDVS-034 COMPUTER TERMINAL TECH REFRESH On Dec.15, 2017, the Agency briefed NATCA regarding its SSM-RDVS-034 computer terminal tech refresh. The tech refresh upgrades the computer system for the RDVS 3080-F and 3080-H voice switches from a DOS-based system to a Windows 7-based system. The new system utilizes a simpler graphic user interface, which makes it easier to learn. AJW-1732 engineers will be on-site to train local personnel on the new system during the installation process. The Agency stated during the briefing that there will be no downtime, corruption, or loss of maps while this change is deployed. The system will have the same functionality as before, and air traffic controllers will not see any impact in their day-to-day work. The change will be deployed initially in Orlando, Chicago, Oklahoma City, and Columbus, Ohio. The Agency expects to deploy the new system to approximately 68 other facilities that use RDVS 3080-F or 3080-H voice switches over the next four years. POCs: Director of Safety & Technology Jim Ullmann, NVS/NEXCOM Representative Jonathan Shedden, and Labor Relations Attorney Grant Mulkey.

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