A Day in the Life of a Broadcast Technician

26 May 2010

The upkeep and ongoing development of Broadcast Australia’s network infrastructure takes Broadcast Technician, Nathan Sciani, to some of Australia’s most isolated and fascinating areas—and some great fishing spots!

For Broadcast Technician, Nathan Sciani, the unique surroundings of Northern Queensland provide the perfect work environment. Based at the foot of Mt Bellenden-Ker, 50km south of Cairns, Nathan provides on-site technical and maintenance support to over 70 of Broadcast Australia's transmission sites—from Mackay to the Camooweal area on the Queensland-Northern Territory border, all the way up to Thursday Island in the Torres Strait.

With a passion for travel and fixing things, Nathan enjoys the diversity of work and location, spending much of his time carrying out scheduled maintenance and routine testing of television and radio broadcast infrastructure. He also frequently works at heights to execute antenna repairs, as well as analogue-to-digital television site upgrades—all while prioritising urgent field support activities and emergency calls as they arise.

Off the beaten track

With a wife and son, and another child on the way, Nathan values quality time with his young family, as well as and renovating their 'Queenslander' home. However, he can be away from home and on-site in some of Australia's most remote areas for up to two weeks at a time. "The upkeep and ongoing development of our extensive broadcast infrastructure network has certainly taken me off the beaten track to some extremely isolated and fascinating areas," said Nathan. "As a broadcast technician, I have been lucky enough to visit regions that most Australians will never get to see."

Nearly all of the site work involves travelling through stunning untouched countryside to areas with magnificent scenery, all while meeting a wide range of interesting people. "I have the best office in the company—fully equipped with some great fishing spots!," said Nathan. "As a keen fisherman, I have to resist the urge to pack the rod and hitch the boat behind the work truck when we go out on jobs."

Wild weather

Along with his fellow broadcast technicians, Nathan is integral to keeping Broadcast Australia's country-wide broadcast infrastructure online. With wild weather, such as flooding and cyclones not uncommon in the area, repair and reinstating of broadcast infrastructure following natural disasters and emergency events is a regular requirement of the job.

On call 24-hours-a-day seven-days-a-week at various times throughout the year, Nathan and his colleagues work in consultation with Broadcast Australia's Network Operations Centre (NOC) to diagnose site alarms and system faults, and restore broadcast services as soon as possible.

At the end of a hard day working on a transmission site, Nathan almost always finds himself atop a hill enjoying a 'cuppa' and one of Australia's awe-inspiring landscapes. "Even though we are faced with a range of technical challenges in a wide variety of locations, there's one certainty in this job," said Nathan. "The view is always good."

Picture caption:  Broadcast Technician Nathan Sciani - The big one that didn't get away...

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