Cablefax The Magazine August 2022 - 11

to enter customers' homes to make the necessary
conversions. Armstrong was doing
as much as it could to arm employees with
what they needed to feel safe and secure,
even making its own sanitizer at one point.
Ultimately, it paused conversions through the
summer of 2020. While progress did slow
down, Armstrong still exceeded 30% coverage
to date and is actively accelerating construction
and conversions.
The operator also held two recent 10G
community events
Cranberry,
Pennsylvania,
in Medina, Ohio, and
in collaboration
with partners like CableLabs, to inform the
areas it serves about network improvement
initiatives while also granting local officials
the opportunity to visualize the technologies
that can come to life with the help of 10G.
" It's early in the adoption curve, but what
we want to do is show that we are a company
that is constantly evolving and evolving
ahead of the curve, " Ross says. " These
services we're offering now aren't even
available in some of the biggest cities in the
United States. We're offering this in rural and
suburban communities. "
At the same time, Armstrong has been
pushing forward on its New York Broadband
Project, a public/private partnership with the
state that will result in the arrival of highspeed
internet service to much of the unserved
areas that lie across the border from
Pennsylvania.
" We have owned and operated a small rural
telephone company in Addison, New York,
for a very long time. It was a very small company
and it's in Charter territory, " Ross says.
" There were communities around where
we served our telephone footprint that had
no broadband... it was struggling, getting
smaller, and this was an opportunity for us to
do what we do best-build plant and serve
customers, " Ross says.
The project didn't make sense without the
support of the New York State Broadband
Program, and the subsidies offered by the
state opened the door for Armstrong to take
action. By the end of this year, Armstrong
will have constructed 3,997 miles of plant to
Panelists have some fun during Armstrong's second 10G Expo in Cranberry, PA. On stage
from right to left-Doug Heusey (telemedicine), Mark Gordon (economic development), Jeff
Leget (CableLabs), Mike Giobbi (CTO), Jeff Ross, and Sara Winegardner (Cablefax facilitator).
bring its Zoom internet product to 21 hubs
serving 115 communities. Once completed,
its broadband services will pass more than
43,000 homes. The experience hasn't been
easy, but now Armstrong's leadership team
feels ready to tackle any large-scale build
opportunities that become available.
" Prior to New York, we would build about
200 miles a year, so to go from 200 miles
a year to biting off a 4,000-mile project, it
was big, " Ross says. " Permits, make ready,
securing contract resources to do it, project
management, doing that much fielding,
just everything... the infrastructure BEAD
program is going to put a lot of money into
broadband in rural areas, and it takes a lot of
experience to do that. We hope that money is
spent with companies that have experience. "
Even as it has grown, Armstrong has been
determined to maintain the family-like atmosphere
that has existed since the company's
beginnings. The company has been managed
by the Sedwick family since day one, and the
members have always led with a spirit of humility
and endless care for their employees.
" The founder had a motto, he said growth
in perpetuity. So he always wanted to see the
company growing, but also thinking about
the company as it would last forever, in perpetuity, "
Ross says. " Those principles have
been handed down through the generations. "
Third-generation family member Dru Sedwick
serves as President/CEO of Armstrong
parent company Armstrong Group and there
FAST
FACTS
CablefaxTopOps.com
69%
penetration rate
to homes passed
13.5
years - average
tenure of an
Armstrong
employee
60
employees were
promoted in
1Q22 alone
765
SCTE certifications
completed by
employees
August 2022
TOP OPS
11

http://www.CablefaxTopOps.com

Cablefax The Magazine August 2022

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