ENCommunications

Pennyrile Electric & EnergyNet are at a whopping THREE-THOUSAND SIX HUNDRED SUBSCRIBERS! Great work to all who have gotten them this far. ⚡️

Meet Hunter Furgerson, Manager of Detail Design for IOUs!

“I am responsible for cultivating a team and providing efficient process standards to support client needs. Our team uses these processes and tools to generate a high-quality product that meets client needs as well as our own expectations.

For us, each day is filled with new opportunities and challenges. The detail design team works as powerful cogs in this great machine. The manager acts as the oil for the machine; my purpose here is to ensure nothing gets locked up so that all can run smoothly. This means taking care of any client, personnel, system, or process-based challenges that come up from day to day.

Although there are many services we provide, the design is the “meat and potatoes” of what we do. It serves as the largest contributor to our revenue and is essential to our team’s success.

With design and fielding, the systems and platforms are ever-changing. It is key to have an open mind and pursue what tools are best suited for our team. The innovation within ENTRUST is incredible. Being able to alter our processes to utilize a cross-functional team of designers, engineers, and fielders and create a well-rounded product for our clients opens the door to many new opportunities.

This can be applied to more in life than just design; identify your priorities and goals in life, be committed to those priorities and goals, and work the rest of your life around them. Maintain integrity and responsibility to these priorities no matter what bumps or curves life brings you. Be honest with yourself, be vocal on what you do and do not know, be teachable and willing to adapt.

Having an open and honest approach is key to my team’s success. Being open and honest with oneself and the team is crucial in fostering a collaborative workspace. It allows for expectations to be realistic; it forms a comfortable atmosphere for ideas and innovations to be easily expressed; it brings to light when there are missing links to a process or stress points that need to be strengthened.

More personally, my passion is my family. I have a strong wonderful wife and a beautiful son who bring me joy beyond expression. My wife has been a true inspiration; she often pushes me out of my comfort zone and complacency and gives me the strength to press forward.

On the surface, I may come across as rough and direct, but I truly care and want the best for all. I hold myself to a very high standard and want to bring that out of everyone I work with. I have been blessed to have been surrounded by strong individuals that have helped elevate me in life and I hope that I can pay that forward to anyone I work with.

As for my bucket list, I’ve gone sky diving, rock climbing, and I’ve rode 2.7 seconds on a mechanical bull. I have to say what’s truly on my bucket list is to be able to lay down in death and know that I have lived a good life and left a pattern for others to follow.”

We love having you on the team, Hunter! 💚

🚨 Milestone Alert: Buzz Broadband has hit FIVE THOUSAND SUBSCRIBERS! Congratulations to everyone working on this project. You all are making a huge difference in this community!

Thank you to each and every one of our incredible clients for making this year truly special. Your trust in our services has been the cornerstone of our success this year. We appreciate all of you very much! Here's to a future filled with even stronger connections and shared achievements! 🌟

Our Extra Mile Awards acknowledge our staff members who go above and beyond in what they do. This last quarter, Tyler Sibery, was recognized with his award titled The “Through Thick and Thin" Award. He has successfully kept up with legacy projects, worked with the IOU teams, and cross-work on sector projects. Tyler has a great attitude and strong work ethic, and we are delighted to have him on the team. The has been a huge asset to the Outside Plant Design team, as well as EN Communications as a whole. Excellent work, Tyler! ✨

Our Extra Mile Awards acknowledge our staff members who go above and beyond in what they do. This last quarter, Channing Hinkle, was recognized with his award titled The “Eager Beaver" Award. He always brings a lot of positive energy into the room when he presents to his client, but more importantly, he displays the EN Communications spirit. Moreover, he always provides the customer with detailed knowledge of their upcoming project and confers a very high level of confidence, in the client’s view, in the EN Communication team. Fantastic work, Channing! 🌟

Check it out--CCECA hit FIVE-THOUSAND SUBSCRIBERS! This is an awesome accomplishment that deserves to be congratulated. 👏 Great work to all!

Wishing all of the EN Communications and ENTRUST Solutions Group employees, clients, families and friends a joyous holiday season!

Connecting festive moments and celebrating unity at the EN Communications Holiday Party. This last weekend, we had a blast at our office holiday party. Happy holidays to our employees, our customers, and everyone in between! 🎉📡

Our Extra Mile Awards acknowledge our staff members who go above and beyond in what they do. This last quarter, Kaitlyn Totora, was recognized with her award titled The “Wonder Woman" Award. She is excited to be part of the CIS team and wants to help make big improvements anywhere she can. She covers for everyone while they are out of the office and is always willing to help where needed and learn anything that we need her to learn. Congratulations, Kaitlyn, and thank you for your willingness to take on whatever task that comes your way. You are truly exhibiting the EN Communications spirit. Excellent work, Kaitlyn! 💚

Can you believe that Freedom FIBER has hit NINETEEN THOUSAND FIVE-HUNDRED subscribers? What a feat! We couldn't be more proud of the team at Tombigbee. ⚡️

🛑 We are HIRING! Are you looking for an exciting opportunity in business development? We're looking for someone with experience in smart grid, grid modernization, and make-ready engineering.

Not your speed? We have another opportunity out of South Hill, VA for a construction inspector. This position comes with benefits such as tuition reimbursement, flexible time off, and so much more.

Check out both positions in the links below!

Business Development: https://app.loxo.co/job/NjcxOS1ycmowcTU4ZmljYW56aGs4
Construction: https://app.loxo.co/job/NjcxOS15ZjVkMWQxaG5wbnhzZ3o0

Our Extra Mile Awards acknowledge our staff members who go above and beyond in what they do. This last quarter, Alex Davis, was recognized with his award titled The “GetR Done" Award. Through many challenging situations, he has done whatever was necessary to get the job done. He has shown great leadership by taking on any responsibility assigned to him. He provides excellent quality of workmanship and isn’t afraid to give a helping hand to anyone who asks. He is also detail oriented and proud of his work and is a great asset to the EN Communications team. Fantastic work, Alex! 🥳

Pea River is turning up the heat! They're already up to FIVE HUNDRED AND FIFTY SUBSCRIBERS! We can't wait to see how far you go. 📈

Congratulations to Steve Jakab on his well-earned promotion to the position of Director! 💚

Steve has done a fantastic job of leading the activities of the project management organization as Senior Manager of Operations and Project Management. Steve has been with FiberRise for almost 3.5-years excelling in his various roles of Project Manager as well as Senior Manager of Operations and Project Management.

Steve has over 25-years of sales, engineering, and project management experience in the telecommunications industry- which includes multiple positions at ADTRAN, Digium (now Sangoma Technologies), API Digital, and Northrop Grumman. Specifically, Steve has held positions such as Technical Support Engineer, Sales Engineer, Sales Account Manager, and Project Manager. He finds his greatest successes have been achieved in innovated, fast-paced, team-oriented environments where his drive for constant improvement can be satisfied.

Steve holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering degree from Christian Brothers University, in Memphis, TN. When not working, he enjoys spending time with his wife and two daughters traveling to explore something new.

Covington Electric & Buzz Broadband continues to impress us--they've hit FOUR-THOUSAND SEVEN-HUNDRED AND FIFTY SUBSCRIBERS! Excellent work! ⚡️

Another 300 in the bucket--CCECA is up to FOUR-THOUSAND SEVEN-HUNDRED SUBSCRIBERS! We love to see it! ⚡

🚨 Check out the latest article from our very own Steve Maederer, VP of Business Development at ENTRUST Solutions Group, entitled "Power & Fiber: Combining Power Utility Communications with Profitability for the Future." He discusses the importance of fiber and how it's going to help drive grid modernization.

Steve Maederer supports power utilities to build fiber optic networks for grid modernization and broadband revenue opportunities. Steve has a wealth of experience and expertise in the power utility industry. He leads the sales efforts of FiberRise, an ENTRUST Solutions Group Company, to the power utility market for power cooperatives, municipalities, and investor-owned utilities. He specifically focuses on the development of fiber optic network solutions for Fiber To The Home (FTTH), grid modernization, and various telecommunications revenue opportunities.

Power & Fiber: Combining Power Utility Communications with Profitability for the Future Today, a lot of electric co-ops and some smaller munis are putting in fiber and broadband simply because they are often in rural areas where nobody is building broadband to serve...

And they just keep on climbing 📈 EnergyNet has hit THREE-THOUSAND FOUR-HUNDRED SUBSCRIBERS! Keep up with the great work, everyone!

EN Communications applauds the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for issuing up to $10.5 billion in federal grant awards under the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program to a diverse set of investor-owned utilities, municipalities, and electric cooperatives nationwide. This announcement starts another historic wave of much-needed federal investments in grid infrastructure enhancements that will benefit ratepayers in rural, urban, and tribal communities across 44 states and native nations.

To ensure the success of GRIP program participants from the concept paper stage to final award, EN Communications maintains a dedicated team of federal financial assistance and compliance experts with extensive knowledge of the post-award federal contract and compliance process. Our federal grants compliance team is led by former senior executives at various federal agencies and departments with strong ties to DOE, USDA, EPA, and the Executive Branch.

EN Communications performs all environmental compliance and historic preservation implementation, project management, engineering, design and construction services, and so much more in regard to this program. Join us in shaping the future of America's grid modernization effort alongside DOE.

https://www.energy.gov/gdo/grid-resilience-and-innovation-partnerships-grip-program-projects

Pea River is seriously turning up! They've gotten THREE-HUNDRED AND FIFTY SUBSCRIBERS in the bucket! Great work to a team right in our backyard. 👏

Yes, they did! Covington Electric and Buzz Broadband hit FOUR-THOUSAND FIVE-HUNDRED SUBSCRIBERS! That's 500 more subscribers in just a few short weeks. Excellent work! 🐝

Congratulations to Mike Hawkins, our new Vice President of Operations! 🎉

Mike has over 35 years of telecom leadership experience. He has led and directed multi-discipline teams and organizations of various sizes. In addition to his experience at EN Communications, Mike’s telecommunication background includes Program Management, Vendor Management, Technical Support, Product Quality & Control, as well as Manufacturing. He holds an AS degree in Electronics from Wallace State, a Bachelor’s in Business Administration from Faulkner University, and an MBA from the University of Alabama.

Mike resides in Albertville, AL with his wife Christy. He has two sons, one holding an Auburn Aerospace engineering degree and one working on an Auburn Architecture engineering degree. Ironically, their whole family is comprised of . On the weekend, catch him enjoying a round of golf, a game of tennis, or a day of fishing.

We are so happy to see you grow in our organization. Congratulations, Mike!

Oh, you thought they we're going to slow their roll? Absolutely not! Freedom Fiber has hit EIGHTEEN-THOUSAND FIVE-HUNDRED SUBSCRIBERS! What a tremendous accomplishment. 🎉

FiberRise's Extra Mile Awards acknowledge our staff members who go above and beyond in what they do. This last quarter, Dylan Tucker was recognized with his award titled The “Yoda" Award. He has been with FiberRise for a little over a year and has proven himself to be an extremely valuable team member. Within just a few months, he has demonstrated natural leadership skills and quickly motivated the entire Broadband Team and Network Engineering team through is day-to-day actions. Dylan has been instrumental in guiding the team through implementing new processes and ensuring existing processes are well documented. Moreover, he recently filled in as department lead and liaison during his manager’s extended vacation. He allowed NOTHING to slip through the cracks. We appreciate your dedication to this team! Fantastic work, Dylan! 👏

Pennyrile just keeps on going. They're up to THREE-THOUSAND TWO-HUNDRED SUBSCRIBERS! Great work, y'all! 🚨

Our Extra Mile Awards recognize those that have made a significant impact on FiberRise and our customers. Through scripting/coding, this individual developed an exceptional automated Outside Plant, High Level Design (HLD); therefore, the “Python Slayer” award goes to David Anderson. David’s efforts will significantly reduce the Outside Plant Detail Design (OSP DD) cycle time, with much better quality, as it removes the many variables caused when steps are performed manually by many differently skilled contributors. Additionally, the random errors introduced into the process are systematically located and corrected. Excellent work, David! 🐍