Ford teams up with comedian Nate Bargatze. Ford has recruited comedian Nate Bargatze to help deliver a message that deserves more attention: The people who keep its vehicles running deserve some recognition, and America needs more people learning how to do their jobs. Bargatze brings the laughs, while Ford's technicians bring the mechanical knowledge. Judging by his own description of his repair experience, that division of responsibilities is probably best for everybody. If you've never seen Nate's standup routines, look him up on YouTube, he is hilarious. Writing for Ford's From the Road website, Bargatze recalled that his first used car had a sticky shift knob. His solution was to cover it with a tennis ball. That was apparently enough automotive innovation for one lifetime. The Bronco owner is now the face of Ford's "Real Parts. Real Pros. Real Easy." campaign, which launched Oct. 1 across streaming television, digital video and social media. The campaign promotes Ford parts, dealership service professionals and the convenience of service that can come to customers. According to Bargatze's article, Ford trained more than 26,000 technicians in 2025. Photo: Ford. The partnership also connects to a broader workforce effort. Bargatze was named host of Ford's second annual ACCELERATE the Essential Economy conference, held Sept. 30 at Michigan Central Station in Detroit. In her account of the event, Ford communications team member Kirsty McInnes described initiatives aimed at helping people discover skilled careers, finish training and enter the workforce. Those steps included expanded transportation support through Ford Philanthropy and $550,000 in joint support from Ford Philanthropy and JPMorganChase for Focus: HOPE, a Detroit nonprofit providing education and job training. The practical point is simple: Getting someone interested in a career does little good if that person cannot reach the classroom or complete the training. The size of the challenge is substantial. According to a Sept. 30 announcement from the Alliance for America's Skilled Trades, its new national report projects approximately 1.7 million skilled trades job openings annually through 2035. That figure covers openings created by growth and the need to replace workers leaving those occupations; it is not a prediction that 1.7 million jobs will go unfilled every year. The report examines 124 occupations across all 50 states, reaching well beyond automotive service. The alliance says training programs currently produce only 55 workers for every 100 needed, and just half of those enrolling in skilled trades training finish. It identifies transportation, child care and the need to earn a paycheck as practical barriers. Founded in July by BlackRock, Carhartt, Ford and Google, the alliance added 14 companies in September, including toolmakers, telecommunications providers and technology businesses. That range helps explain why the concern extends far beyond the dealership service lane. There is also a gap between interest and action. Writing on Ford's website, Derrick Feldmann, managing director of the Ad Council Research Institute, reported that 38% of surveyed students would consider a trades career, but only 11% planned to pursue one after high school. His explanation was that families often lack clear information about available careers, training requirements and how to get started. Parents were the strongest influence in students' decision-making networks, making them an essential audience, too. The Ad Council is developing a separate national public education campaign with founding partners Ford, Dycom, The Home Depot and the Wallace Foundation. Scheduled to launch in 2027, it aims to make those career paths easier to understand and pursue. Bargatze's service campaign supplies an entertaining introduction to a serious subject. Helping families see a clear route from interest to employment is the next step - and one that requires considerably more equipment than a tennis ball. Photo: Ford

FBR Solutions deepens broadband outside plant capabilities with Southeastern Cable acquisition. The deal bolsters the company's Mid-Atlantic outside plant services reach. Sept. 24, 2026 Key highlights. * The acquisition of Southeastern Cable expands FBR's footprint in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and Georgia, strengthening its outside plant services. * Southeastern Cable offers comprehensive broadband construction, including aerial and underground cable placement, fiber and coaxial splicing, and permitting. * FBR's strategic acquisitions, including RTS Associates and Johnson Communications, enhance its capabilities in telecommunications design, engineering, and rural fiber deployment. * The move aligns with the nationwide increase in broadband investments, with providers spending over $92 billion in 2025 to modernize and expand networks. * FBR aims to position itself as a competitive alternative to larger players by operating locally and expanding its regional network construction expertise. FBR Solutions has taken another step to strengthen its outside plant service arsenal by agreeing to acquire Southeastern Cable Contractors. By acquiring Southeastern Cable Contractors, FBR strengthens its outside plant construction capabilities and expands its footprint across North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and Georgia. Southeastern Cable, which offers end-to-end broadband construction - spanning aerial and underground cable placement, drop bury, fiber and coaxial splicing, and permitting and engineering - will continue to operate under its established name and local leadership as part of the FBR platform. Since its founding in 2008, Southeastern Cable has completed millions of feet of subsidy-funded construction, including BEAD- and RDOF-backed deployments. Southeastern Cable will continue to operate under its established name and local leadership as part of the FBR platform. Matthew Glass, CEO of FBR Solutions, said, "The craftsmanship, the customer relationships, and the reputation this team has built in the Mid-Atlantic are exactly what make this combination worth doing." Focus on broadband The acquisition of Southeastern Cable reflects FBR's continued investment in building a platform capable of supporting the accelerating pace of broadband infrastructure investment nationwide. According to US Telecom's 2025 Broadband Capex Report, broadband providers invested $92.6 billion in 2025 to expand, upgrade and modernize America's communications infrastructure. The report found that in 2025, providers extended an era of historically high broadband industry investment - expanding rural reach, modernizing wireless networks, adding capacity, and pushing fiber deeper into communities. And with service providers of all sizes expanding their fiber broadband and cable footprints through private and public funding sources like BEAD, FBR will have an even deeper set of capabilities to respond as network builds ramp through the rest of 2026 and into 2027. Scaling through acquisitions FBR continues to ramp up its portfolio of capabilities via targeted acquisition of other regional network construction companies. Last July, FBR Solutions acquired RTS Associates, further expanding its national capabilities in telecommunications design, engineering, and turnkey deployment. Similar to Southeastern Cable, RTS enhanced the company's ability to deliver end-to-end network solutions at scale and reinforced its position in the broadband infrastructure space. RTS Associates provides telecommunications design and engineering services to major telecommunications operators, municipalities, EMCs, CATV, and wireless carriers. RTS brought 250 North American employees to FBR. Earlier, its acquisition of Johnson Communications enhanced FBR's ability to serve telephone and utility cooperatives, both of which have been rapidly expanding their fiber broadband capabilities in rural areas. Johnson has pioneered rural fiber deployment through its fully integrated solutions and has deployed over 100 in-house construction crews. By adding more capabilities to its portfolio and continuing to operate them locally, FBR will be positioned as an alternative network construction source to larger players like Dycom and others that build broadband network infrastructure. For related articles, visit the Broadband Topic Center. For more information on high-speed transmission systems and suppliers, visit the Lightwave Buyer's Guide. To stay abreast of fiber network deployments, subscribe to Lightwave's Service Providers and Datacom/Data Center newsletters. Sean is the Editor-in-Chief of Lightwave. He establishes and executes Lightwave's editorial strategy across its website, email newsletters, events, and other information products. Before coming to Lightwave in July 2023, he served as editor of Broadband Communities. Earlier, he served as senior editor of FierceTelecom and the editor of the former Telecommunications Magazine. He got his start in the optical industry in 1998 when he became the editor of enterprise and optical networks at Information Gatekeepers. He has a BA in English from the University of Massachusetts, Boston, and lives in Dracut, Mass, with his wife, two sons, and his cat, Dove. Four communities. Four different paths to broadband. See how Clallam County, Wyandotte, Chesapeake, and Superior each solved their own connectivity challenges - and what their playbooks can teach your community or network. Read Their Stories Voices of the industry. The demands reshaping digital infrastructure are pushing optical communications into a new era of innovation. AI infrastructure is forcing engineers to rethink how data moves... 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Dycom Industries, Inc. to participate in upcoming institutional Investor Conference. WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Sept. 10, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) - Dycom Industries, Inc. (NYSE: DY) announced today that the Company will participate in the D.A. Davidson 25th Annual Diversified Industrials & Services Conference in Nashville, TN on Thursday, September 24, 2026. Senior management will present in a fireside chat format at 9:00 a.m. ET / 8:00 a.m. CT and will participate in one-on-one and group meetings with investors. The fireside chat presentation referenced above will be live audio webcasted and accessible from the Events and Presentations section of Dycom's Investor Relations website at https://ir.dycomind.com. A replay of each webcast will be available for approximately 90 days following the live event. About Dycom Industries, Inc. Dycom is a leading provider of specialty contracting services to the telecommunications infrastructure and utility industries throughout the United States. These services include program management, planning, engineering and design; aerial, underground, and wireless construction; maintenance; and fulfillment services for telecommunications providers. Additionally, Dycom provides electrical contracting services for data centers and other vital industries, underground facility locating services for various utilities, including telecommunications providers, as well as other construction and maintenance services for electric and gas utilities. Callie Tomasso, Vice President Investor Relations & Corporate Communications Email: [email protected] Phone: (561) 627-7171 Recommended reading.