D.E.M. Allen Engineering founder dies

[jon]

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

It is with great regret that we announce that Mr. Doug Allen, C.M., P. Eng., founder, D.E.M. Allen & Associates Ltd., Consulting Engineers, passed away on Sunday, January 17, 2010 after a lengthy battle with cancer.

Mr. Allen founded the firm of D.E.M. Allen & Associates Ltd., in 1965 to provide Consulting Engineer services to the then emerging broadcasting industry. Doug was a pioneer in the industry having started his career in Broadcasting more than 10 years earlier at RCA in Montreal.

Doug retired from active consulting in 2002 after more than 47 years of service to the Broadcasting Industry.

The following obituary notice was published in the Winnipeg Free Press newspaper on Monday, January 18, 2010. A copy may be accessed at: http://www.passagesmb.com/obituary_deta ... tID=159808
DOUGLAS (DOUG) ALLEN On January 17, 2010 at Riverview Health Centre, Doug Allen aged 86 years, beloved husband of Evelyn, passed away. Longer obituary will follow. NEIL BARDAL INC. (204) 949 2200 nbardal.mb.ca.

A more detail obituary is scheduled to be published in the Winnipeg Free Press newspaper on Saturday, January 23, 2010. A copy of the obituary may be viewed [at that time] at: http://www.passagesmb.com/ and searching by name or just click through “View Today’s Listings”.

Funeral services and a celebration of the life of Doug Allen is tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, January 27, 2010 at 11:00 AM at St. Andrews Anglican Church, 2700 Portage Avenue in Winnipeg. For those who may be intending to attend, please confirm the details by reviewing the published obituary.

Sincerely,

Management and Staff of D.E.M. Allen & Associates Ltd.
http://www.dema.mb.ca/

[jon]

From what I've heard, Allen's Winnipeg-based consulting firm is to transmitters, towers, directional patterns and coverage maps what Stan Davis' Vancouver-based firm is to broadcast equipment inside the station's studios: The Experts in Western Canada.

Personally, I've seen his name on the coverage studies submitted to the CRTC lately for:

1. CJCA's new transmitter site, comparing coverage with the existing site
2. CFCW's planned frequency switch to 840 from 790
3. CFOK's Westlock AM to FM flip, with the FM directional pattern carefully tuned to avoid any idea that it might reach Edmonton

Here is the company web site summary:



D.E.M. ALLEN & ASSOCIATES LTD.
Consulting Engineers
Broadcasting-Communications Systems

Overview

Mr. Doug Allen founded the company in 1964.
In the course of the company's development, experience has been gained in every facet of broadcast and communication engineering. This includes the initial design concept, system design and specification through project management of construction and final commissioning. Using up to date computer facilities and an extensive library of special application specific computer programs, the company is well prepared to handle any broadcast or communication project.

Since its establishment, D.E.M. Allen & Associates Ltd. has worked for hundreds of clients. Our clients span all of Canada plus international projects have been completed in Australia, Hong Kong, The Bahamas, South America and the U.S.A. The company's clients range from the largest international corporations operating both private and public broadcasting networks and facilities to the smallest new applicant for a single channel private broadcasting or communication link.

The company employs a team of professional engineers and technologists with combined broadcast and RF engineering experience in excess of 125 man-years. This pool of talent, seasoned in the Canadian and North American environment and experienced in international broadcasting applications and regulations, is available to assist you in any Broadcasting or Communications project throughout the world.

[jon]

Doug Allen once helped me out of a financial jam. In early 1965 I was driving my 1958 Ford convertible in Winnipeg when the rear end gave out. I didn’t have enough money for the full repair bill and in those days there wasn’t a credit card to be found in my wallet and no ATM on every second corner. Banks closed at 3pm and none of my friends could advance me anything close to the 100-dollars I needed.

I had to phone my dad (the former engineer at CFAR Flin Flon) to ask advice and he contacted Doug. After Doug assured the garage that the bill would be paid, I was allowed to take the car to his home to collect the cash and to enjoy a meal because I’d already given the garage all of my money. I believe he gave me an extra ten or twenty dollars for the trip back to Flin Flon and I was on my way.

Ed Mason

[gwp]

One of the good guys. Responsible for keeping thousands of broadcasters "on the air, at full power, in the right direction" I knew he was ill. I had sent him an e-mail just before Christmas. His wife answered saying he was in hospice. Tried to call, but there was no answer. The following is from Broadcaster Magazine Jan 19. Ed's story above is typical of Doug and is reflected in his obituaries.

http://www.passagesmb.com/obituary_deta ... tID=160026

Doug Allen passed away on January 17th 2010 at the Riverview Health Centre at age 86. An innovator on technical aspects of the industry, Doug served the world of broadcast engineering with distinction for more than 50 years.

Born in Winnipeg, Doug first developed an interest in radio at the age of 10, when family friend and fellow broadcast pioneer Darby Coats took him under his wing, giving him a crystal set and teaching him Morse code.

Doug entered the broadcasting business while studying in the electrical engineering program at the University of Manitoba as a summer student at CBC in Winnipeg. After graduating, Doug joined the engineering department at RCA Victor in Montreal, where he would eventually serve as the Manager of the Broadcast Engineering Group. In 1959, he returned to Winnipeg, where he played a major role in outfitting CJAY-TV, the city’s first private television station.

In 1963, Doug struck out on his own, and formed D.E.M. Allen and Associates, a private consulting business which worked with the majority of the radio and TV outlets in Western Canada. Over more than 35 years in the industry, Doug became one of the most sought-after authorities on broadcast engineering, working with the majority of Canada’s major broadcasting companies, as well as many independent stations to help set up their technical operations. He also consulted with the federal Department of Communications, the CRTC, the CBC and the Department of National Defense.

Doug was instrumental in the growth of FM broadcasting in Canada, having been involved in the creation of most of the major steps and changes in technical rules, procedures, and planning which now constitute the Canadian Planning Procedures. In 1986, Doug was awarded the Order of Canada by Governor General Jeanne Sauvé.

In addition to his work in broadcasting, he has applied his lifelong love of skiing to altruistic causes, including teaching disabled adults and children how to ski. He served on the board of the Canadian Association of Disabled Skiers for more than 30 years, and at one time chaired the Canadian Federation of Sports Organizations for the Disabled.

Doug retired in January of 2003, a few months before his 80th birthday.