Australian telecommunications company Telstra announced that it would be the first to deploy Ericsson’s Private 5G with AgriFood Connect, an Australian not-for-profit organisation, becoming the beneficiary of the technology. We find out more about the new network taking an important steps in automation and control.
At the time of the release, Emilio Romeo, Head of Ericsson, Australia and New Zealand, said: “This world-first deployment in partnership with Telstra represents an important step towards automation and control through intelligent 5G connectivity. The Ericsson Private 5G platform will enable emerging industrial use cases across multiple verticals such as Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs), AI, Automation, drone technology, Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality, and many more innovative 5G use cases made available through Ericsson’s robust Industry 4.0 partner ecosystem.”
Telstra Network and Infrastructure executive, Iskra Nikolova, also commented: “The combination of a dedicated network in partnership with Telstra’s existing Network capabilities can facilitate the implementation of a whole variety of new and emerging technologies. Challenging locations in regional Australia, where there is comparatively limited backhaul capacity, will greatly benefit from this technology. For example, remote farming or a manufacturing business could embrace the latest advancements in video analytics and IoT connectivity, almost regardless of their location, with the data processed on site.”
What is Ericsson Private 5G?
Ericsson Private 5G is a private wireless connectivity platform that facilitates advanced operations through automation, flexibility and intelligent connectivity. Using a single server 5G dedicated network based on a dual mode core, Ericsson Private 5G can facilitate both LTE and 5G Standalone (SA).
The 5G SA capability delivered from the Ericsson Private 5G product, coupled with Telstra’s advanced network capabilities, offers an industrial wireless connectivity platform for enterprise that can deliver low latency, enhanced resiliency and the capacity to meet even the most demanding business operation requirements.
“Within this product, Telstra and AgriFood Connect have successfully deployed industrial IoT capabilities over 5G standalone that can support a variety of business requirements such as asset condition monitoring and the collection of data from machinery. The capabilities aim to enable features such as predictive maintenance alerts that will drive cost savings against unplanned downtime and repairs,” Ericsson said.