Ericsson and Singapore operator Singtel have partnered to accelerate 5G adoption across multiple industries and to develop and deploy advanced 5G solutions in Singapore.
The partnership utilizes Ericsson’s networking expertise and Singtel’s 5G network, test facilities and capabilities and also involves collaboration with global industry partners across various industries such as oil and gas, maritime, pharmaceutical, aerospace, financial services, retail and construction.
The global partners are ABB, Axis Communications, Bosch, Bosch Rexroth, DHL Supply Chain, Hexagon, PTC and Rohde & Schwarz and Cradlepoint.
Bill Chang, CEO, Group Enterprise, Singtel, said: “We are always looking for ways to stimulate conversations and drive even more innovation to encourage more 5G adoption by enterprises. Our partnership with Ericsson has been key to our 5G roll out and offers us a unique opportunity to come together to build an open platform for enterprises to ideate, co-create, test and eventually go-to-market.”
Martin Wiktorin, head of Ericsson Singapore, Brunei and Philippines, said: “Today, digitalization is a top priority for businesses, and 5G will enable a further shift towards digital transformation, accelerated by the current Covid-19 pandemic. With an extensive network of international partner engagements spanning a multitude of different ecosystems, this collaboration is built on the longstanding relationship we hold with Singtel and all global industry leaders. Together, we aim to further accelerate the 5G enterprise ecosystem and enhance Singapore’s leading edge as one of the world’s most competitive nations.”
Ericsson and Singtel currently have ongoing trials with ABB, Hexagon and Axis Communications. The trials span across advanced manufacturing, logistics, smart city development, analytics and industrial automation.
ABB has successfully tested the potential of 5G in the industrial manufacturing space, supporting the low latency operation of an ABB collaborative robot. The test was conducted in ABB’s workshop, where ABB’s single-arm YuMi cobot was connected to Singtel’s 5G GENIE to access an on-site Multi-Access Edge Computing (MEC) platform.
Singtel and Ericsson are also working with Hexagon on rolling out large scale autonomous shop floor measurement with 5G connection that can have potential benefits in the aerospace, oil and gas, construction, automotive, shipyard and wind energy industries.
Meanwhile, Axis Communications started trials using high performance Axis devices and cameras connected through Singtel’s MEC network.
Last month, Ericsson said it is powering Singtel’s 5G SA network with 5G radio access products and cloud-native, dual-mode 5G Core network solutions.
The European vendor said its product range will deliver high-quality connectivity for outdoor coverage in densely populated areas and help drive strong indoor-mall coverage across the city-state.
Singtel had announced the launch of its 5G SA network in the country in May. Singtel had partnered with Korean company Samsung to launch 5G SA. The 5G SA sites run on 3.5 GHz spectrum.
Singtel said it aims to intensify its 5G SA deployment across the island in the coming months as handset manufacturers progressively roll out 5G SA software updates for existing 5G handsets and launch more 5G SA-compatible models in Singapore later this year.
Singtel had initially launched its 5G non-standalone (NSA) network in September of 2020, using spectrum in the 3.5 GHz frequency as well as existing 2.1 GHz spectrum.
The Asian carrier said it is using 28 GHz mmWave spectrum, in addition to the 3.5 GHz and 2.1 GHz bands, to boost its 5G deployment in Singapore.
