Swedish telecommunications giant Ericsson has recently announced a new partnership with leading Nordic carrier Telia to establish the Baltics’ first enterprise 5G network at Ericsson’s supply site in Tallinn, Estonia. This collaboration is not only aimed at improving the factory’s productivity, agility, and sustainability but also at serving as a foundation for numerous connected use cases like asset condition monitoring and management, computer vision, digital twins, and collaborative robotics.
The factory in Estonia is indeed a vital part of Ericsson’s supply chain, with nearly half of its research and development projects being transformed into viable commercial products. Sirli Männiksaar, Country Manager of Ericsson Estonia, commented on the factory’s importance, saying, “Our 5G private network enables advanced use cases such as real-time video analytics, immersive technologies, digital twins, collaborative robotics, and multiple mobile equipment tracking and control capabilities that empower our daily operations.”
Since its activation on May 2, this private network has already had a significant impact on the factory’s operations, enhancing aspects like automation, safety, and agility. Both Ericsson and Telia aspire to continue their collaborations in the industrial space through a joint 5G programme, NorthStar, which focuses on helping industrial businesses take advantage of 5G connectivity via private network deployments. The programme is expected to support innovation and research and development units in various sectors, with primary emphasis on the automotive industry.
Ericsson’s private 5G efforts have been gaining momentum, as exhibited by the company’s numerous enterprise private 5G network deals over the past few months. Some of these include partnerships with South African systems integrator Comsol for providing connectivity in a mining operation, and Mugler, for developing private campus networks in Germany.
In addition, Ericsson has recently introduced the latest hardware and software enhancements to its private 5G offering, which promises improved visibility, management, and coverage of more than 1,000,000m². All these developments strongly indicate the potential that private 5G networks hold in shaping the future of the telecommunications industry and their role in driving innovation and growth across various sectors.
