Mike Conradi, co-chair for international telecoms at DLA Piper and associate Christian Keogh, explore the importance of 5G and manufacturing in driving industry 4.0
Mobile network operators developing 5G connectivity through upgrades to their existing 4G infrastructure are well underway in the UK bringing about super-fast connection speeds. The benefits of an upgraded network go far beyond offering mobile phone customers a boost in connection speeds, with 5G offering genuine potential to change the way people live and work, with multiple new use cases being developed each year.
In the summer, DLA Piper published its European Tech Index report, based on a survey of 350 senior business executives from across Europe who work in technology, financial services and the public sector. One-fifth (22%) believed 5G had the most growth potential in smart city applications with only 3% of respondents believing that manufacturing offered the greatest opportunities.
It is surprising that respondents to the Tech Index didn’t make more of the opportunities for 5G in the manufacturing sector, as we believe that this is one of the most exciting areas for exploitation of the technology. Manufacturing should be seen as one of the growth industries for investment in 5G as it has the potential to create the greatest value, has healthy ROI, and realisable benefits that will stimulate demand. Here are some of the reasons we believe this to be the case.
Analysys Mason, through a report commissioned by Ericsson and Quantum Technologies in November 2020 estimates that smart manufacturing facilitated through 5G connectivity has the greatest growth potential in the UK as compared to the use of 5G connectivity in other sectors and areas. In the report, it was estimated that, based on all standalone 5G deployments in factories by 2025, an additional £5.2 billion of GDP could be generated by 2025, representing three quarters of the total projected additional economic growth from all 5G infrastructure deployed in the UK in the same period.
In another study by Huawei on the impact of 5G on the manufacturing industry, it was found that 5G connectivity could unlock $740 billion of value in manufacturing globally by 2030 based on models generated from 100+ interviews with senior manufacturing industry executives. Key countries include China, the US and Japan in their role as global manufacturing hubs.
Manufacturers are in the best position to take advantage and reap the greatest rewards from the key features offered by standalone 5G deployments, namely ultra-low latency and high capacity. 5G connectivity in factories can support technology and use cases that will revolutionise the manufacturing industry, including automation and robotics, artificial intelligence and augmented reality operation of equipment. A connected factory can also support greater flows of data between people and machines, resulting in enhanced monitoring and surveillance. This can reduce downtime and raises the potential for predictive maintenance — both of which lead to increased productivity and reduced costs.
Beyond these economic and productivity benefits, the Analysys Mason Report recognises an environmental benefit. Due to the ability for increased information sharing and real time monitoring, 5G in manufacturing can reduce energy use and lead to a more efficient use of equipment, resulting in longer equipment lifetimes. This not only benefits the environment, but also reduces costs and increases productivity.
