Matthew BoyleThe 5G Arena at Hannover Messe, the world’s largest exhibition space, witnessed a nuanced perspective on the trajectory of industrial 5G. Amidst the expansive fairgrounds, devoid of the fervor seen at MWC, the focus shifted to the mature evolution of industrial connectivity. The 5G-ACIA, spearheading discussions, highlighted the cautious yet steady growth of private cellular networks, particularly in manufacturing. Andreas Mueller, general chair at 5G-ACIA, emphasized the pivotal role of ecosystem development in propelling 5G adoption, extending its reach to diverse industries globally. While Hannover Messe grappled with monopolizing the narrative, the significance of bridging the gap between technology and industry became evident. With keywords like “Hannover Messe,” “Industrial 5G,” and “IoT sensors,” the discourse pivoted towards fostering a conducive ecosystem for sustainable 5G integration, echoing the sentiments of the 5G-ACIA towards overcoming the classic chicken-and-egg challenge.
Reflections on the 5G Arena at Hannover Messe: Amidst the Industrial Pulse of Industry 4.0
Similar to next year, the 5G Arena at Hannover Messe is muted. All the buzz and excitement about personal / business 5G at MWC, which seemed almost to bubble-over in the tight-knit halls of the Fira de Barcelona, as the late winter sun broke through, is wholly dissipated in the large open spaces of the Hanover Fairgrounds, where a little late-winter snow has started to fall. But it definitely wasn’t there to start with. This is a different venue, and a very unique show.
The largest exhibition space in the world is here. an older aircraft works with a life all of its own: continuous restaurants; buses and roundabouts, patches of natural; kids in raincoats; a store that sells power tools and mops. The car parks are abundant, and even entire – which, along with the fact that half the keynotes are in German, gives a sense this is more Industrie 4. 0 than Industry 4. 0. But there is still plenty of activity. it ’s just not in hall 14, and it ’s not much about 5G.
Which, without being bad, is probably around right, even if it feels here like business 5G could do with a little more love. But that is where 5G should be right then. Because of the lack of a northern protagonist in this tale of the industrial revolution, 5G is no. no no more than AI (certainly ), and no less than IoT. The real hero is the enterprise, of course, and the great machinery suppliers in halls five-to-nine have been serving enterprises for 100 years, in some cases.
Navigating the Industrial Landscape: 5G’s Evolution Amidst Antriebs-technik, Fluid-technik, and Robotik Dominance
This is their show, and they have more important stuff to sell ( antriebs-technik, fluid-technik, robotik etc ). Industrial 5G is a sideshow, by contrast, and coming to terms with the fact. The business market might be moved, but it will not be rushed; 5G will find its mark, like IoT has, but it will take time. That was the message of the 5G-ACIA in the opening keynote address at the 5G Arena, which is now a part of the 5G & Industrial Cellular moniker, and sharing floor space LoRaWAN, and others.
The 5G-ACIA sounded reasonable and cheerful, but also frustrated that 5G has never been more immediately embraced in manufacturing. Its comments on stage, and on a booth tour after, chimed with most ( realistic ) discussions at MWC. The industrial 5G market is maturing rather well, everyone agrees, despite the “chicken-and-egg ” challenge of technology and the caution of industry. Both of which are right and proper, really, and should probably have been taken into account from the start.
Andreas Mueller, general chair at the 5G-ACIA ( and 5G/6G ‘leader ’ at Bosch ), said: “The vast majority of [5G] money is still in the consumer business, and the industrial domain is still a little behind original expectations. In 2024, it is no where we anticipated it to be. ” Indeed, Afif Osseiran, general chair at the 5G-ACIA ( and director of industry engagements and research at Ericsson ), on stage with him, quoted ( mostly ) GSA numbers that sounded a little underwhelming.
Private Cellular Networks: Insights and Projections into 5G Adoption in Manufacturing and Beyond
They go like this: 1,356 private cellular networks, as of March 2024 (versus “slightly above” 1,000 a year ago ), of which 308 are 5G-based (versus “slightly less than” 250, which is “just less than” 20 percent growth in the year ), 46 are standalone 5G ( SA ), and 20-30 percent are “commercial” (versus proofs ), and 20-40 percent are in manufacturing plants of one kind or another. Manufacturing, the initial 5G-ACIA care, will grow as a proportion, said Osseiran.
As also: the 2028 private-networks forecast has been adjusted over, from around 14,000 to 11,900; there is currently about 26GB of monthly traffic per “subscriber”, as of November 2023 (versus 15GB ). But a mixed bag. “We will start to see real pick-up in three-to-five years, extended from two years, ” he said, adding that “IoT will play a major role ” ( if the latest Ericsson Mobility report ( which talks about “almost 1. 5 billion IoT connections versus last year” ) is to be believed.
“Major suppliers issued a warning that 2023/24 will be difficult years, ” he said. “More networks are deployed, but there is somewhat slower progress. Germany has issued 387 licenses for businesses to use personal 5G in the 3. 7-3. 8 GHz spectrum band, and 19 to deploy in the 26 GHz band; there are 219 business 5G routers about today, evidently; ‘vertical’ spectrum will be available pronto in Switzerland and Spain ( sometimes via mobile operators ).
Expanding Horizons: The 5G-ACIA’s Global Outreach and Ecosystem Development for Industrial 5G
Personal 5G sales to a 4 industry 0 remain rather slow, albeit perfectly steady, the 5G-ACIA has extended its reach ( “to lift 5G to the next level” ), said Mueller, by addressing new geographies and new industries. It held a “huge event ” with 500-odd delegates in Taipei, in Taiwan, in December– which “reflects great global momentum behind 5G in industry”, he said. It now has 97 member companies, drawn from the ICT ( mostly telecoms ) and OT ( mostly industrial ) tech suppliers.
“But we are still behind expectations, ” said Mueller. “So we have to shift the focus from tech development, which we have done lots of in the last few years, to ecosystem development. ”As for, the 5G-ACIA has introduced a new membership category for “end users”, he said – for “those running factories”. They will get all the research and support that goes to signed-up 5G-ACIA companies. But 5G-ACIA is putting more focus on Asia and the Americas, as effectively.
“We are a world organisation, but we are based in Europe … But you can’t serve Southeast Asia and the USA from Frankfurt. ”To this end, the group has elected fresh ambassadors for China, Japan, and the US, tasked with strengthening its footprint, membership, and activities in each region. “There will be more in the future” said Mueller. “They will help to build the international ecosystem.” This is the key, in the end, he suggested.
Bridging the Gap: 5G-ACIA’s Endeavors in Fostering Industrial-Grade 5G Technology for Manufacturing Advancements
The 5G-ACIA has worked well to bring the ICT and OT crowds up in and around the 3GPP process to develop 5G as an industrial-grade technology for clever manufacturing, in particular. Mueller cited its work on time-sensitive networking ( TSN), reduced capability 5G ( RedCap ), and various highly politicised industrial protocol data unit ( PDU) transmissions in the Industry 40 arena, such as with OPC-UA, PROFINET, PROFISAFE, and so on.
“Private networks, as well, ” he said, “which didn’t exist when we started 5G-ACIA. ” Spectrum liberalisation and software integration, also, he added. The point is that all this work has been lost as companies like IBM continue to place their heads in the sand and wait for deployments to reach crucial mass, while businesses refuse to install networks until the equipment is set up to plug into it. “ What’s missing is a classic chicken-and-egg challenge, ” he said.
Therefore the ecosystem-building in world markets. The other thing for the 5G-ACIA, said Mueller, is to expand its focus beyond only distinct and process manufacturing. “There are lots of similarities with other industries – initially with ports and mining, where coverage is a challenge, [but ] that ’s just the first wave. If it goes well, we will add others. It is all part of adding to that important mass, to get past this chicken-and-egg.”
Reflecting on 5G’s Presence Amidst the Industrial Symphony at Hannover Messe
He said, suddenly: “The real number [ of private 5G deployments ] should be higher. The trend is best, but the numbers should be higher. ” And recapped the 5G-ACIA response about ecosystem building, as explained above. While Industry 4 is the rest is attained. In noisier halls, conceptual AI was the clearest plot twist, but IoT sensors and modern twins, and all the rest, were likewise greatly emphasized. Also 5G was there.
In the end, perhaps Hannover Messe‘s 5G issue is merely the result of its attempt to monopolize the entire space. But you know, chicken-and-egg – you can see why the message matters, and the 5G-ACIA should be applauded for fanning the flames. It will catch fire quickly much, the logic goes.
