FIRST UK MAINLAND PORT WITH 5G

A milestone deal will see the first private 5G network established at UK mainland port in a bid to improve the reliability and security of communications.The Port of Southampton will become the first UK Mainland Port with a Private 5G network.

LONDON :Verizon Business is working with Associated British Ports (ABP) to deploy private 5G at the Port of Southampton, enabling it to become the first UK mainland port with a private 5G network. Delivered in partnership with Nokia, Verizon’s private 5G platform will provide a secure, low-latency private network connection. In October 2020, Belfast Harbour was announced as the site of the UK and Ireland’s first 5G private port network.

Henrik L. Pedersen, ABP chief executive officer, said: “Building flexible and resilient technology platforms to meet our customers’ needs is a key element of our strategy, and becoming the first mainland port operator in the UK to offer a private 5G network to our customers is a fantastic milestone for ABP.

“We would like to thank our partners for enabling this project, which will equip our Port in Southampton with the state-of-the-art infrastructure needed to be at the forefront of the digital revolution in the maritime industry.”

Single network communications

The Verizon private 5G platform will provide ABP with a reliable and secure private wireless data network across selected areas within the East and West Docks of the Port. This will enable data communications to be consolidated onto a single network, reducing previous complexity as well as helping to improve the reliability and security of terminal communications.

The deployment will not only address the immediate problem of loss of onsite data communications as a result of poor Wi-Fi connectivity, but the advanced capabilities of private 5G, specifically its reliability, throughput, security and ultra-low latency can help enable the use of new technologies such as real-time analytics, the Internet of Things (IoT) and Machine Learning. In turn, this can help with the enablement of new service advancements including asset tracking, autonomous guided vehicles, workflow management, predictive maintenance and safety monitoring in the near future.

Source : Port Strategy