Chennai, October 26, 2021: COAI, the representative body for the Indian telecommunications industry, today jointly with 5GIF and 5G-ACIA organized a webinar to discuss the tangible steps to accelerated Digital-Empowered Industrial Automation. The webinar commenced with a welcome address by Lt. Gen. Dr. SP Kochhar, DG, COAI, followed by presentation by Dr. Andreas Mueller (5G-ACIA General Chair) and Dr. Afif Osseiran (5G-ACIA General Vice Chair).
An expert presentation on Digital Twin and the Asset Administration Shell was given by Mr. Josef Eichinger, Board Member 5G-ACIA followed by presentation by Dr. Nagahanumaiah, Director, Central Manufacturing Technology Institute on Smart Manufacturing in addressing 4P (Product- Process-People-Production) challenges for optimized productivity in industry.
An expert panel comprising of various stakeholders, discussed the requirements from Operational Technology industry and readiness of Indian ecosystem partners to provide reliable connectivity, infrastructure, and services. The panellists also indulged in discussions on key applications for industrial automation and role of standardized solutions for accelerated uptake. The event witnessed participation from TSPs, Telecom OEMs, Manufacturing industry players, System Integrators who will play critical role in furthering Industry 4.0 in India to stimulate and accelerate the digitization road map of the industries.
In an era, where data is the currency of automation, optimization and profound transformation, the entire agenda of this event was to discuss the digital transformation goals on the level of enhanced efficiency, cost reduction, innovations, and the development of new revenue sources.
“For the manufacturing sector, the Government’s initiatives of ‘Make in India’ and ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ allow small, medium and large industries to build capacity for Industry 4.0. For the agriculture sector, which constitutes approximately 70% of India’s population and is the prime source of livelihood for rural India, 5G is expected to bring significant benefits. With sensors monitoring crops, soil acidity, temperature and irrigation, farmers will have a wealth of information at their disposal to help take the right decisions. It is important to understand the benefits that 5G technology will bring. With 5G, Internet of Things, Machine 2 Machine coming to the fore, more data will flow within networks and ecosystems We are optimistic that 5G will be a gamechanger for India and will accelerate growth across industries. However, India is a price-sensitive market, and the effective spectrum pricing is critical to build a robust 5G ecosystem. To ensure timely and effective implementation of 5G services in India, spectrum pricing needs to be rational,” said Lt. Gen. Dr. SP Kochhar, Director General, COAI.
During the event Dr. Andreas Mueller General Chair, 5G-ACIA, shared his opinion stating, “After several years of preparatory work, during which 5G-ACIA has made significant contributions to the development and standardization of Industrial 5G, we are now approaching the stage where Industrial 5G will be put from theory to practice. Especially with the emergence of infrastructure components and end devices based on 3GPP Release-16, we will see a more widespread adoption of 5G in manufacturing across the globe. Release-16 is the first 5G standard that really makes a difference to the industrial domain. Key features include the support of non-public networks, time-sensitive networking (TSN) as well as ultra-reliable low-latency communication. Industrial 5G is still in its infancy, but there are certainly exciting times ahead of us”.
Sharing his thoughts during the event, Dr. Afif Osseiran General Vice Chair, 5G-ACIA, stated “The 5G-ACIA alliance has recently started to endorse test-bests and demos in 5G for connected industries and automation. It is an important milestone and a clear move from theory to practice when it comes to 5G supporting the manufacturing and process industries. We expect that the coming two years will see widening of commercial deployments of 5G in factories, including the availability of adequate devices supporting deterministic latency. Yet, we can say with confidence it is the onset of a 10 to 15 years long and exciting journey”.
