Finnish telecoms firms Nokia is working with Japan’s Hitachi to provide local 5G and private wireless LTE networks to Japanese industrial and government organisations. Spectrum for local 5G is due to be released at the end of 2019 for enterprise use.

As part of the collaboration, the Nokia Digital Automation Cloud platform will be used for applications including video analytics, AI, machine learning and IoT, as well as drones, group communication, and AR/VR. It will also be marketed for applications involving autonomous transport vehicles, such as trucks, trains, forklifts and straddle carriers, with use within factories, utilities, airports and ports.

The Japanese government is releasing 5G spectrum designated for individual companies and local governments (known in Japan as local 5G) at the end of 2019. 

Nokia and Hitachi Kokusai Electric will collaborate to provide an eco-system of solutions to support the deployment of new digital automation services. Hitachi Kokusai Electric will bring its expertise in building industrial and critical infrastructure applications in the Japanese market. Nokia will bring its expertise in building private LTE/4.9G and 5G wireless connectivity solutions in energy, transportation, public sector, manufacturing and logistics sectors.

Kaichiro Sakuma, representative director, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hitachi Kokusai Electric, said: “Industrial grade private wireless networks will be very important for our industry customers, helping them to become more efficient, automating dangerous operations, and improving worker safety. Our collaboration with Nokia is helping to speed the delivery of these innovative capabilities to the Japanese market.”

John Harrington, head of Nokia Japan, said: “Partnerships such as this help us to better serve the increasing needs of local 5G and digitalisation technology in Japan. Collaborating with partners with in-depth knowledge and expertise across industry segments is critical to the widespread adoption of digital automation and private wireless solutions in industrial settings. Thanks to our comprehensive end-to-end-portfolio, we are ideally placed to support Hitachi Kokusai Electric and its customers to benefit from secure, highly reliable, ultra-broadband wireless networking.”