Indian telecom operator Vodafone Idea (Vi) has partnered Italian private LTE and 5G solutions platform provider Athonet to test 5G-based solutions to build Industry 4.0. The two companies aim to demonstrate enterprise use cases on 5G in several areas including smart construction, smart warehouse, smart agriculture and smart workplace.

The trials will be conducted on 5G spectrum allocated by Department of Telecom (DoT), Government of India for establishing relevant use cases for India.

Vi has deployed a 5G trial in a setup comprising an end-to-end captive network of Cloud Core, new generation Transport and Radio Access Network, in Pune city. In its initial test results, Vi achieved peak speed in excess of 3.7 Gbps with very low latency on the mmWave spectrum band. These speeds were achieved with equipment in 5G Non-Standalone network architecture and using NR Radios.

Vi has been allocated mmWave high bands like 26 GHz and 3.5 GHz spectrum band by the DoT, for 5G network trials and use cases. Vi has also achieved peak download speeds of up to 1.5 Gbps in 3.5 Ghz band 5G trial network with its OEM partners.

Abhijit Kishore, Chief Enterprise Business Officer, Vodafone Idea Limited, said, “Vi Business has a significant presence in enabling smart utility and smart infrastructure solutions to large and small enterprises. Our partnership with Athonet to demonstrate and validate 5G solutions is a critical step towards building Industry 4.0 use cases, which will be a significant growth driver of the digital economy in the future.”

“This partnership with Vodafone Idea Limited shows the real use cases and benefits that 5G-SA can bring.” said Gianluca Verin, Chief Executive Officer, Athonet. “Over the last decade, Athonet has built a complete solution for private LTE and 5G cellular allowing best of breed networks to be delivered with cutting edge applications. These solutions can now be used to build the Industry 4.0 use cases needed today for smart construction, smart warehouse, smart work place and smart agriculture.”