New UK lab set to boost 5G network security and resilience
A new high-tech lab to speed up the development of 5G communication kit and help the UK diversify its supply chains is being launched today.
The SmartRAN Open Network Interoperability Centre (SONIC Labs) is backed by £1 million of government funding and aims to build a more secure and innovative supply chain which is fit for the future, less reliant on a small number of multinational suppliers and more accessible for new market entrants.
Based in London and Brighton, SONIC Labs will enable telecoms equipment manufacturers to examine how their kit behaves in a fully interoperable, technology-neutral mobile network. It also aims to encourage innovative vendors to enter the UK telecoms supply chain and drive innovation in public networks.
Launching the centre Digital Infrastructure Minister Matt Warman says:
I'm thrilled that SONIC Labs is opening its doors to the wealth of telecoms expertise we have in this country to explore new ways of building 5G networks.
Our investment is a crucial element of our strategy to tackle the world's over-reliance on a small number of telecoms vendors by growing our own cutting-edge solutions at home.
I look forward to seeing how the lab will help deliver the incredible social and economic benefits of new technology for people around the UK.
You can find out more about SONIC here.
Also today telecoms company Vodafone is launching a commercial pilot of 5G standalone services in London, Manchester and Cardiff, building on a trial with Coventry University.
The commercial pilot will focus on testing new capabilities being introduced as part of 5G standalone technologies, such as network slicing. It will also enable partners to test new standalone-enabled devices on a live network. As part of the trial, a dedicated slice has already been configured for Coventry University to provide low-latency services to enable virtual reality distance learning.
"Delivering 5G Standalone for the UK is an important step forward for our customers and our partners," says Andrea Dona, chief network officer of Vodafone UK. "The new features this delivers, such as new levels of reliability, latency and flexibility, are a gamechanger for customers and developers looking to create new applications. This leadership position greatly complements our investments in Multi-access edge compute (MEC) capabilities, the Internet of Things (IoT), Mobile Private Networks (MPN) and OpenRAN. When we bring all these technologies together, we open up entirely new possibilities for customers, and move beyond being a core connectivity provider to being a true digital champion."
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