A delegation from Taiwan visited Worcestershire on 12 September to learn about 5G manufacturing technology trials in action.
The delegation visited from the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA), Taiwan’s top telecommunications operator Chunghwa Telecom (CHT), Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) and Institute for Information Industry (III), two leading national research centres in Taiwan. Delegates came to Worcestershire following a speech at the Taiwan 5G Summit by Rahim Taffizolli, Director of the 5G Innovation Centre (5GIC) at the University of Surrey.
The delegates gained an insight into the 5G trials and tests currently underway in the UK. The Worcester Bosch factory gave delegates the opportunity to discuss the 5G trials and apply learnings to their own developments in Taiwan.
To showcase the work being undertaken, Worcestershire 5G Consortium team gave a presentation about the 5G projects at the Worcester Bosch factory and also outlined work being done by fellow consortium member QinetiQ, a multinational defence technology company. Projects underway within the consortium currently include preventative and assisted maintenance using radio enabled sensors, big data analytics and augmented reality.
The Taiwanese delegation also presented to the UK team, sharing valuable learnings from work that Taiwan is doing around the development and deployment of 5G.
The day concluded with an open discussion on learnings and discussions on the future of of 5G and the impact it will have for Worcestershire, the UK, Taiwan, and the world.
Professor Rahim Tafazolli, Director of the 5G Innovation Centre, Europe’s largest centre for 5G development, said: “Taiwan and the UK were two of the first countries to adopt 5G as their national strategy. We would like to build on our common vision and join forces in developing innovative technologies and use cases for the future connected society and economy”.
Carl Arntzen, CEO at Worcster Bosch, said: “We are delighted to host the Taiwanese delegation at our factory on behalf of the Worcestershire 5G Consortium, and to explore 5G use cases with them.”
The Worcestershire 5G Consortium is the only UK government funded Testbed that is focused on manufacturing and driving forward Industry 4.0 in the UK. The Testbed consortium is comprised of global partners and experts, including O2, BT and 5GIC at the University of Surrey. Several local businesses are already using the technology, including Worcester Bosch and multinational defence company, QinetiQ. Early indications from trials predict as much as a 1% increase in productivity from manufacturing firms using the technology.
Results from tests and trials undertaken by the Worcestershire 5G Testbed, which is led by the Worcestershire 5G Consortium, will be fed into the wider 5G ecosystem and will provide the blueprint model for 5G rollout on a national scale.
To enquire about working together with Worcestershire’s 5G consortium, email enquiries@wlep.co.uk or phone 01905 672700.