The 5G field guide for manufacturing.
Allow more control and improved efficiency with 5G by enabling real-time communications and minimizing network delays with low latency.
6 minute read
Allow more control and improved efficiency with 5G by enabling real-time communications and minimizing network delays with low latency.
6 minute read
5G wireless is maturing in the consumer market but has yet to reach its full potential in manufacturing facilities. That is beginning to change as automakers recognize that 5G offers capabilities beyond existing network technology both inside and outside of plant facilities. These deployments are producing operational efficiencies and enabling advanced manufacturing techniques.
The principal advantage 5G offers over previous 4G LTE networks is that it uses more advanced digital encoding to enable higher speeds, more reliable service, and allow for more flexible use of the airwaves. These benefits further enable wider channels to speed up data, lower latency to minimize network delays, support massive networks of smart devices with higher capacities, and allow for more security and fine-tuning with better control.
Early 5G implementations were built on top of 4G infrastructure using low, mid, and high frequency bands, or any combination thereof. The actual performance and range of a given 5G network today can vary widely among mobile carriers with some only marginally better than 4G/LTE networks. Today’s most advanced 5G networks are standalone, meaning they don’t depend on any 4G technology and aggregate (combine) multiple frequency bands into a single connection.
Like previous cellular networks,1 5G divides a geographic area into cells, each with a radio base station that subdivides the cell into sectors, encodes the data, and then transmits the signal via radio waves. Each cell connects to a network backbone for managing switching and roaming services.
Some 5G offerings are not leveraging all of the available dedicated 5G frequency spectrum. Instead, they rely on a capability that lets 5G opportunistically make use of existing 4G spectrum. As a result, network performance from an end user point of view may be only somewhat better than 4G.
4G can combine up to seven 20 megahertz (MHz) channels for a total bandwidth of 140 MHz. By contrast, today’s 5G standalone equipment is capable of running larger 100 MHz channels that combine for more than a tenfold increase in potential bandwidth.
To achieve these performance levels, mobile operators must leverage high frequencies and 5G’s standalone capabilities. However, not all carriers do so.
For auto OEMs, actual 5G performance from a given mobile operator depends on the combination of the deployed frequencies they use, the amount of available spectrum, and whether the network is 5G standalone.
Early 5G services typically used 4G and 5G lower frequency connections, an approach called “non-standalone access” or NSA. The resulting performance was only somewhat better than 4G LTE.
All major U.S. carriers now leverage mid-band 5G as part of their strategy, making it a viable point of comparison for manufacturers to more easily assess 5G services in terms of demonstrated range and performance, as well as pricing and contract terms.
Ookla’s United States Speedtest Connectivity Report has consistently ranked
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T-Mobile was the fastest mobile provider in the U.S. during this period (2024), based on Speedtest Intelligence data for all technologies combined, with a Speed Score of 205.98. Its median download speed was 234.82 Mbps, a strong increase from 164.14 Mbps during the same period the previous year.”
Fastest based on analysis by Ookla® of Speedtest Intelligence® data of national Speed Score results incorporating 5G download and upload speeds for Q1-Q2 2024. See 5G device, coverage, & access details at
With 5G standalone wireless, manufacturers can harness its key capabilities to serve those priorities with higher data speeds,4 superior reliability, lower latency, and expanded capacity to support more devices more cost effectively than building out traditional
Leading auto OEMs use private 5G or hybrid 5G networks to deliver top performance while increasing security. Private 5G is a dedicated, restricted-access network, custom-designed for an organization and its specific applications. Hybrid 5G combines the benefits of public and private infrastructure, providing the coverage and cost benefits of the former with the custom design of the latter.
By deploying public, private, and hybrid 5G networks, manufacturers can reduce costs, cut production times, streamline support, increase productivity, and grow capacity. In addition, 5G support beyond the factory can further boost ROI by improving business processes such as worker training, location tracking, inventory management, and fleet management.
Advanced 5G standalone networks have the capacity and low latency to power applications that 4G just couldn’t handle. That means not only improving existing use cases but also enabling new ones such as:
Mobile operators are facilitating certification of 5G devices for their respective networks and partnering with a growing array of device makers. As 5G is integrated into industrial IoT devices, autonomous vehicles, robots, and drones, more mobile operators are expanding their partnerships with manufacturing software vendors to create packaged, targeted manufacturing 5G solutions that can be deployed quickly.
These solutions let manufacturing leaders focus on identifiable ROI and prioritize factory cost savings and productivity improvements that make sense for their plants.
When deployed as a private or hybrid network, 5G is able to encompass large-scale plants and facilities to supplement industrial ethernet and
Auto manufacturers face an array of business challenges from swings in market demand to supply chain disruptions. With a solid 5G manufacturing strategy, business leaders are better prepared to tackle those challenges and pursue objectives such as factory automation, human capital development, and supply chain resiliency.s, meet consumer needs, and deliver tomorrow's solutions.