Is 5G ready for manufacturing?

Scandals are never good for technology. Whether it’s diesel emissions, large data breaches or cyber-attacks, scandal can cripple a technology even before it’s up and running. Despite recent headlines, 5G offers significant potential for manufacturers, heralding a new era of innovation. While 3G and 4G offered incremental improvements in speed and bandwidth, 5G will be the first cellular, wireless platform to truly offer reliable integration with machine-to-machine and industrial IoT systems.

It will do this in three ways. The first is enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB); 5G offers peak data rates of 10 Gbps and can handle 10,000 times more traffic than its predecessors. Secondly, it offers Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC). It has a radio latency of less than 1 ms and an availability of over 99.9 per cent. 

Thirdly, it offers Massive Machine-type Communication (eMTC), allowing it to handle one million devices per square kilometre. It also delivers ultra low-cost machine-to-machine communications and can last for 10 years on battery.

What does this mean for industry? 

What does this mean for industry? Well, 5G will open the door for real-time wireless sensor networks and location and asset tracking. It will enable smart factories to rely on seamless communication with a fleet of autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs) without network dropouts.

In automation 5G networks can replace wired connections in applications such as motion control and high throughput vision systems. As it develops, further integration of 5G architecture with Ethernet protocols will enhance low latency and high availability.

5G can operate on the higher frequency spectrum from 30–300GHz, which is less crowded, but will require manufacturers to invest in and install smaller antennas placed closer together. As a result, one question we hear a lot is, is 5G worth the investment?

I’d like to discuss a recent experiment that was carried out by Ericsson, in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology in Germany. They conducted a test in a factory that makes metal bladed disks for jet engines. The large components are milled in a process that takes 20 hours to complete and requires extremely precise cutting.

The process is prone to error rates of up to 25 per cent because of faults caused by small vibrations. However, mistakes are not usually detected until the end of the process, leading to wasted time and money. By adding 5G sensors to the machines, Ericsson was able to reduce the error rate to 15 per cent.

"With one millisecond latency, you can sense whether there is a deviation in the process before the tool even hits the blade and you can stop the machine before the error happens," explained Åsa Tamsons, a senior vice president at Ericsson.

Using 5G to reduce the error rate from 25 per cent to 15 per cent lowered the production cost of each blade by €3,600. These results are impressive, but it is important for us to remember that 5G alone will not solve all the problems with inefficiency. 

Manufacturers need to invest in infrastructure upgrades — early adopters will need to retrofit 5G with existing systems. This will require work to manage obsolescence and ensure that plants continue to make productivity gains without overhauling their entire plant equipment. 

5G will revolutionise manufacturing as we know it, but it’s important that manufacturers understand that it’s not a magic pill to solve their productivity woes. That will still require careful obsolescence management, selective infrastructure upgrades and a willingness to explore the new technology in a range of applications. So, despite the scandals, manufacturers should give 5G serious consideration.