5G private step by step

Introduction

Building a private 5G network is an excellent exercise to summarise all topics I covered last year. In addition according to the Polish telecommunication regulator UKE after the summer break, we will be back to a new reality because C-band will be available for commercial use (UKE). For the purpose of this article I've prepared a case study and after that go thru steps that lead to network deployment. I've selected a case study that fits perfectly for the current maturity of the 5G ecosystem. This will be a mobile campus network created for construction sites.

5G private case study

Feasibility study

On June 16, 2023 – Intel announced that it had selected an area near Wroc?aw, Poland, as the site of a new cutting-edge semiconductor assembly and test facility. The construction of the facility is also expected to create several thousand more jobs, in addition to eventual hiring by suppliers. Design and planning for the facility will begin immediately, with construction to commence pending European Commission approval.

"Innovative Construction" (InCo) company was chosen to design and build the factory base on the requirements from Intel.

InCo has established a small team responsible for ICT (reporting directly to CIO) to prepare a feasibility study and selects a network vendor.

Among others following non-functional requirements arise during analyses:

• Intel requires the highest possible security measures
• Semiconductor assembly and test facility requires very expensive machines and components to avoid contamination so measures are required to use them efficiently.
• Intel's semiconductor assembly and test facility are very specific so engineers and team leaders require constant access to plans.
• To ensure the safety and visual monitoring of work progress, access to a group communication system shall be provided to all field managers

InCo working group has defined the following individual network criteria for this use case:

• Time Characteristic: 17ms ( 4K camera with a frame rate of 60 frames per second)
• Data characteristics: 15Mbps (4K camera with resolution 4096×2160 and H265 codec)
• Location service: Precise indoor location
• Data ownership: Data must not leave customer premises.
• Competency of campus operator personnel: Outsourcing and subcontracting. InCo focus on core business.
• Network security: Integrated high-security network without the need for 3rd party solution.
• Spatial requirements: Network elements and devices used in construction sites have to withstand extreme conditions i.e. high humidity, direct sunlight, temperatures up to -35 Celsius, dust, and mud. Only precise location devices will be used indoors. The estimated size of the construction site is 3 km square.
• Devices: Ruggedized industrial devices with proper certification.
• Cost: InCo prefers a network as a service due to the nature of business. InCo would like to pay for service when the network is used on the construction site.

InCo with his telecommunication partner TelePartner considered two options: WiFi 6 and a cellular private network.

Finally, 5G private network as a service has been selected due to SIM level security. In addition, compared to WiFi 6, 5G private requires significantly fewer radio elements to cover the construction site. WiFi will be provided to office space via 5G routers.

TelePartner selected Nokia which offers end-to-end 5G private wireless network as a service. In addition, Nokia offers all required industrial endpoints (cameras routers, tables, and mobiles phones) and services (group communication, video surveillance, and high-accuracy positioning)

Legal prerequisites

Outcom from the feasibility study is used to acquire a license from the local regulator. In this particular case, InCo acquired the following licenses:

• 1 medium power license to ensure outdoor coverage of the whole factory terrain. This kind of license assumes that the base station location is fixed
• 10 low-power licenses to ensure flexible indoor coverage. This kind of license gives the user flexibility to move the base station within a circular area with a radius of 50 meters. Terminals can be located outside the licensed areas but connected to licensed base stations within these areas.

Contractual requirements

InCo signed a contract with Nokia that covers the whole life cycle of private 5G. Nokia's responsibility covers planning, deployment, support, and network operation support.

Network planning

A network plan has been created taking into account factory design, InCo schedule, project plan, and local regulations. In addition, the radio network plan has to take into account interferences from infrastructure which is located close to the planned Intel factory.

Radio network coverage considers outdoor and indoor constructions work. This also means that the radio network has to change over time. Two key milestones are planned. Medium power 5G coverage from the beginning of construction work and indoor coverage when InCo starts indoor construction work

InCo based on requirements provided by Nokia prepares telecommunication infrastructure ( electrical infrastructure, masts, and cabinets )

TelcoPartner base of dimensioning provided by Nokia provides a connection to the Internet and PBX

Network installation and start-up

Nokia according to the contract is responsible for network installation and commissioning of Digital Automation Cloud Private Wireless

After installation, Nokia conducts a site readiness check, site survey, post-installation check, and finally acceptance testing.

The local regulation body may also conduct measurements to confirm that network parameters fulfill the acquired license.

During the initial operational phase, Nokia provides remote go-live support.

Selected industrial endpoints used by InCo:

Nokia Industrial 5G handheld HHRA501a

Nokia High Accuracy Indoor Positioning

Nokia 5G field router

Nokia indriustrial wear camera and Nokia 5G XR20

Integration in the InCo IT infrastructure

The 5G private network becomes a part of InCo's IT infrastructure. In particular, rights and service management and the security of the 5G network require close cooperation with the existing system landscape.

5G campus networks provide various possibilities for services management, including communication services; in particular, certain services can be granted higher or lower priorities. Identifying and managing the (communications) services and rules (initiation, configuration, modification, termination), as well as their provisioning to the 5G private network requires a connection to the existing company IT.

InCo is responsible for SIM management and security.

Operations

InCo 5G private network is operated with the help of NOKIA. Service Level Agreements (SLAs) ensure performance requirements. SLA monitoring is then only required for monitoring compliance with the SLAs. SLA monitoring usually does not go beyond pure monitoring; error detection and resolution are also the job of NOKIA. Operating Nokia DAC private wireless is similar to operating a local WLAN network. This means that here a pragmatic operating approach is commonly used, which tends to replace any components that are down, rather than carrying out extensive equipment inspections.

Support

According to the contract, Nokia supplies support services for network and network users:

• Help desk
• Online training
• Hardware care
• Network operation support

Summary

InCo after a successful approval from Intel put the following takeaways to project closure:

• Integrated e2e solution

Nokia DAC covers the whole network life cycle from plan to deployment and operation. InCo my focus on core buissines

• Scalable

Scalability is a key factor from InCo's perspective because its project may vary with physical size and number of workers.

• Support all connected devices

Nokia offers ruggedized and certified industrial devices. Same solution for all devices

• Plug & Play simplicity

Nokia solution is pre-integrated all elements are compatible

• Available as a service

Features are available via the Nokia DAC catalog ready for deployment.

InCo executives plan to use 5G private network on all construction sites.

References

诺基亚 Nokia Digital Automation for industrial campus

Kyndryl Network and Edge (Nokia Partner)