AT&T and Samsung Create America’s First Manufacturing-focused 5G “Innovation Zone”
AT&T, Samsung Electronics America and Samsung Austin Semiconductor Test for Industry 4.0 and the Future of Smart Factories
AT&T* is working with Samsung Electronics America, Inc. (SEA) and Samsung Austin Semiconductor, LLC, (SAS) to create America’s first manufacturing-focused 5G “Innovation Zone” in Austin, Texas. The goal of the testbed will be to provide a real-world understanding of how 5G can impact manufacturing and provide insight into the future of a Smart Factory.
The Innovation Zone will sit within Samsung Austin Semiconductor, one of the world’s most advanced semiconductor fabrication facilities. It will feature AT&T’s 5G wireless technology with Samsung’s 5G network equipment.
“This is a first. We’ll be testing the real-world impact 5G will have on the manufacturing industry,” said Mo Katibeh, chief marketing officer, AT&T Business. “Ultimately, we plan to use what we learn from this 5G Innovation Zone to help create better technology experiences and improvements in Samsung Austin Semiconductor’s plant along with creating a future blueprint for people and businesses across all industries.”
“As we evolve into a Smart Factory, Samsung Austin Semiconductor is continuously focused on leveraging data and automation to increase system performance,” said Dr. Sang-Pil Sim, president, Samsung Austin Semiconductor. “This collaboration with Samsung Electronics America and AT&T will help us test how a 5G network can improve mobility, performance and efficiencies within our plant.”
“We’re hard at work deploying our commercial mobile 5G network for people and businesses in parts of a dozen cities by the end of this year,” said Igal Elbaz, senior vice president, Wireless Technology, AT&T Communications. “Seeing a number of technologies enhanced and improved by 5G at a large manufacturing plant will give us an exciting glimpse into a 5G world, which is closer than ever.”
We will work together and may explore many different use cases and technologies in the Innovation Zone, such as:
- 4K video as a sensor with analytics to improve plant security and detection response
- Industrial IoT sensors that monitor for environmental and equipment conditions, like vibration, temperature and speed
- Location services to improve safety
“This testbed demonstrates Samsung’s expertise in innovation spanning chipsets to devices to network technology,” said Wilf Norrlinger, vice president, Networks Division, Samsung Electronics America. “We’re excited to expand upon our recent commercial networks agreements with AT&T to bring 5G technologies to the forefront of industry, and advance specific use cases to accelerate new market opportunities.”
5G promises to someday have a significant impact on Industry 4.0 connected manufacturing. It has the power to unlock new experiences in augmented reality, powerful machine learning and AI applications, intelligent robotics and better predictive maintenance. Combined with compute power at the Edge, this Innovation Zone will strive to show how Smart Manufacturing can evolve even further and strengthen the overall industry.
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