Visitors watch a demonstration of the application of 5G technology in manufacturing at the China 5G plus Industrial Internet Conference 2022 in Wuhan, Hubei Province. [GAO YONG/FOR CHINA DAILY]
China has granted the first private 5G network license for 5G connectivity at its factories to the Commercial Aircraft Corp of China, maker of the country’s first self-developed single-aisle passenger aircraft, the C919.
The move is part of China’s broader effort to expand the application of 5G plus industrial internet, a frontier widely recognized by countries around the world as key to increasing manufacturing proficiency.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the country’s top regulator, announced that it has granted COMAC China’s first private enterprise 5G network license to use the dedicated 5925-6125 megahertz and 24.750-25.15 gigahertz industrial wireless frequency bands, which are being developed by high and low speed distinguish latency.
As manufacturers move toward modernization, automation, and digitization, 5G private networks will allow companies to control resources and deploy their own networks. They can also safely store important sensitive data on their own networks and don’t have to send the information to telecom operators, according to a report by Swedish telecoms equipment maker Ericsson.
MIIT announced the move at the China 5G plus Industrial Internet Conference 2022, held Saturday through Monday in Wuhan, Hubei province.
Zhang Yunming, vice minister of MIIT, said the industrial Internet is a key infrastructure and a new industrial ecosystem for the deep integration of new-generation information communication technology and industrial economy.
The innovative development of 5G plus industrial Internet drives enterprises to improve quality, reduce costs, increase efficiency, and promote green and safe development. It also paves a new path for upgrading traditional industrial technologies and accelerates the implementation and popularization of new production methods, Zhang said.
“Industry will make more efforts to establish standards for fully connected 5G factories.”
The added value of industrial internet is expected to reach 4.45 trillion yuan ($617 billion) this year, accounting for 3.64 percent of GDP, up from 4.10 trillion yuan in 2021, the latest report said the China Academy of Industrial Internet.
The industrial internet will help improve China’s employment structure and stabilize employment, creating more than 1 million new jobs this year, the report said.
Currently, all major economies are prioritizing the development of manufacturing and have adopted a series of strategic measures to modernize manufacturing to be more digital-ready, connected to the internet and smarter, experts say.
Lu Chuncong, head of the China Academy of Industrial Internet, said teamwork across different sectors is crucial to accelerate the development of the industrial internet. Industrial companies, telecommunications companies, software companies and industrial control companies must work closely together to strengthen core technology research.
