FEATURE : 5G
CIOS ARE EXPECTED TO IDENTIFY THE RIGHT PATH FOR THEIR BUSINESS TO DRIVE CHANGE AND THEREFORE SHOULD FACTOR 5G INTO THEIR INFRASTRUCTURE DEPLOYMENT PLANNING .
“ In such cases , it is necessary that the CIO audits the current network infrastructure and determine what upgrades and / or replacements to network hardware , software and services might be needed in order to leverage the full potential of 5G ,” he said . “ Since network upgrades are a costly affair , it is vital to create a budget plan that periodically deploys systematic upgrades in phases that can approximately follow the multi-year trajectory of enterprise 5G adoption .”
Sakhnini said CIOs are expected to identify the right path for their business to drive change and therefore should factor 5G into their infrastructure deployment planning . He explained that CIOs know that Digital Transformation goes beyond technological innovation and is more a structural , strategic transformation of an entire company , its positioning , organisational models , and internal processes .
“ CIOs should get their organisations ready to adapt their processes to cloud-based operations , telemetry and AI . 5G will open a wide range of opportunities to those organisations that have digitised their processes , accelerating them with ubiquitous connectivity , massive capacity and extreme low latency ,” he said .
Azz-Eddine Mansouri , General Manager , Sales , Ciena Middle East , said in order to fulfill the 5G promise , CIOs must ensure their networks are not only automated , but adaptive . Mansouri added that private 5G networks , over the wireless and wireline domains , are software-centric allowing them to ‘ adjust ’ on the fly and adapt to changing user needs , from both humans and the machines connecting to the network . intelligent closed-loop automation , the ultimate network end-state that allows private 5G networks to adapt to ever-changing conditions , in real-time ,” he said .
“ In addition , CIOs need to make sure their WAN is upgraded to cope with 5G traffic to be generated by IoT and multiple devices to be connected to different data centre where data may be processed .”
Adoption of 5G technology
According to Naidoo , mass digitisation of public services could support the building of Smart Cities where key infrastructure is connected to a central network , enabling predictive maintenance and improved traffic management , for example . “ In healthcare , junior doctors could be trained for surgery via AR or VR delivered via 5G and telemedicine – which has become even more vital in light of the pandemic – is set to experience what some analysts describe as a ‘ tsunami of growth ’,” she said . “ In manufacturing , 5G could achieve cost optimisations by enabling virtual control of machines and telemetry or information exchange between large numbers of connected devices in real time .”
Naidoo explained that these benefits won ’ t be realised simply through the deployment of 5G , however , as organisations will need robust Digital Transformation strategies supported by systems such as enterprise resource planning ( ERP ) platforms that can process , store and analyse vast amounts of data from huge numbers of disparate sources .
5G challenges
While there is no denying that 5G deployments have taken off on a good note in the Middle East , there are some challenges still persisting for enterprises in the region . Maciej Nowakowski , Head , Systems Design , Secure Land Communications , Airbus , said the cost of coverage in rural areas may be challenging for mobile network operators .
Nowakowski pointed out that this may require the implementation of special individual contracts for 5G services with enterprises . “ Inter-country and cross-country connectivity also remains challenging for distributed operations in the region ,” he said . “ Other challenges I see include : the maturing of the technology , the fact that there are very many and regionally-fragmented frequency allocations for 5G , a well as the availability of compatible terminals and the coverage available .”
“ An adaptive network leverages programmable infrastructure , data-driven analytics and intelligence , and software control and automation . This enables
Mansouri said CIOs should look at 5G as the technology that will allow networks to handle hundreds of millions of devices all at the same time . Consequently , he
42 INTELLIGENTCIO MIDDLE EAST www . intelligentcio . com