A new high-tech lab to speed up the development of 5G communication
kit and help Britain diversify its supply chains will be launched
today.
The government-backed £1 million SONIC Labs will help accelerate
the adoption of ‘Open RAN’ technology which is a major pillar of
the government’s 5G Diversification Strategy.
The strategy aims to build a more secure and innovative supply
chain which is fit for the future, less reliant on a small number
of multinational suppliers and more accessible for new market
entrants.
The lab will be a real-world testing facility that aims to bring
in multiple providers to supply components for 5G radio
equipment.
Open RAN technology will end situations where only one supplier’s
technology can be used for a telecoms network to function. For
example, it will allow components from different telecoms
suppliers to be exchanged or used as replacements at masts that,
until now, have been kitted out by a single supplier.
Based in London and Brighton, SONIC Labs will enable telecoms
equipment manufacturers to examine how their kit behaves in a
fully interoperable, technology-neutral mobile network. It also
aims to encourage innovative vendors to enter the UK telecoms
supply chain and drive innovation in public networks.
Digital Infrastructure Minister will launch the centre at a virtual event this
morning. He said:
I’m thrilled that SONIC Labs is opening its doors to the wealth
of telecoms expertise we have in this country to explore new
ways of building 5G networks.
Our investment is a crucial element of our strategy to tackle
the world’s over-reliance on a small number of telecoms vendors
by growing our own cutting-edge solutions at home.
I look forward to seeing how the lab will help deliver the
incredible social and economic benefits of new technology for
people around the UK.
The lab is being run by Ofcom and Digital Catapult, who have
built the facility using existing Digital Catapult infrastructure
and capability, £1 million of seed funding from DCMS, and a
bespoke SONIC Labs branch as part of Ofcom’s Innovation Lab in
Riverside House.
SONIC Labs will work with a diverse range of vendors to explore
new open approaches to telecoms networks, including Accelleran,
Mavenir, Radisys, Benetel, Phluido, Druid and Effnet.
Digital Catapult Chief Technology Officer Joe Butler said:
In SONIC Labs we are experimenting to make interoperability a
reality. This effort supports our mission to drive UK
capability in advanced digital technology and we are grateful
to Ofcom for working with us in this partnership and to DCMS
for the opportunity to leverage the 5G testbeds we have
developed in this effort.
Ofcom Chief Executive Dame said:
SONIC Labs is an exciting project that gives us the opportunity
to explore how new telecoms technology could operate in the UK
market. It’s all about bringing innovation to our
communications networks – helping to support fast, secure and
reliable connections for the future. A number of companies are
already getting involved and we look forward to more joining
too.
In his speech at the SONIC Labs launch, Mr Warman also announced
that DCMS is developing a long-term strategy for 5G and future
wireless networks in the UK.
As part of this, the government will be considering the role of
spectrum, the finite radio wave resource central to developing
these technologies, and set out how the government will continue
to ensure that wireless infrastructure plays an integral role in
enabling the UK’s economy and society to build back better.
The government will be working closely with industry, Ofcom,
academia and others to help shape its thinking and develop the
evidence base. More detail on how we will develop this work will
be announced later this year. Find out more about SONIC Labs
