Schneider Electric, Capgemini, and Qualcomm launch 5G-enabled industrial automation solution

Schneider Electric, Capgemini and Qualcomm Technologies have jointly launched an end-to-end private 5G network hoisting solution. Hoisting applications play a critical role in supply chain and manufacturing operations where heavy materials and goods are transported across hundreds of meters under challenging conditions. 

Announced at the Mobile World Congress 2023 in Barcelona (Spain), it is touted as a first-of-its-kind solution. The three companies have designed and installed the solution at Schneider Electric’s hoisting lab in Grenoble, France. The 5G private network solution is expected to simplify and optimise digital technology deployment at scale across industrial sites, from steel plants to ports.

While automated hoisting systems increase productivity, safety and operation performance, they require fast reaction time, high precision, and round-the-clock availability. Further, several systems need to be on the same network with video cameras and programmable logic controllers (PLC) for various control functions. In such cases, 5G’s native low latency characteristics allow systems to replace fiber cables in remote-control operations and simplify network complexity.

The solution developed by the three companies will replace wired and other wireless connections for critical PLC control flows and time-sensitive video flows that power several use cases. It is also expected to significantly improve connectivity performance and enable new use cases. Schneider Electric’s industrial automation solutions, Qualcomm’s wireless technologies and artificial intelligence innovation, along with Capgemini’s network deployment expertise will eliminate complexities, resulting in faster time to market, the companies said in a statement.

“In the short-term, we will validate more industrial 5G use cases in various discrete manufacturing, hybrid automation, and process automation applications. In the mid-term, we will experiment with deeper integration of 5G technology inside our automation equipment,” said Marc Lafont, vice president (Innovation and Upstream Marketing), at Schneider Electric.

Beyond its core industrial functions, the Private 5G automated hoisting system can also be leveraged to deliver additional digital use cases, such as augmented operators enabled by XR (eXtended Reality) and wearable devices.