NTT Ltd. recently announced its collaboration with Schneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, to deliver Private 5G (P5G) – an on-premise private network solution and digitisation enabling platform that can dramatically advance digital solutions in the manufacturing environment. The long-standing partnership between NTT and Schneider Electric builds on existing joint strategic innovations that help clients achieve efficiency and sustainability goals with advanced digital processes within the Industry X sectors.

The P5G platform will be piloted at Schneider’s Lexington Smart Factory, the first of Schneider Electric’s U.S. plants to become a Smart Factory showcase site leveraging IoT connectivity, Edge analytics, and predictive analytics to drive energy efficiency and further sustainability goals. The P5G will power key use-cases that solve challenges around equipment availability, machine performance, and product quality. For example, the companies will integrate ‘machine vision’ capabilities (industrial cameras with specialised optics) into existing factory and warehouse automation systems, that identify faults as well as wear and tear for incident root cause in near real-time. 

Through co-innovation, the solution will provide a model for operational integrity management that scales across a broad footprint of global factory environments to power Industry 4.0, enabling network edge platforms.

Additional P5G use-cases to be addressed include:

• Unfettered connectivity for improved management of AGV devices across a factory footprint that yields more efficient and accurate workflow systems.
• Machine vision application to detect anomalies in machine performance to ensure high performance, availability, and quality of product.
• Augmented reality solutions that enable remote worker support for enhanced equipment maintenance and management and worker experience.

“With this strategic partnership, we are confident that NTT's P5G solution will support Schneider Electric business and service level objectives with a powerful machine vision solution that solves for operational continuity and performance throughout the Lexington and Lincoln plant facilities,” said Shahid Ahmed, EVP New Ventures and Innovation at NTT. “Our P5G platform brings full-stack managed services, process workflow and IoT application integration capabilities that both addresses strategic objectives towards factory high performance and net zero carbon emission goals.”

“In partnering with NTT, Schneider Electric further extends its manufacturing expertise along with data center and network solutions to drive innovations for self-contained Edge Private 5G use-cases,” said Luc Rémont, Executive Vice President International Operations at Schneider Electric.

“Above and beyond superior security and control offered through this partnership, wireless networks offer superior benefits over a wired network from a sustainability perspective – smaller copper cabling footprint means minimizing energy usage and aligning to our net-zero carbon goals,” Rémont added.

To further the partnership, NTT will deploy its Private 5G services and data centers with Schneider Electric technologies, including a

prefabricated data center to integrate and test its edge offerings using EcoStruxure™ solutions. This is expected to be 100% operative in Schneider Electric factories during the 2nd QTR 2022.

Schneider Electric’s prefabricated data centres help cloud and service providers scale quickly and efficiently while also meeting their sustainability goals. In addition to a 60% reduction in up time compared to traditional data centres, these prefabricated modular data centres are manufactured with sustainable construction methods and features that boost reliability, optimise operational energy savings, and leave a smaller environmental footprint.