New 5G Edge-in-a-Box supports smart cities, IoT and rapid 5g connectivity

Lenovo and Etisalat UAE (branded as etisalat by e&) have announced a partnership to develop a new 5G Edge-in-a-Box solution.

The new solution will allow for the rapid deployment of 5G connectivity in a variety of edge-of-network deployment scenarios.

Khaled Al Suwaidi, VP of Core Networks and Platforms, Etisalat UAE, said: “etisalat by e& has invested in a state-of-the-art 5G network in the UAE, and we believe that through our partnership with Lenovo and Intel to develop rugged, easy-to-deploy Multi-Access Edge Computing solutions, we will be able to offer new services that will meet the needs of our enterprise customers for low-latency, high-bandwidth, ultra-secure computing at the edge.”

The 5G Edge-in-a-Box solution is expected to be a game changer for telecom companies, allowing them to rapidly deploy 5G communications to support demand for new use cases such as Smart Cities, IoT and Industry 4.0, temporary events and outdoor locations, public and private safety networks, and more.

The solution will allow locations to quickly connect to 5G, either on private networks or fully integrated with the etisalat by e& packet core network, to provide the fast, high bandwidth, low-latency connectivity required by the most advanced technology solutions and concepts.

Alaa Bawab, General Manager Infrastructure Solutions Group (ISG), Middle East & Africa, Lenovo said: “We are seeing a huge increase in demand for 5G connectivity from new deployment scenarios, such as smart city systems, industrial IoT, camera networks, and from temporary events and remote sites such as outdoor events. Traditionally, it has been difficult for telcos to provide the extra connectivity to meet these demands, requiring investment in infrastructure and capacity. With the 5G Edge-in-a-box solution however, we are able to provide rapid connectivity, complete with automated deployment and management, that will make connecting to the power of 5G networks much faster, easier and more cost effective.”

The 5G Edge solution, developed in collaboration with Lenovo, Casa Systems, Nearby Computing, and Red Hat, includes full disaggregated, virtual radio access network (vRAN), and Multi-Access Edge Computing (MEC) capabilities that can be deployed in a variety of scenarios, ranging from Non-Public Mobile Networks (NPM) to the etisalat by e& Edge and hybrid clouds.

The new solution is based on an open and modular design that is aligned with Intel’s CERA specification and aims to accommodate different site sizing and use cases with a common framework to seamlessly host edge applications (MEC and non-MEC). To meet the expected performance requirements of individual use cases and applications, 5G Edge-in-a-Box is compatible with best-practice VNF/CNF solutions.

5G Edge-in-a-Box includes hardware infrastructure and software components, as well as automated deployment and management, to cover all aspects of an advanced edge orchestration platform (NFV, Applications, MEC), meet day-to-day network operational requirements, and alleviate the pain points associated with deploying and managing localized connectivity.

The 5G Edge-in-a-Box solution is intended for deployment in smart cities, mobility, manufacturing, industry 4.0, short-term events, exhibitions, private safety, public safety services, gaming, content delivery, augmented reality, outdoor locations, and other scenarios.