News
Wi-Fi 6 will be eventually become a crucial technology for delivering ubiquitous, gigabit connectivity
The Wireless Broadband Alliance has completed the first phase of its Wi-Fi 6 trial in the UK, hitting consistent download speeds of 700Mbps.
Phase one of the trial was conducted at the Mettis Aerospace factory in the UK. The tests comprised 4K video streaming, large scale file transfers, messaging and voice/video communications and achieved consistent speeds of 700Mbps over the 80MHz channel.
The trial was conducted in the Mettis Aerospace facility in the West Midlands in collaboration with WBA member companies including Broadcom, Cisco, iBwave and Intel.
"Mettis is a great example of a ‘hostile’ Wi-Fi environment. That’s why manufacturing and other industrial organizations should be so excited by these results," said Matt MacPherson, CTO Wireless at Cisco.
"Using Cisco wireless technology, Mettis was able to reliably use Wi-Fi for truly game-changing applications. This is a testament to the capabilities of Wi-Fi 6 for industrial use cases, as well as the innovation of the WBA, Cisco and partners. The lessons we’ve learned as part of this trial will help so many other companies as they look to digitise."
With the well documented difficulty in securing reliable indoor reception for 5G mobile networks, Wi-Fi 6 is seen as a crucial technology for delivering ubiquitous, gigabit capable connectivity.
“The Wi-Fi 6 infrastructure installed as part of the trials has exceeded our expectations in terms of performance, reliable connectivity and consistent coverage across the target area,” said Dave Green, Head of IT, Mettis Aerospace.
“We are seeing immediate benefits in terms of the data we’re now able to collect and use. Moving forward, we will be able to vastly increase the data we collect from devices across our business, enhancing our manufacturing processes, reducing variability and increasing productivity.”
