TIM’s 5G living lab moves forward with smart factory

Telecom Italia’s San Marino business has signed an agreement with Robopac to jointly develop new production technologies using 5G.

While San Marino might not be anything more than a spec of colour on the European map for some, it is a very useful little living lab for Telecom Italia to test out the glorious ideas made possible through 5G, before launching in larger markets. After announcing the microstate would be the first in Europe to hit the 5G on-switch, this Robopac partnership is one of these 5G experiments.

“There has been real talk of Industry 4.0 for the last several years,” said Cesare Pisani, TIM San Marino CEO. “With the introduction of fifth generation mobile networks, this new industrial revolution will take even better shape, radically transforming production activities. Our objective is to guide companies through this transformation process, demonstrating how industrial and digital production plants can leverage the potential of 5G.”

As part of the partnership, the pair will look to develop several aspect of the smart factory focusing on robotics and self-driving vehicles in the logistics and goods handling sector. The concept of the smart factory has been bumping around for years, though it is certainly starting to become a bit more real.

“The chance to test these technologies is a unique opportunity for Robopac,” said CEO Enrico Aureli. “The simultaneous use of sophisticated sensors and high capacity communication networks, like 4G and 5G, and the transfer of data to cloud systems for constant monitoring, will represent a new ecosystem with which to review the whole production chain.”

It might not be anything more than a minor POC for the moment, though creating a niche service for the manufacturing industry would certainly be a sensible move for TIM.