Wi-Fi has changed the way we work in the office but it’s not the only wireless technology. Challenging environments require new solutions like private 5G. In this episode, Tom Hollingsworth is joined by Mark Houtz and Shaun Neal as they discuss the rise of private LTE/5G technologies outside of the carrier space. They discuss the use cases where private 5G makes the most sense as well as why teams would choose to deploy this technology in the uncarpeted enterprise. The wrap up by suggesting questions that should be asked before embarking on a private 5G deployment.
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It’s Time For Private 5G In the Enterprise
Wi-Fi has changed the way we work in the office but it’s not the only wireless technology. Challenging environments require new solutions like private 5G. In this episode, Tom Hollingsworth is joined by Mark Houtz and Shaun Neal as they discuss the rise of private LTE/5G technologies outside of the carrier space. They discuss the use cases where private 5G makes the most sense as well as why teams would choose to deploy this technology in the uncarpeted enterprise.
Private LTE/5G came about because of the need for additional spectrum resources before the authorization of 6 GHz by the US FCC. After the release of that spectrum and its adoption into Wi-Fi 6E the technology formerly known as CBRS has grown to encompass a series of specialized use cases. Wi-Fi isn’t going away, despite recent papers saying it is more of a legacy technology. Private 5G has a much more specific kind of use case, such as the uncarpeted enterprise. This term describes offices that might have more rugged components, such as warehouses or manufacturing floors. The need to cover these areas sufficiently usually means higher costs using Wi-Fi access points. Private 5G excels here because of the higher power capabilities and better spectrum usage.
Private 5G is also a critical component for organizations with highly regulated network requirements, such as the US federal government. Because enterprises need to own their communications infrastructure end-to-end, they are unable to use carriers that provide 5G or LTE services. That means the only real option available to them is a private service. Because of the nature of private 5G small cell size this also means it is much better at providing service indoors, as opposed to the large scale cell sizes employed by carriers to provide a wider area of coverage for subscribers.
The episode closes with the big question that potential customers need to ask of their providers: what is your use case? If you don’t have a compelling use case for the technology or the reasoning behind deploying it is simply “the Wi-Fi doesn’t work” then you might find yourself disappointed by the performance as well as the additional costs. Private 5G is cost competitive with Wi-Fi but only because a single CBRS node can cover a much wider area than a Wi-Fi AP, albeit at a higher cost-per-node. If you have a need to cover outdoor areas or challenging RF environments you should definitely investigate deploying private 5G to your enterprise. It’s about time.
Podcast Information:
Tom Hollingsworth is a Networking and Security Specialist at Gestalt IT and Event Lead for Tech Field Day. You can connect with Tom on LinkedIn and X/Twitter. Find out more on his blog or on the Tech Field Day website.
Mark Houtz is a Network Engineer for local school districts in Utah as well as a blogger and content creator. You can connect with Mark on LinkedIn or on X/Twitter. Learn more about him on his website.
Shaun Neal is the Senior Director of Engineering Services at EVOTEK. You can connect with Shaun on LinkedIn or on X/Twitter and learn more on his website.
Learn more about the Tech Field Day podcast on the Tech Field Day website. Follow the podcast on X/Twitter and follow Tech Field Day and Gestalt IT on LinkedIn for more great content.
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