5G in manufacturing and logistics to accelerate in Asia-Pac: report

The capabilities of 5G are starting to enable a range of applications, such as machine vision with AI analysis from the cloud and real-time analysis of massive IoT connections. According to global technology research firm ABI Research, revenues for 5G private network and 5G network slicing deployments in the Asia–Pacific region will increase from US$732 million and US$151 million in 2022 to over US$13 billion and US$12 billion by 2028, respectively.

“5G-to-Business applications have been shown to improve productivity and reduce costs for enterprises across different verticals,” said Matthias Foo, 5G Markets Industry Analyst at ABI Research. “Beyond that, 5G enterprise deployments were also shown to reduce power consumption by improving equipment efficiency through data analytics and workplace safety with machine vision and AI.”

Within the private 5G cellular space, manufacturing is projected to be the vertical with the highest revenue potential for 5G-to-Business applications in the Asia–Pacific region. Key use cases utilise the capabilities of 5G to enable real-time robotic control for remote-controlled operations, autonomous vehicle operations, extended reality technology for training and support applications, and the collection of a large amount of sensor data for developing digital twins. Some relevant case examples include South Korea’s LG Smart Park and Japan’s Fujitsu Oyama Plant.

In the 5G network slicing domain, the logistics vertical is forecast to be the highest contributor to revenue. Key use cases for 5G adoption include vision-based inspections for autonomous or remote-controlled operations, asset tracking and smart transport applications, as illustrated by China’s Ningbo-Zhoushan Smart Port and Australia’s drone delivery operator Swoop Aero.

While the 5G-to-Business market in Asia–Pacific is currently driven by several key countries, there continues to be a large opportunity for 5G-to-Business growth in the region as more countries, like India, begin to roll out their 5G networks and more communication service providers (CSPs) deploy 5G standalone networks.

“While the economic outlook in many regions has become more uncertain, 5G cellular coverage and innovations continue. Those firms and countries implementing 5G-to-Business applications are most likely to secure first mover advantages,” said Jake Saunders, Vice President of Asia Pacific and Research Director for ABI Research’s 5G markets research service.

The findings are from ABI Research’s Asia–Pacific 5G-to-Business Developments and Outlook application analysis report, available here.

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