The aim of this initiative is to develop best practice guidelines for the management of small cells by private network operators and enterprises of 4G and 5G network deployments.
With the recent publication of Small cell SON and orchestration from 4G to 5G, SCF launched a new program of work focussed on evolving network management and automation for 5G Era networks. However, most industry attention in this area concentrates on the management requirements of MNOs and public networks. SCF is committed to driving opportunities for small cells and private cellular networks. This means developing a better understanding of enterprise requirements for the management of networks that address the needs of specific vertical sectors. This work, aligned to our new program of work in the maritime sector, considers the technical solutions addressing these issues.
The automation of network management is a key goal for any service provider deploying next generation networks. The more they extend their 4G and 5G networks with dense hotzones of capacity, or deep indoors, the more cells they will roll out. These numbers will become impractical to manage and optimize manually, especially with rising customer demands for high quality connectivity and even critical communications. Supporting many of the services envisaged for 5G, from massive numbers of IoT devices to immersive user experiences, will require near-real time adjustment of the network to ensure the best connection at all times. This new work stream is considering how management best practice must evolve to meet the needs of services providers operating private cellular networks in the context of specific vertical sectors.