Hutchison Ports and Three UK have announced that the Port of Felixstowe is now the largest UK port to deploy 5G technology and the Internet of Things (IoT).
The Port of Felixstowe and consortium members including Three UK, Blue Mesh Solutions and the University of Cambridge, saw success in an application for grant funding under the 5G Testbeds and Trials programme fronted by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).
The project sets out to showcase 5G’s capabilities in a busy port environment and deliver on two use cases: predictive maintenance of quay cranes using IoT sensors and providing communications for remote control yard cranes.
Port of Felixstowe 5G project lead and head of information services Karen Poulter said: “As part of the 5G project, six quay cranes are being fitted with IoT Sensors to understand the stresses placed on them by day-to-day operation.
“Using 5G to transmit the data enables these systems to operate in real-time which could enable ‘in the moment’ safety-critical applications.
“Using the data generated by the IoT sensors and linking it to the actual activity on the crane together with previous maintenance records, Cambridge University is developing an algorithm to predict equipment failure and suggest the optimum time to maintain the equipment.”
“The algorithm will maximise the amount of time cranes are in use and will reduce the cost associated with emergency repairs and day-to-day maintenance.”