Tag Archives: connectivity

Awards, News, South East, Telecoms, Telecoms News

Comms365 Win ‘Best Wireless Connectivity Provider’ At CommsBusiness Awards

Milton Keynes-Based Business Stands Out Across the Channel Industry

Comms365, an innovative network services company specialising in bespoke data connectivity, network services and IoT, is excited to announce that it has won ‘Best Wireless Connectivity Provider’ at the CommsBusiness Awards.

The CommsBusiness Awards, which took place in London on the 21st of July 2022, celebrates businesses who build pioneering solutions, contribute to innovative projects, and nurture supportive workplaces. The independent awards’ judging panel includes industry experts Dr Lucy Green, Adam Zoldan, Chris Pateman, Itret Latif and David Terrar, who assessed each entry solely on the merits in front of them.

The Milton Keynes-based business was shortlisted earlier this year for ‘Best Wireless Connectivity Provider,’ under the ‘Connectivity Awards,’ alongside Contingency Networks, Jola, Pangea Connected and Spitfire.

Connectivity is a crucial factor for business continuity. And, as internet communications are no longer restricted to fixed-line only delivery, companies can now invest in a hybrid communications model of wired and wireless internet access that truly satisfies business needs – irrespective of location.

Comms365 understands the importance for businesses to work with an experienced and trusted partner that offers all types of connectivity solutions that all sites require; including offices, distribution centres, warehouses, construction sites and wind farms.

Ruth van Bunnens, Commercial and Marketing Director at Comms365 comments: “At Comms365, we thrive on helping businesses solve their simple and complex internet connectivity challenges, and our focus is to support our customers to deliver precisely what they need. Our award-winning solutions offer faster communications, access to bigger data, reduce exposure to network outages and put customers back in control of their data networks.”

As well as walking away from the awards as a winner, Comms365 was also one of the sponsors at the CommsBusiness Awards, and specifically sponsored the ‘Best Fibre Connectivity Provider’ category – which Neos Networks won. 

CommsBusiness is the leading media brand covering the UK’s ICT (Information Communications Technology) Channel and brings together ideas and information from vendors, distributors, MSPs (Managed Service Providers), resellers and other channel companies to help the community achieve customer success and business growth.

Ruth van Bunnens concludes: “We had a wonderful evening celebrating channel businesses’ successes, and are honoured to have been awarded as the Best Wireless Connectivity Provider. Congratulations to all of the other winners and finalists across the CommsBusiness Awards. To have our achievements recognised across the industry has been a privilege for Comms365, and we are unbelievably proud of the team. We look forward to seeing what the rest of the year will bring.”

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About Comms365:

Comms365 is an innovative Network Services company specialising in bespoke data connectivity, network services and IoT.  It has gained a reputation for delivering an exceptional level of service and value-added solutions to the B2B market, from across its product portfolio; 4G, Bonded Internet, SD-WAN, IoT, ISP Services and Rental. 

The capability of Comms365’s technology and solutions is underpinned by its own high capacity resilient core network, which interconnects to the main mobile operators including EE, Three, O2, Vodafone and numerous fixed line carriers including (but not limited to), Virgin, BT, TTB, CityFibre and Sky. This highly advanced network delivers combined wireless and wired solutions that are agile and scalable to customer requirements.

We design, build and manage IoT network technologies – M2M, LoRaWAN, NB-IoT, Sigfox and Wi-Fi and offer both shared and private platforms

News, Telecoms

Connectivity Equipment Provider shares the 5 things you need to be looking for

Written by Richard Hart, Director of Global Connectivity, Quectel

Businesses today are heavily reliant on real-time data when it comes to key business decisions, to get this data in real-time, reliable means of connectivity are vital when ensuring information is received quickly and securely.  Without effective connectivity, the data becomes redundant because of our machine-to-machine economy, fast, reliable, secure IoT connectivity to take advantage of all the data available to drive business success.

Core benefits of real-time IoT data:

  • Real-time data allows manufacturers to receive instantaneous details on machine operations. It informs manufacturers to pull a machine offline and when repairs are required, rather than waiting until the machine unexpectedly fails.
  • Real-time data allows retailers to respond to peak times so they can adjust inventory appropriately.
  • Car and lorry drivers use real-time traffic data from Google Maps, Waze, and similar programs to adjust their routes to avoid congestion caused by accidents, roadworks or unexpectedly heavy traffic.

Below are five attributes that companies should look for from their providers when purchasing their antennas, modules, and IoT devices for connectivity:

  1. All antennas and modules are compatible. By going to a single-source provider, you ensure that all the equipment will communicate together. You want a provider who can supply an embedded SIM and iSIM offering. If you attempt to cobble together different solutions from different providers, you are apt to run into compatibility and configuration issues. Plus, you might deal with the complexity of trying to coordinate several parties when rolling out their devices. Customers are always conscious of the need to simplify processes and workstreams. Working with a single provider is much more efficient and will provide a better experience for you and your customers.
  2. End-to-end support. Find a provider with complete lifecycle management – from initial design to procurement to manufacturing logistics to installation to going live.

Again, this goes to the idea of the simplicity and efficiency of having a single go-to support when a company has technical, billing, or other issues. Working with a single source is much easier than solving problems with multiple providers. The latter will often result in finger-pointing with no one taking responsibility – especially when it’s a non-compatibility or other issue that prevents the different technologies from interacting seamlessly.

  1. Don’t forget to check the small print. The provider should be ready to demonstrate that all compliance and regulation is up to date to meet the varying rules of different governmental jurisdictions. If there’s any doubt, seek a different provider.
  2. Ensure they understand what you do and what you need them to do. The provider should work with you to help optimize the use of the connectivity equipment in every part of your business, rather than being a company that merely sells equipment. The provider should be flexible, agile, and understand your business requirements.
  3. Data is a global market. Most IoT organisations are heads down in implementation and may not have time to know the connectivity industry globally. A provider with this deep understanding of the global playing field can accelerate implementation and avert any performance issues across the globe.

All the above will be available if you purchase your solution from a globally reputable brand for delivering efficiencies to customers. However, not all global providers are alike regarding service or ability to meet your IoT connectivity needs.

Sufficient due diligence is essential to ensuring a connectivity equipment provider is reliable for your company’s real-time data – and enabling that data to be a business asset. Make sure your data is working as hard for you, as you did for it.

 

 

IoT, News

Smarter building monitoring and optimisation power by IoT

Jersey / London JT IoT and learnd announce partnership to empower more efficient and sustainable building management by combining learnd’s Open Data Platform with JT IoT’s first-in-class global connectivity. This will allow building engineers and experts to gain enhanced real-time data from all data sources within each estate no matter where in the world the building is located.

John Clifford, Co-Founder & CEO of learnd said: “We currently have a perfect storm where customers are wanting better spaces for their building occupants at the same time as energy costs are rising significantly. This means there is a huge need for a more sustainable, energy efficient and most importantly, smarter way to manage buildings around the world.

Increasingly engineers, architects and building managers seek better monitoring and management solutions that collect real-time data and allow them to do predictive analytics and maintenance before problems occur. However, collecting data from all building systems (such as Building Management Systems (BMS), smart meters or environmental sensors) into one system is challenging.

To address this challenge, we have created our Open Data Platform, which integrates with existing building systems – irrespective of vendor, model or age – to put real-time data in the hands of both our customers and our field engineers. This allows them to gain insights into all building systems and make them more efficient

By partnering with JT IoT, learnd’s customers will be able to take advantage of this capability, irrespective of their location. JT IoT’s IoT connectivity will enable learnd to handle more data connections, scale the data package requirements for each estate and connect to any type of network around the world, including in markets with roaming restrictions like the USA, Brazil and Canada.”

Graeme Millar, CEO of JT IoT said: “We are excited to be partnering with learnd on such an important sustainable solution. At JT IoT we strive to build the best global IoT network that would allow our customers to grow and innovate and we are happy to see our solution is helping millions of engineers build a better future.”

The new enhanced solution will combine JT IoT’s network footprint with learnd’s vast customer-base, reaching 1 in 10 large non-residential buildings in the UK alone by the end of 2022.

Cloud Platforms, News

Financial Institution’s tolerance of poor cloud connectivity is costing them 50% of revenue

Dublin, Ireland, 31st May 2022 BSO, a global pioneering infrastructure and connectivity provider, today revealed new research uncovering a “resilience paradox” suggesting that financial institutions have come to tolerate poor cloud connectivity experiences.

Nearly all IT decision makers rated their connectivity as being extremely or very resilient, yet all had experienced outages to some degree with almost half experiencing outages at least monthly. The sluggishness to move to more reliable cloud options is costing financial institutions 21%-50% of revenue on average yet only 2% of financial institutions are planning to change cloud providers in the near term. The findings are a surprising contradiction given the availability of cloud solutions on the market that guarantee 99.99% uptime and 100% data durability for object storage.

The report, Cloud connectivity and the future of financial markets, is based on a survey of 600 IT decision makers in financial service sectors including banking, trading, brokerage, financial exchanges and crypto exchanges. Businesses from across the world were surveyed including France, Germany, the UK, the US, Hong Kong, Singapore and Brazil.

Key findings include:

  • Performance: In all sectors and countries average losses for financial service firms due to poor network performance topped $67mn for the past 12 months.
  • Data security: The most pronounced impact that security breaches had on businesses was on lost or misdirected payments, with over half of businesses (52%) experiencing them, closely followed by the inability to access accounts or accounts suspended (47%) and inability to use the full, promised functionality of cloud-based applications (41%).
  • Global scale: 2 in 5 (38%) respondents said poor cloud connectivity stopped them from expanding into a new geographic market. Nearly half (48%) said it stopped them from launching a new product or service. Over 2 in 10 (22%) said it stopped them from expanding into a new sector.
  • Top considerations for selecting a new cloud connectivity provider: Quantity of cloud on-ramps (51%), technology and services that align with business needs (49%), low number of transactions needing repairs or returns (48%), the ability to exit with no risk of vendor lock-in (39%) and better choices of currencies (39%) were the top five considerations for businesses when selecting a new provider.
  • The pandemic effect: Contrary to popular belief, the pandemic was not a major stimulus of cloud investment because most businesses (99%) had already started using cloud to access applications before the pandemic.

The research also found a “north-south cloud divide” when comparing markets across several cloud performance metrics. France, UK and US firms consistently estimated considerably higher impacts from poor cloud performance when compared to their southern hemisphere counterparts, Hong Kong, Singapore and Brazil. Cumulative losses topped $442.67mn for France, UK and US firms dwarfing losses of $64.71mn from Hong Kong, Singapore, Brazil firms.

The north-south cloud divide key findings include:

  • Low latency: On average firms lost $14mn due to lost trades in the past 12 months due to the inability to achieve low-latency goals with US ($64.45mn), UK ($16.18mn) and French ($15.97mn) firms experiencing the most significant losses.
  • Scaling resources: Over $25m in revenue was lost in the last 12 months on average from the inability to effectively scale resources. The US recognised shockingly higher losses ($142.83mn) than the rest of the world and dwarfs UK firms ($15.43mn) in second place.
  • Sourcing real time market data: The inability to source real-time market data cost banks $18mn on average. US banks lost $44.72mn followed by UK banks ($14.63mn) and French banks ($12.69mn).

“The importance of cloud technologies is well-established among financial service institutions, but this is the first report of its kind to uncover the impact of poor cloud connectivity on the commercial success of businesses. The losses financial service institutions have witnessed in the last year due to poor cloud connectivity should be a wake up call to the industry.” Said Michael Ourabah, CEO of BSO. “The findings raise an important question – why are institutions hesitating to make changes to their cloud connectivity when solutions are readily available? Whatever the answer, the most successful institutions will be those that take a proactive approach to their cloud strategy.”

The report is available at https://www.bso.co/cloud-connectivity-report

News, Telecoms

Seadrill Renews Speedcast Connectivity Partnership with Three-Year Service Agreement

Contract renewal affirms Speedcast’s innovation and market leadership, ensures latest technology delivered across global deepwater drilling fleet

Aberdeen, United Kingdom — May 10, 2022 — Speedcast, a leading communications and IT services provider, today announced that the company has been selected by Seadrill to continue providing services for its global fleet via a three-year contract. Under the terms of the agreement, Speedcast will deliver the latest connectivity solutions to best serve Seadrill’s deepwater drilling fleet in operation across the Gulf of Mexico, Brazil, North Sea and African Coast regions. Seadrill is a global drilling contractor operating drill ships, jack-ups and semi-submersible assets for shallow and deepwater oil and gas projects.

As part of the renewal, Speedcast will ensure ongoing connectivity across the fleet via provision of customized, fully managed networking solutions, incorporating VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) satellite technology, as well as onboard network support for equipment. The solution also includes LTE services for specific regions of the global fleet.

Beyond corporate connectivity, Speedcast will also continue delivery of crew Wi-Fi via its LAUNCH Internet offering. Seadrill has relied on Speedcast’s crew welfare solutions for more than five years aboard its global fleet, and this contract renewal solidifies ongoing technology evolution benefitting its crews.

Seadrill’s commitment to partnering with an industry leader in advanced technology and innovation allows for its future growth, as well as continued collaboration via Speedcast’s consultative approach.

“We’re honored to have Seadrill’s continued commitment with Speedcast as we build upon our partnership spanning more than 10 years,” said Richard Elson, Executive Vice President – Energy at Speedcast. “We thrive on providing turnkey connectivity solutions for our customers, utilizing a specific blend of technologies to ensure we best meet their operational needs. In this very competitive industry landscape, this renewal speaks to our ability to execute on that, while also upholding the long-term trust of valued partners such as Seadrill.”

“Speedcast has historically brought a consultative approach in partnering with us on our fleet connectivity needs,” said Greg McGavin, Vice President – Supply Chain at Seadrill. “Because of this, along with the delivery of high-quality service and support for our assets and teams across the globe, we had no hesitation when it came to the decision of renewing this contract. We look forward to our continued partnership with the Speedcast team and the advanced technologies they offer to fully equip our fleet.”

“To ensure we’re providing technologies that maximize the success of our fleet operations, we continuously evaluate our IT portfolio and services at Seadrill,” said Jennifer Hohman, Chief Information Officer & VP at Seadrill. “We understand the critical role that connectivity solutions play in an effective and efficient drilling campaign, and Speedcast is a trusted partner to deliver on these requirements.”

To learn more on Speedcast’s LAUNCH internet and entertainment offering for crews, visit our website at www.speedcast.com/launch.

IoT, News

JT IoT strengthens core capabilities by acquiring NextM2M

Copenhagen, Denmark JT IoT announces it has reached an agreement to acquire NextM2M, a Danish IoT and connectivity management provider with global outreach. NextM2M will be integrated into the JT IoT core networks and further enhance the Internet of Things (IoT) capabilities of the company.

NextM2M’s Internet of Things business provides machine to machine data transmissions with a focus on custom-made solutions that aim to provide the most efficient SIM card option to meet specialised connectivity needs for more than 130 global customers in over 60 countries. The company partners with major telecommunication providers such as Vodafone and JT, to power various IoT solutions, from smart sensors to industrial automation.

By integrating into the JT IoT family, NextM2M adds to existing global footprint and development capabilities. JT IoT is delighted to have NextM2M’s IoT experts as part of the journey.

Graeme Millar, CEO of JT IoT said:

“I am delighted to welcome NextM2M to the JT IoT family. NextM2M will help us deliver our strategic goals to diversify on our connectivity suppliers. The acquisition will also further accelerate our growth whilst underpinning our excellent efficiency. We believe that in NextM2M we have found a partner that shares our vision and mission to drive success within the IoT industry”.

Henrik Hansen, CEO of NextM2M, said:

“We are excited to join JT IoT on this exciting journey. There is a huge potential in IoT solutions market and by joining hands with a global player like JT IoT, we can ensure we have the right people and expertise to continue challenging the established players with new and innovative solutions.”

IT Services, News

Logicalis target digital-first leaders with launch of managed Intelligent Connectivity service

London, United Kingdom – 25th April 2022: Logicalis, a global IT solutions and managed service provider, today announces the launch of Intelligent Connectivity, a solution designed to empower digital-first customers to improve business performance and user experience by operating with connectivity as a managed service.

“Connectivity is critical to success in the digital-first economy. Organisations need to have confidence in their network as the key enabler for their digital transformation efforts,” comments Michael Chanter, COO of Logicalis Group.

The Logicalis Intelligent Connectivity solution is a modern managed service, architected for user experience and provides a consumption-based, insights-driven approach to networking. The solution is built on Cisco SDWAN and SASE technology and delivers:

  • Agility and scalability – scale the network up or down based on business demand and react quickly to changing requirements.
  • Security by design – take advantage of opportunities in real time, as security is woven into the fabric of the network by design.
  • Predictable user insights – access to real-time insights into connectivity and app performance which allows for proactive management and reliable user experience.
  • Sustainability by design – digitalise and dematerialise core IT solutions, measurably reducing carbon footprint.

Chanter continues: “In a digital-first world geared towards responsible business, customers require connectivity that combines a measurable user experience with the scale and flexibility to allow them to pivot to new opportunities as they arise. Our solution allows customers to proactively optimise user experience and also obtain actionable insights to reduce their carbon impact.”

To learn more about how the Logicalis Intelligent Connectivity can support your business click here: www.logicalis.com/solutions-services/intelligent-connectivity/

Electric Vehicles, News

How EV Charging Stations Need to Evolve to Meet Market Demand

Written by Neset Yalcinkaya, VP of Products, Quectel

According to Berg Insight, there are expected to be around 23 million electric vehicle (EV) charging stations installed globally by the year 2025.

So, a dense charging station network is needed to keep the growing number of EVs on the road. The typical EV today has a range of anywhere from 100 miles to 520 miles, with most in the 200-300-mile range, according to an Insideevs report. While those ranges are fine for typical daily commuting needs, more extensive travel requires conveniently located EVs at appropriate locations on the road as well as at the home and office.  These stations do not only avoid issues such as running out of charge, but also combat “range anxiety”, the fear of running out of charge before the next charging station is reached.  Overcoming range anxiety is one of the major factors – outside of price – of consumers opting to replace their petrol/diesel vehicle with an EV when it’s time for a new one.

To meet this demand for EV charging stations, the providers – most of whom are private firms – will need to roll out both plug-in and wireless charging stations. The plug-in stations will primarily be used in the home and at certain office locations, while wireless charging stations will make the most sense for the publicly available charging stations.

Connectivity is the answer

These charging stations need reliable, fast connectivity in order to monitor meter usage and identify and bill users, collect vehicle ID information, charging volume, the status of the charge (SOC), the capacity of charging, and recharging current the charging point or pile ID and location information.

With connectivity, the provider can see all critical aspects of the charging station in real-time, which is even more important for EV charging stations than for the more traditional service stations.  Unlike traditional service stations, EV charging stations are unlikely to have attendants present. So, EV charging station providers will want to have immediate notification if a station isn’t working properly, goes down completely, or is the victim of attempted theft or vandalism.

Such connectivity can also provide communication advantages for potential users by informing them of locations of charging stations’ availability (charging times can be lengthy), as well as other important information.

There are several areas where there is the right existing technology and other infrastructure to provide this type of state-of-the-art connectivity. However, there are still several areas where providing such connectivity through a wired charging station would be too complex, costly, or would simply take too long to connect and test before going live with it, meaning lost revenue for the provider.

Wireless connectivity can help speed the rollout of these charging stations, enabling providers to meet the need more quickly.

Even if the provider chooses to deploy one or more plug-in charging stations, adding wireless connectivity, as well, provides an important backup if the wired connection fails for any reason.

In most of the UK, 4G – and in an increasing number of areas – 5G infrastructure already exists to provide fast, reliable connections for EV charging stations. Yet the EV market still faces some challenges.

Despite the positive forecast from Berg Insight and others for the EV market outlook, much of the growth will come near the end of the forecast period. Though EV sales have set records each of the last couple of years, the reality is that there are still relatively few on the road, so the current incentives to develop the market are low. Providers are looking at lengthy return-on-investment (ROI) times.

Shortening the ROI time provides the best path to profitability. Wireless connectivity does just that because it avoids adding the additional costs and time needed to install plug-in stations.

To obtain the best ROI in the shortest amount of time, EV charging station providers need wireless equipment compliant with global standards and that can communicate with all wireless carriers. The ability to minimise power consumption is also critical. Many of these stations sit dormant a large percentage of the time.

The hardware must also have integrated security features and architectures that allow developers to easily design new applications for consumers and providers alike, as well as antennas to ensure optimised, stable connections.

By deploying the right hardware to provide connectivity, providers can quickly meet the growing demand for EV charging stations while maximising their ROI.

IoT, News

New global programmable mobile network will power innovation in IoT

Stacuity and JT IoT announce partnership to combine Stacuity’s programmable platform with JT IoT’s class-leading connectivity footprint. This will empower IoT customers and developers with unprecedented control over mobile connectivity, on a global basis.

Mike Bromwich, Stacuity CEO commented: “We are delighted to be partnering with JT IoT to launch Stacuity’s global programmable mobile network. The combination of our leading-edge technology and their strong connectivity footprint will power new waves of innovation and value creation in IoT.”

As the IoT market matures and applications become ever more business critical, customers’ needs are becoming more complex. Increasingly, customers seek tight integrations which monitor, react-to and influence connectivity and device behaviour in real time. However, this is hard to achieve via traditional standardised mobile network technology, where even simple changes for customers can involve weeks of delay and substantial project costs.

To address this problem, Stacuity has developed a revolutionary programmable platform. This fulfils the functions of a standard mobile network core but has been designed ‘developer first’. Developers are empowered to exercise powerful real-time and fine-grained control over connectivity. Via Stacuity, customers can operate their own discrete, secure, software-defined mobile networks for IoT. So, connected IoT devices can be managed as flexibly and securely as any other IT asset.

By leveraging their complementary skills and assets, Stacuity and JT IoT will bring the benefits of a global programmable mobile network to new and existing IoT customers, around the world. Mobile connectivity will be better tuned to suit more sophisticated use cases and latent value growth potential will be realised.

Graeme Millar, JT IoT CEO added: “At JT IoT we are building one of the world’s leading IoT connectivity and platform providers. We are delighted to be working with Stacuity to launch their global programmable mobile network and to empower more IoT customers to innovate and grow.”

News, Telecoms

Connected North: Delivering the North’s connected future

  • An opportunity for the region’s connectivity leaders to come together and explore the most important regional issues around enabling the North’s connected future.

Manchester Central, UK, 13th April – Combined Authority Mayors and connectivity leaders from across the north of the UK will discuss how to deliver next-generation broadband networks across the region at the first ever Connected North event later this month, brought to you by Total Telecom.

The mayors of Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and Liverpool, the Chief Executive of Building Digital UK and a host of leading industry figures will join national government, local authorities, network builders and operators, investors, universities, suppliers and startups from across the digital sector to discuss how the north of England can capitalise on the UK’s connected future.

“Over two days, this event will bring together more than 70 leading speakers as well as showcasing over 50 suppliers and start-ups and is expected to attract up to 1,000 attendees from the region, including telecom operators, alternative networks, and local and national government,” said Rob Chambers, Managing Director Total Telecom.

A variety of essential subjects will be tackled at the first Connected North conference, which has been launched as sister event to Connected Britain, the UK’s largest connectivity event. Among topics being discussed will be the Levelling Up agenda, the digital economy and addressing the digital divide. The event will provide a platform to explore the most important regional issues around connecting Northern communities and businesses.

The CEO of Sunderland City Council, Patrick Melia said, “Connected North is a prime opportunity for like-minded individuals and organisations to collaborate, learn and share as we all strive to deliver next generation networks across the North and the wider UK. Sunderland City Council looks forward to exploring the most important regional issues around enabling the North’s smart and connected future at this much anticipated event” quoted Patrick Melia, CEO of Sunderland City Council.

Connected North takes place at Manchester Central and forms part of this year’s Manchester Tech Week. For more information, including how to attend, and for the full programme, please visit: www.totaltele.com/connectednorth.