5G wireless technology promises to usher in the fourth industrial revolution, and should transform the way federal, state and local agencies operate. From smart cities to wireless devices, 5G can provide agencies with a cost-effective platform that delivers information quickly and effectively – enabling agencies to deliver on their missions.
At CES Government 2020 earlier this year, the power of 5G in government was explored by Nick Nilan, Director of Public Sector Product Management at Verizon. Nilan discussed the array of opportunities that 5G holds from smart city applications like traffic and utilities to national defense and government enablement.
5G applications are becoming more important with the recently released National Strategy to Secure 5G of the United States which outlines the “vision for America to lead the development, deployment, and management of secure and reliable 5G communications infrastructure worldwide, arm-in-arm with [its] closest partners and allies.”
State, local, and federal agencies will look to leverage 5G to deliver citizens better services with traffic management, connected utilities, medical delivery drones, and connected ambulances.
The Department of Defense is also accepting prototype proposals to leverage 5G technologies within military networks. “This is one of those areas where the commercial industry is really leading the charge, but we need to think about how we influence security standards and things like that,” said Dr. Lisa Porter, the Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering with the Department of Defense, in a Federal News Network article last fall.
“It was really important for us to be informed by their perspective, and one common thing we’ve heard from industry is that they do have an interest in collaborative experimentation. They recognize there’s a lot we need to figure out,” she said. 5G will help enable defense, cyber, and government workers to fulfill their missions through enhanced capabilities.
“What we are going to see is additional uses of 5G in smaller areas,” shared Nilan. “Campuses, in-building, computing or augmenting WIFI.”
From drones to smart utilities, 5G could make an impact on government agencies and the military. With more flexibility and agility available, agencies can further embrace modernization. This is especially true for state and local organizations that are utilizing internet of things applications to power cities that are more secure, have less traffic, and have a variety of other connected services.
According to a recent IDC report on smart city spending, “intelligent transportation and data-driven public safety remain the largest investment areas, but we are also finding significant pockets of spending and growth in back-office and platform-related use cases, which are less often publicized but increasingly happening behind the scenes in cities around the world.”
These use cases can be powered by 5G to improve speed and access while helping reduce costs, leading to better mission delivery. The agility, speed, performance, and financial flexibility of agencies can all be improved with 5G.
Interested in learning what 5G can do for you? Watch this video.
