IBM, Verizon combine 5G and edge computing expertise to build future Industrial 4.0 solutions

Many industrial enterprises are today seeking ways to use edge computing to accelerate access to near real-time, actionable insights into operations to improve productivity and reduce costs.

To address this need, Verizon Business and IBM  have entered into a collaboration to work together on 5G and edge computing innovation to help enable the future of Industry 4.0.

The companies plan to combine the high speed and low latency of Verizon’s 5G and Multi-access Edge Compute (MEC) capabilities, IoT devices, and sensors at the edge, and IBM’s expertise in AI, hybrid multicloud, edge computing, asset management, and connected operations. 

The press statement indicates that the first solutions planned from this collaboration are to be mobile asset tracking and management solutions to help enterprises improve operations, optimize production quality, and to help clients enhance worker safety. 

For these initial solutions, the two companies have planned to leverage Verizon’s wireless networks, including Verizon’s 5G Ultra-Wideband (UWB) network, and Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) capabilities, alongside Verizon’s ThingSpace IoT Platform and Critical Asset Sensor solution (CAS).

These will be jointly offered with IBM’s market-leading Maximo Monitor with IBM Watson and advanced analytics. The combined solutions could help clients detect, locate, diagnose, and respond to system anomalies, monitor asset health, and help predict failures in near real-time. 

It is also known that IBM and Verizon would be working on potential combined solutions for 5G and MEC-enabled use cases such as near real-time cognitive automation for the industrial environment.

Verizon and IBM also plan to collaborate on potential joint solutions to address worker safety, predictive maintenance, product quality, and production automation.