NEW YORK and ARMONK, N.Y., July 16,
2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Verizon Business (NYSE: VZ) and IBM
(NYSE: IBM) today announced they are entering 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 collaborate on
solutions combining 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.
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, 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 help clients enhance worker safety.
For these initial solutions, the two companies plan 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.
IBM and Verizon are also working on potential combined solutions
for 5G and MEC-enabled use cases such as near real-time cognitive
automation for the industrial environment. Edge computing's
decentralized architecture brings technology resources closer to
where data is generated - i.e., where devices are located in an
industrial site – this can help decrease lags in response time
and increase processing speeds and reliability. 5G's low latency,
high download speeds and capacity can increase the number of
devices that can be supported within the same geographic area, and
the ability for organizations to interact with those devices in
near real-time, with computing power in the proximity of the
device. This could mean that innovative new applications such
as remote control robotics, near real-time cognitive video analysis
and plant automation may now be possible.
"The industrial sector is undergoing unprecedented
transformation as companies begin to return to full-scale
operations, aided by new technology to help reduce costs and
increase productivity," said Bob
Lord, Senior Vice President, Cognitive Applications,
Blockchain and Ecosystems, IBM. "Through this collaboration, we
plan to build upon our longstanding relationship with Verizon to
help industrial enterprises capitalize on joint solutions that are
designed to be multicloud ready, secured and scalable, from the
data center all the way out to the enterprise edge."
"This collaboration is all about enabling the future of industry
in the Fourth Industrial Revolution," said Tami Erwin, CEO, Verizon Business. "Combining
the high speed and low latency of Verizon's 5G UWB Network and MEC
capabilities with IBM's expertise in enterprise-grade AI and
production automation can provide industrial innovation on a
massive scale and can help companies increase automation, minimize
waste, lower costs, and offer their own clients a better response
time and customer experience."
Verizon and IBM also plan to collaborate on potential joint
solutions to address worker safety, predictive maintenance, product
quality and production automation.
About IBM:
For more information about IBM
visit, www.ibm.com. Statements regarding IBM's future
direction and intent are subject to change or withdrawal without
notice and represent goals and objectives only.
About Verizon:
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE,
Nasdaq: VZ) was formed on June 30,
2000 and is celebrating its 20th year as one of the world's
leading providers of technology, communications, information and
entertainment products and services. Headquartered in
New York City and with a presence
around the world, Verizon generated revenues of $131.9 billion in 2019. The company
offers voice, data and video services and solutions on its
award-winning networks and platforms, delivering on customers'
demand for mobility, reliable network connectivity, security and
control.
VERIZON'S ONLINE MEDIA CENTER: News releases, stories, media
contacts and other resources are available
at www.verizon.com/about/news/. News releases are also
available through an RSS feed. To subscribe,
visit www.verizon.com/about/rss-feeds/.
Media Contacts:
IBM
Holli Haswell
hhaswell@us.ibm.com
Verizon
Kyle
Ragonese
kyle.ragonese@verizon.com
View original content to download
multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ibm-and-verizon-business-to-collaborate-on-5g-and-ai-solutions-at-the-enterprise-edge-301094425.html
SOURCE IBM