Bouygues Telecom struck a three-year agreement with Siemens France and IT company Alten to explore 5G industrial use cases spanning Augmented Reality (AR), robotics and IoT in the French business sector.

The operator’s business arm Bouygues Telecom Enterprises stated the initiative will focus on developing tailor-made services for clients using its 5G network and Siemens’ IoT portfolio, along with Alten’s R&D expertise in smart industry.

Vincent Jauneau, director of digital industries and VP at Siemens France, said “the latest industrial communication requirements are forcing market players to rethink how their factories and production lines are designed”.

The companies outlined four key objectives: collaboration to address challenges presented by industry 4.0 and industrial 5G; optimising marketing by connecting various business and commercial units; building ready-to-deploy 5G services including AR and digital twins; and forming services around training and auditing.

Also, the trio will look to develop AI for predictive maintenance and autonomous vehicles, and tailored 5G routers compatible with private, public and hybrid modes.

This will form “customised support packages incorporating multiple uses of 5G”.

Additionally, manufacturers and clients will gain access to the companies’ dedicated facilities for on-site product demonstrations.

“Under this partnership, Bouygues Telecom Enterprises will offer connectivity tailored to the needs of different industries, ensuring quality of service, network security and low-latency,” said Jean-Christophe Ravaux, B2B market director at Bouygues Telecom.