Nokia VP David de Lancellotti told Mobile World Live services offering worker safety and sustainability benefits are major current drivers for the adoption of private networks in key industries including oil and gas.

De Lancellotti, VP of CNS enterprise campus edge sales at Nokia (pictured, below), highlighted conversations with industrial players on private networks had long moved beyond connectivity.

A man with short, salt-and-pepper hair is smiling slightly. He is wearing a light blue button-up shirt. The background is plain white, emphasizing his face and expression.

While he noted increased interest in augmented reality and digital twins, he said the current industry focus is on specific use cases delivering efficiency and safety, with the connectivity aspect “a bit past” and “just table stakes”.

“Use case development around things like worker safety and sustainability is really where we’re getting the bulk of action from customers.”

Sectors where Nokia is especially gaining traction include ports, the oil and gas industry, and mining.

Although he sees plenty of scope for adoption among big players, the executive stated Nokia is also garnering solid interest from tier-two and -three companies in these segments.

When dealing with enterprises here and wider across industry, he noted the importance of centring discussions on use cases and demonstrating return on investment (RoI).

Pointing to steel manufacturing, driving vehicles on a solar farm or work in gold mines as examples, the executive noted it was all about “talking to the customer about the RoI piece”.

He indicated the motivation was basically the same whether heavy industry or a stadium looking to up beer sales: “making sure they can justify spending this money”.

Speaking generally about private network uptake he mused: “One thing I get asked is when’s it going to blow up and take off…when is it going to be everybody buying them like they’re buying fax machines in the 70s and 80s?”

De Lancellotti admitted he is unsure if the same type of explosion would occur in the private networks market, but explained the industry is “very much getting to a place where whether you’re a brownfield or greenfield, you have to look at having a private network alongside your Wi-Fi network to drive what needs to get done”.