A new test laboratory in Dallas is being set up to support the rapid deployment of Long Term Evolution in North America. Technology trials are starting soon.
US operators are forging ahead with plans to be among the first in the world to deploy Long Term Evolution (LTE) mobile networks. To support their preparations Nokia Siemens Networks has established an advanced LTE test and development facility in Dallas, which is already home to a large technical facility that has been working on mobile technologies for many years. The Next Generation Technology Lab will ensure that the innovation and unique requirements of North American operators are fully incorporated into the company’s LTE development and deployment plans.
“It will be a very busy spring for us as our customers actively drive LTE and move it forward aggressively during 2009,” Juha Lappalainen Head of LTE North America, Nokia Siemens Networks
Testing during 2009
“The Next Generation Technology Lab will be the hub for all our LTE trials in North America,” comments Juha Lappalainen, Head of LTE in North America, Nokia Siemens Networks. “The North American market has some very specific requirements. It is deploying LTE early, ahead of almost every other country, and the technology will be deployed on different frequency bands than those used in Europe and Asia. The interworking between existing CDMA networks and new LTE networks is another unique requirement of many North American wireless operators.”
The new facility is ramping up rapidly and expects to employ 100 people. The first LTE trials in North America will start in the first half of 2009, including device interoperability. Today, Nokia Siemens Networks is already part of the joint LTE trial with Vodafone and Verizon Wireless one of the most advanced operators for LTE deployment.
“We have a clear competitive advantage in LTE with our Flexi Base Station platform. We are the only vendor to offer an existing, commercially available base station that can deliver LTE,” claims Lappalainen.
Ahead of the curve
Nokia Siemens Networks is at the forefront of LTE development, having been first to demonstrate the technology’s capabilities of delivering data speeds in the 160 Mbits/s range. Most recently, the company announced that it was first to successfully demonstrate relaying technology proposed for LTE-Advanced, which is a mobile broadband communications enhancement beyond LTE.
The work of the Next Generation Technology Lab will feed back into Nokia Siemens Networks’ global development program, further supporting the LTE deployments of other operators, particularly in China, which is also coming from a CDMA base.
Nokia Siemens Networks is also playing a highly-active role in global LTE development by working with industry bodies to drive standardization and by liaising with manufacturers of consumer and enterprise devices. The company is also working to identify key areas in which LTE can help a wide range of sectors, such as healthcare.
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