NetworkPlus - A green, connected and prosperous Britain

即将推出的5G提供了重要的机会，可以重新评估如何以智能、战略的方式建设、运营和管理网络，在英国各地提供连接和移动公平。例如，通过利用节能软件实施无线电节能解决方案，运营商可以通过设备中的智能算法将无线电设备的能耗降低高达15%，使系统的部分在不使用时进入休眠状态。再加上其他电信战略和可再生能源系统，如当地的微电网，这为零碳连接提供了惊人的潜力。移动部门的最大潜力是帮助其他部门发展(随着最终用户需求和移动性)，通过数字化和“智能化”减少碳排放，这是低碳连接数字基础设施的关键推动因素。研究表明，这使得其他行业的碳减排规模扩大了10倍，约相当于全球排放量的4%。这些减少来自两种移动电信技术：(1)智能手机用户和(2)智能互联物联网设备。根据目前对智能手机用户增加和智能互联物联网设备增长的预测，到2025年，此类支持的影响可能会翻一番。然而，这需要跨行业的创新和投资，以加快数字化转型，以支持脱碳和连接，特别是在需求方面。能源行业是加强与通信融合的好处的有力例子。大多数电网都是高度集中的，由许多大型发电设施组成，通常是模拟控制的，设施在需求高峰期手动上线。实现净零需要广泛使用可再生能源，这将是分散化的，建筑物(和用户)不再仅仅是能源的消费者，也是生产者--也就是消费者。准消费者必须主动管理能源的供应和需求。可再生能源可能是可靠和可预测的，但本质上是间歇性的。这将需要通过电池存储和平滑能源需求曲线来管理。核心将是移动连接，以及创建智能能源系统的云服务和应用平台。到目前为止，研究表明，智能能源系统可以防止每年16000太瓦时的发电能力过剩，根据今天的电价，到2050年，每年可以节省1.9万亿美元。更重要的是，与今天的能源结构相比，这可以减少77亿吨二氧化碳排放，相当于全球脱碳的23%以上。这一领域的最先进技术已经分别提供了整合电信和碳排放、能源系统和移动性、碳和能源系统以及用户行为和移动性的模型。然而，一个整合了这一点的顶层模型尚未实现。该网络产生的价值主张是建立一个大规模一体化的城乡模式，包括通过应用由真实数据提供信息的数字双胞胎来丰富稀疏测量数据的实时应用程序；适合验证和完善未来能源、电信、移动和碳系统政策的情景模拟；数字通信基准和试点研究阶段的净零创新。该项目建立了一个具有国际意义的研究网络，任务是开发这样一个模式，向不同的受众推广其存在和应用，孵化和加速创新，并将自己建立为一个可持续的持续工作组。围绕这一点，将把重点放在各行业的培训和技能需求上，以确保一个可靠和活跃的就业市场，拥有来自英国各地的适当技能和准备工作的员工，为不断增长的劳动力需求做准备。

The impending rollout of 5G offers significant opportunity to reassess how to build, operate and manage networks in a smart, strategic way providing connectivity and mobility equity across the UK. For example, implementing radio energy saving solutions by leveraging energy-saving software, operators can reduce radio equipment energy consumption by up to 15% with smart algorithms in the equipment sending parts of the system to sleep when not in use. When added with other telco strategies and renewable energy systems, such as locally placed microgrids this offers amazing potential for zero-carbon connectivity egress.The greatest potential for the mobile sector is to help other sectors evolve (with end user demand and mobility) reduce their carbon emissions through digitisation and "smartisation," key enablers for low carbon connected digital infrastructure. Research has shown this enables carbon reductions in other sectors that are 10 times larger, equivalent to approximately 4% of global emissions. These reductions are from two mobile telecommunications technologies: (1) Smartphone users and (2) Smart connected IoT devices. Based upon current projections for the increase in smartphone users and the rise in smart connected IoT devices, the impact of such an enablement could double by 2025. However, this requires cross-sector innovation and investment to accelerate digital transformation to support decarbonisation and connectivity, particularly at the demand side.The energy sector is a powerful example of the benefits from greater integration with communication. Most electricity grids are heavily centralised, comprising many large-scale energy-generation facilities, often analogue-controlled, and with facilities brought online manually at times of peak demand. Achieving net-zero requires widespread renewable energy use, which will be decentralised, buildings (and users) are no longer just consumers of energy, but also producers - referred to as prosumers. Prosumers must proactively manage the supply of, and demand for, energy. Renewable energy may be reliable and predictable but is inherently intermittent. This will need to be managed with battery storage and by smoothing the energy demand curve. Central to this will be mobile connectivity, along with cloud services and application platforms to create smart energy systems. Research hitherto states that smart energy systems could prevent overbuild of capacity worth 16,000-terawatt hours of annual generation which, based on today's electricity prices, could save $1.9 trillion per year by 2050.More importantly, compared to today's energy mix, this could save 7.7 billion tons of CO2 emissions, equivalent to more than 23 per cent of global decarbonisation. State of the art in this area has delivered models separately integrating telecommunications and carbon emissions; energy systems and mobility; carbon and energy systems; and user behaviour and mobility. However, a top-level model integrating this has yet to be achieved. The value proposition generated from this network is for a massively integrated urban-rural model, comprising real-time applications for enriching sparse measurement data through the application of digital-twins informed by real data; scenario simulation appropriate to validate and refine policy for future energy, telecoms, mobility and carbon systems; benchmarking of digital communications and net-zero innovations at the pilot study stage. This project builds a research network of international significance, tasked with developing such a model, promoting its existence and applications to a diverse audience, incubating and accelerating innovations, and establishing itself as a sustainable ongoing working group. Surrounding this will be a focus on the training and skills needs across sectors to ensure a reliant and buoyant jobs market, populated with appropriately skilled and ready to work staff from across the UK in preparation for rising labour demands.