TM deploys 5G base stations at two COVID-19 quarantine centres to help frontliners, patients stay connected
By Digital News Asia April 13, 2020
- Base stations deployed at MAEPS and Institut Latihan Kementerian Kesihatan
- 50 units of 5G FWA terminals installed, free 5G Wi-Fi
Telekom Malaysia Bhd has deployed 5G base stations at two quarantine centres for COVID-19 cases, namely Malaysia Agro Exposition Park (MAEPS) in Serdang and Institut Latihan Kementerian Kesihatan Malaysia in Sungai Buloh.
With the 5G base stations, frontliners, medical teams as well as patients in the facilities will be able to access mobile broadband services over 5G connectivity. Both centres have also been allocated with 50 complimentary units of 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) terminals that can deliver up to 500Mbps Wi-Fi connectivity to the users. Additionally, all Wi-Fi charges on the 5G network are also free of charge.
The initiative follows TM’s recent participation in the 5G Demonstration Project (5GDP) in Langkawi and Subang Jaya – the deployment at the two quarantine centres utilises a similar 5G core network setup that was installed in Langkawi, the company says in a press release.
The base stations were deployed within a few days.
“Besides an extension of the recent 5GDP, this initiative is also part of our corporate responsibility efforts in assisting the Government towards curbing the COVID-19 pandemic,” says TM group chief executive officer (CEO) Noor Kamarul Anuar Nuruddin (pic).
“With the efficiencies and convenience of 5G connectivity, the frontliners and medical teams will be able to stay productive in their operations to respond to any emergency situations and provide the necessary treatments; while the patients will be able to #stayconnected with their families and loved ones during their stay at the quarantine facilities.”
Commenting on the base station deployment, MARDI Corporation Sdn Bhd CEO Zaidi Shahrim says: “We are pleased that MAEPS was chosen as one of the sites for the deployment of TM’s 5G base stations. We are confident that the enhanced 5G connectivity, provided with the courtesy of TM, will further improve the medical service delivery and this fully supports the Government’s various efforts in keeping the COVID-19 at bay and most importantly, breaking the chain.”
TM, along with its enterprise and public sector business solutions arm TM ONE and innovation arm TM R&D Sdn Bhd, participated in the Malaysia Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) undertaken 5GDP project earlier this year.
There, TM became the first telco in the world to deploy 700MHz and C-Band (3.5GHz) on a Standalone (SA) dedicated 5G network simultaneously. It is also the first in the country to establish an Integrated Operations Command Centre (IOCC), known as TM 5G Command Centre, which forms the heart of 5G implementation in Langkawi.
The telco also managed to achieve 1.5Gbps for 5G speed tests conducted at its 5G use cases site.
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