National Broadband Ireland Selects GE Digital’s Smallworld Physical Network Inventory to Help with the Roll Out of High-Speed Broadband Across Rural Ireland

Rhea-AI Summary

GE Digital has announced the implementation of its Smallworld Physical Network Inventory (PNI) by National Broadband Ireland (NBI) for the National Broadband Plan (NBP). This initiative aims to provide high-speed broadband to over 1.1 million people across 544,000 homes in rural Ireland, marking one of the largest telecommunications projects in Irish history. The Smallworld PNI will streamline network operations and management, covering 96% of the country’s land mass with 146,000 km of fiber deployed. GE Digital emphasizes the critical need for reliable internet services, especially in today's remote working environment.

Positive

• Implementation of Smallworld PNI enhances network management efficiency for NBI.
• Supports a crucial rural broadband initiative, covering a significant portion of Ireland's population.
• The project is seen as transformational for rural communities, ensuring access to high-speed internet.

Negative

• None.

GE Digital today announced that National Broadband Ireland (NBI) has implemented the company’s Smallworld Physical Network Inventory (PNI), part of its Smallworld Geospatial Asset Management suite of solutions to model, manage, and streamline the roll out of Ireland’s National Broadband Plan (NBP). The NBP, the largest telecommunications project undertaken by the Irish state, will deliver high-speed broadband to more than 1.1 million people across approximately 544,000 homes in rural Ireland, aiming to ensure that all people and businesses have access to modern and reliable broadband services. The project is one of the biggest and most significant investments in rural Ireland ever, and is viewed as one the most ambitious telecoms projects globally.

The NBP will bridge the digital divide between rural and urban areas throughout Ireland. NBI’s role is to design, build and operate a fiber optic network to support this framework. GE Digital’s Smallworld PNI solution provides a GIS-based solution that allows telecommunications companies to streamline network operations with a comprehensive and integrated view of the entire network.

The Smallworld solution was chosen to not only maximize the efficiency of the network plan, design, and build phase of the project, but also the operation of this fiber network infrastructure for many years to come. The solution underpins the fully integrated ordering, connection management, installation and activation, and assurance processes.

“National Broadband Ireland is leading the way in designing, building, and operating Ireland’s new broadband network on behalf of the Irish Government and GE Digital’s Smallworld solutions have always been a key element of our program,” said Peter Hendrick, Chief Executive Officer for National Broadband Ireland. “Our reliance on quality inventory data is fundamental to the success of the broadband service roll out. With Smallworld PNI in place, we are able to have a single consolidated view of the network, supporting the entire plan, design, and build processes and ultimately the success of the entire venture through bridging the digital divide.”

The project accounts for approximately 23% of the population in Ireland and will cover 96% of the country’s land mass, with 146,000 km of fiber being deployed. Smallworld PNI will deliver a centralized database for managing the entire network, providing access to network information across NBI.

“GE Digital is proud to be part of this transformational project, providing critical infrastructure and high- speed Internet to rural communities in Ireland,” said Jim Walsh, General Manager of GE Digital’s Grid Software business. “Our solutions offer telecommunications companies with software to support such large fiber roll outs. In these unprecedented times, high-speed Internet access is critical to allow everyone to carry on remote working and learning.”

More information about the National Broadband Plan can be found here.

More information about GE Digital’s Smallworld Geospatial Asset Management solution can be found here.

About NBI

National Broadband Ireland (NBI) is designing, building and operating the new high-speed fibre broadband network for rural Ireland on behalf of the Irish Government. NBI’s team brings together some of the most talented individuals in Ireland and across the world, with deep knowledge and experience in delivering projects to the scale of the National Broadband Plan (NBP). This includes developing, building and operating networks and coordinating all the elements required to finance and deliver a project of the size and complexity of Ireland’s NBP.

NBI was established by Granahan McCourt, an international investor in technology, media and telecommunications. For over 30 years, Granahan McCourt has partnered with governments, corporations and communities to connect people through innovation in technologically underserved areas of the world.

NBI’s partners include KN Group, Secto and Actavo. Nokia is providing all the active equipment for the project while 4Site is the network design partner. NBI is also working with infrastructure owners such as eir (pole and ducts network) and Enet (MANs and Broadband Connection Points) NBI will be responsible for the management of the new national broadband network for at least the next 25 years.

About the NBP Intervention Area

The National Broadband Plan (NBP) is the Government’s initiative to deliver high-speed broadband services to all premises in Ireland. This will be delivered through intervention by the State in those parts of the country where private companies have indicated they have no plans to invest.

The State Intervention Area for the National Broadband Plan includes over 544,000 premises and over 1.1 million people and includes any new homes built in the Intervention Area over the next 25 years.

The Intervention Area can be viewed using the government’s High Speed Broadband Map (www.broadband.gov.ie) which shows the areas which are included in the National Broadband Plan. The map is colour coded and searchable by address and Eircode.

About GE Digital

GE Digital transforms how our customers solve their toughest challenges by putting industrial data to work. Our mission is to bring simplicity, speed, and scale to digital transformation activities, with industrial software that delivers breakthrough business outcomes. GE Digital’s product portfolio – including grid optimization and analytics, asset and operations performance management, and manufacturing operations and automation – helps industrial companies in the utility, power generation, oil & gas, aviation, and manufacturing sectors change the way industry works. For more information, visit www.ge.com/digital.

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FAQ

What is the National Broadband Plan (NBP) in Ireland?

The NBP is an initiative by the Irish government to deliver high-speed broadband to all premises, especially in areas where private companies are unwilling to invest.

How many homes will the NBP provide broadband access to?

The NBP aims to provide broadband access to over 544,000 homes and approximately 1.1 million people.

What technology is GE Digital providing for the NBP?

GE Digital is providing its Smallworld Physical Network Inventory (PNI) to help manage the fiber optic network efficiently.

What percentage of Ireland's land mass will be covered by the NBP?

The NBP will cover 96% of Ireland's land mass.

How many kilometers of fiber will be deployed for the NBP?

Approximately 146,000 kilometers of fiber will be deployed under the NBP.