Slough, 25 April 2022 – Airspan Networks, the world-leading 5G infrastructure vendor, has welcomed local MP Tan Dhesi to its 5G Innovation Lab, which opened last year in the centre of Slough.
Mr Dhesi was shown around the 5G Innovation Lab, launched last May, where Airspan’s expert team of engineers put together new ideas and develop innovative products to be deployed across the world. He was also taken through some of Airspan’s latest telecoms applications, such as the GoGo air-to-ground solution, which allows users to access 5G networks while travelling in aircraft.
Airspan is a US company, and Slough acts as a centre for its activity in the UK and across Europe. The company plans to double the number of people it employs to do research and development in the town.
Airspan is a pioneer in Open Radio Access Network (‘Open RAN’) technology, which allows the different elements of telecoms equipment in a network to work with each other, even if they are made by different companies. This has numerous benefits, including increased security for the UK’s networks, increased competition, and accelerated innovation.
Tan Dhesi, Labour MP for Slough, said: ‘It was fantastic to see such exciting innovation happening right here in Slough. We’re lucky to have such a thriving telecoms ecosystem, and it’s encouraging to hear about Airspan’s plans to build on that by bringing more skilled jobs to our town.’
Mike Livingstone, Senior Vice President Of Engineering at Airspan Networks, said: ‘It was great to welcome our local MP to Airspan’s 5G Innovation Lab. Given Slough’s reputation as a telecoms innovation hub, Airspan is excited to increase its presence here and continue to play an active role in the local community, creating quality jobs, and attracting talent to the area.’
