Applus+ IDIADA will have a private 5G mobile network developed by Orange to provide secure and controlled testing environments for the automotive industry

Applus+ IDIADA, a global company that provides design, engineering, testing and homologation services for the automotive industry has awarded Orange the development of a Private Mobile Network –with fully configurable 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G coverage– at its main facilities located in Santa Oliva, in the Tarragona province (Spain).

The private connectivity network developed by Orange will be based on the most advanced technology and end-to-end services deployed by Ericsson, which includes a network core specifically configured and sized for the needs of Applus+ IDIADA headquarters in Tarragona.

The Applus+ IDIADA facilities have a surface area of 370 hectares and 12 tracks to simulate the behaviour of vehicles under different conditions, thus allowing concept testing, certification and homologation of technologies, as well as experimentation with services and applications’ functionalities as if they were in reality and protected against incursions by third parties.

Thanks to this, Applus+ IDIADA will not only have advanced test tracks for its own equipment but will also be able to provide the automotive industry with a wide range of possibilities in terms of IoT connectivity and connected and automated vehicles.

"The objective is to have the network operational in June, coinciding with the Mobile World Congress 2021 in Barcelona", says Joan Carbó, Director of Chassis and Active Safety at Applus+ IDIADA.

A customisable network with all radio technologies.

One of the main added values over other test environments of the project developed by Orange for Applus+ IDIADA is to have all the radio technologies in one place, in a controlled environment and with advanced optional network customization.

This makes it possible to generate a greater number of scenarios and use cases for new autonomous and connected vehicle developments. It also allows the early identification and, therefore, the immediate correction and testing of possible solutions for all those problems that may arise in mobile communications in real driving conditions, such as on-board services, vehicle monitoring and maintenance, accident prevention, or the reliability of autonomy, among others. 

These new capacities will provide the automotive industry with a real and completely safe environment for testing the latest generation of vehicle connectivity services that will come onto the market in the coming years. All this, with the possibility of putting into practice a wide variety of tests: from basic connectivity, performance, current telematics or infotainment systems to tests with future autonomous vehicles.

Josep Maria Farran, Applus+ IDIADA's CEO, highlighted that "the agreement reached with Orange and the support of Ericsson, combined with our test tracks and engineering team, consolidate us as the best European centre for the development of connected and autonomous vehicles.”

Víctor Vera, Director of Orange's Large Companies accounts within the Catalonia region, stated that "thanks to this technological solution, the best and most modern facilities equipped with hyper connectivity will be made available to the automotive industry. Applus+ IDIADA has always been committed to technological innovation, intrinsic to its value proposal on the market. The project that now sees the light is the result of an intense period of work and understanding between the teams, as well as a strategic collaboration between our organisations that will result in great success for the international automotive industry.”

Finally, Luisa Muñoz, Director of Digital Services at Ericsson Iberia, remarked that "our commitment to helping Orange grow its private networks in Spain is a clear one. Ericsson has an end-to-end portfolio of products and services ready to address any need in this area and beyond connectivity, as a true enabler of services for businesses’ consumption. We are delighted to be part, together with Orange and Applus+ IDIADA, of the exponential leap that this collaboration represents for the future of autonomous vehicles.”

For further information, please contact:

Orange Spain

• Pilar Serrano: pilar.serrano@orange.com / Tf. +34 658 880 453
• David Martínez: david.martinezpradales@orange.com / Tf. +34  657 805 720

Ericsson Iberia

• Carolina Levinton: carolina.levinton.madanes@ericsson.com / Tf. +34 650 056 071

Applus+ IDIADA

• Marketing & Comms. department: marketing@idiada.com / Tf. +34 977 166 042