By James Blackman
US IoT distributor CalChip Connect (CCC) has selected Federated Wireless for private LTE and 5G, both for its own distribution centre in Pennsylvania, and as a distribution product for CalChip Connect to resell to enterprise customers. Federated Wireless called CCC the “leading IoT distributor” in the US.
The reseller agreement will see the pair deliver a “simplified solution set and rapid fulfilment model” for enterprises to deploy “smart warehouse” IoT solutions bundled with private LTE and 5G. The deal is for “pre-integrated…, streamlined and easy-to-implement solutions” for manufacturing, education, and logistics customers, among others.
Federated Wireless has also deployed a private LTE/5G network “and innovation centre” at CCC’s global IoT distribution centre in Bucks County, in Pennsylvania. CCC offers an web shop for IoT, as well as global warehousing, component sourcing, and supply chain management consulting for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).
Federated Wireless said: “This deployment will serve as a reference architecture and ecosystem for customers to easily design and deploy smart warehouse solutions with private wireless customised to their exact use case requirements.”
The Federated Wireless offer incorporates a spectrum access system (SAS) to allocate and manage spectrum in the 3.5 GHz CBRS band in the US, as well as private cellular systems based on its relationships variously with AWS, Intel, HPE-Aruba, JMA, and Cisco. It claims “more than 50 solution and edge partners”.
The company raised US$58 million in Series D funding in February. The new investment will go to accelerate growth in enterprise markets, it said, with a major focus to “simplify” and “democratise” private LTE and 5G systems, and scale the company’s own private wireless platform. It has long-held an ambition to expand into international markets.
President and co-founder at CalChip Connect, TJ Rancour said: “The ability to offer our customers secure, high-speed wireless connectivity right out of the box is a huge part of making IoT adoption easy for our customers. Federated Wireless is a great partner because not only is private 5G critical to delivering IoT connectivity, but they also share our obsession with providing a world-class customer experience and support model.”
Chief commercial officer at Federated Wireless, Chris Swan said: “Connectivity has been a key challenge for scaling IoT deployments, so we’re excited to partner with a leader in IoT distribution to get our private wireless solution directly in the hands of the innovators who need a simple path to secure, reliable communications. The real goal is about combining 5G private wireless with IoT solutions to simplify and accelerate the process for developers and technology professionals to digitally transform and modernise their operations.”
