Gaurav Gandhi, founder and chief executive officer, Echelon Edge Private Limited
Telcos in India are entering into partnerships to tap opportunities in the private 5G network domain. Recently, state-run operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) partnered with product development and solution provider Echelon Edge to deploy private 5G networks for its customers. The company specialises in solutions that are made in India to serve the global telecom and transportation industry and aims to offer products that fit best with the modern 5G-native customer experience. In an interview with tele.net, Gaurav Gandhi, founder and chief executive officer, Echelon Edge Private Limited, talks about the partnership with BSNL, the company’s plans in the Indian market and its key focus areas…
How has the Indian telecom and IT industry advanced over the past decade?
Being the world’s second-largest telecom market with a subscriber base of 1.16 billion, India has registered strong growth in the past decade. The telecom industry is at the forefront of digital growth. In fact, the past two decades are considered a golden period for the telecommunications industry in the country, with exponential growth and development in terms of technology, penetration, as well as policy. The IT industry has also witnessed exponential growth in the past two decades. The swift advancement in the IT industry and liberalised policies for reducing trade barriers, eliminating import duties on technology products, etc. are instrumental in the evolution of this industry.
What role has Echelon Edge played in this journey?
While Echelon Edge is creating a better tomorrow with its integrated IT solutions, the company has played a significant role in the advancement of the telecom and IT industry in the country. Over the years, we have learnt that what customers want is simplicity and ease of use. Thus, we have given our best in bringing business monetisation solutions in the telecom industry that works around a simpler ecosystem. We established ourselves as a hardware system integrator in 2011 and over the next 10 years or a decade, we moved from enhancement to innovation, launching innovative products and IT solutions to mark our presence in the telecom industry.
What are the key focus areas for the company in the Indian market?
At Echelon Edge, we are focused on bringing business-to-business (B2B) solutions that are meant for delivering the best end-to-end customer experiences. We strive to magnify opportunities to transform businesses and industries, enabling the next technological era. Our key focus areas are healthcare, education and IT. Our private network solutions have been a strong pillar of our exponential growth. With this vision, we are looking forward to setting up private 5G in mines, refineries, airports, office buildings, government infrastructure, etc.
How will private 5G networks change the dynamics of communications and IT in India?
5G will be the solution to latency in the networking industry and would come with better mobile broadband services in comparison to 4G long term evolution (LTE). It will expand into various new services such as mission-critical communications and connecting the massive internet of things. Besides, private 5G can facilitate connectivity for use cases across supply chains, education, healthcare, Industry 4.0 and more.
What are the products launched by Echelon Edge in this domain?
Echelon Edge has launched Private 5G, which is a dedicated communication private network to operate businesses with a higher quality of service, reliability and security. Over the years, we have seen a fair increase in the complexity and number of technologies used by the world. To ensure that these technologies are scalable and analytics-driven, a unified system is needed for all network management demands. We have launched Network Insights as a solution – a multi-technology optimisation platform that allows building, launching and management of all types of networks.
How will the recent partnership with BSNL contribute to the company’s offerings and business growth?
After our recent partnership with BSNL, we can now offer Private 5G as a service to all potential customers. Also, we can offer spectrum on behalf of BSNL now. We are going to be a one-stop shop for enterprises when it comes to private network solutions. The partnership will help us set up and maintain private networks for our customers in partnership with BSNL, potentially enhancing the company’s prospects as a trustworthy and reliable provider of captive networks.
What are the near-term objectives and upcoming priorities for the company?
With 5G coming into play and our ambitious partnership with BSNL to provide captive networks, we want to make sure that we provide high quality networks to our customers in the private and government sectors. At the same time, ensuring full automation of operations and assuring network security that protects businesses’ data are among our top priorities. In addition, we want to explore more use cases belonging to different industries that allow us to bring more to the table when it comes to B2B offerings.
