Wireless broadband provision is vital to Ireland’s growth and retention of foreign direct investment (FDI) according to Elio Networks.
The CEO of Elio Networks, a leading business connectivity provider, said he believes a focus on the speed of wireless rollout can promote Ireland as a vital FDI destination during the economic crisis.
Elio Networks is investing and building infrastructure across Cork and is launching there next month. This will be followed by further investment and a launch in Limerick and in Galway before the end of the year.
“For Ireland to compete at an international level, we must have reliable communications infrastructure. Fibre has a role to play and, likewise, wireless does too, to ensure there’s no disruption”
David Russell, CEO of Elio Networks said: “The world is moving to wireless solutions for everything, from how we charge our cars and phones to how we operate our mobile devices, to the system you have to manage them in your home. The world is looking for wireless solutions because they are quicker and easier to work with.”
“Fibre has to be dug into the ground. There’s significant costs to that and, particularly in Ireland, there are challenges in urban areas. We live in and around historic places. It’s not easy to dig up Harcourt Street in Dublin, Shop Street in Galway, or Oliver Plunkett Street in Cork but it’s also a challenge in green belt areas and business parks too.”
“The person that loses out is the customer. They bear the brunt of the cost and delays. That’s where wireless comes in. Wireless can be installed instantly. A customer can be up-and-running quickly at a much lower deployment cost.”
The future of enterprise
Russell said that working with fibre providers, wireless services such as Elio can ensure high speed broadband for FDI giants from the moment they set up in Ireland.
Russell continued: “When you look at the future of enterprise, wireless latency is better than fibre and it’s a technology that has enjoyed significant investment over the last five years.”
“If you move premises as you grow, a wireless provider can move with you. You can’t guarantee that with fibre. The world is moving wirelessly because it answers the restrictions around fibre.”
The need for true resilience of connection for businesses was stressed by Russell, to ensure they can focus on their core operations rather than worrying about potential loss of access.
“From mid-size companies through to enterprises, the need for resilience is getting more important. For a truly resilient circuit you really should have an over and under solution. A wireless network is purposely resilient, removing a point of failure.”
The Elio Networks CEO said that during the challenge of the current economic crisis, it is vital that Ireland shows its openness to business, and how connectivity across major business centres is a key selling point for companies seeking access to EMEA markets.
Russell said: “As businesses are more reliant on the cloud, we need to make sure we have the connectivity to back that up. Look at the competitive advantage wireless has given companies in other jurisdictions, around rapid deployment and set-up, along with resilience,”
“For Ireland to compete at an international level, we must have reliable communications infrastructure. Fibre has a role to play and, likewise, wireless does too, to ensure there’s no disruption. The moment a connection goes down, businesses have to stop work. Everything is dependent on connectivity and the cloud.”
