Wireless data exchange

Many companies increasingly use M2M communication via GSM to connect remote parts of their business. Power&Energy spoke with Norbert Muhrer about how this gives utilities the opportunity to enhance their range of services and increase the benefits to customers.

In 2006, Norbert Muhrer took on the role of President and CEO of Siemens’ Wireless Modules division. Since June 2008, he has been the CEO of Cinterion Wireless Modules GmbH . He achieved much in the two years of his leadership. In this time, Wireless Modules’ market share grew steadily and the division won the biggest contracts in its history. 

PE. Cinterion Wireless Modules is a Siemens spin-off, please tell us the story behind that.
NM. The Wireless Modules segment was always a very strong, profitable and independent business unit within Siemens. When Siemens decided to shift its corporate focus towards industry, energy and health, the best option for further successful development of the Wireless Modules unit was seen outside Siemens. As a consequence, Cinterion Wireless Modules was formed.

PE. Will there be major changes?
NM. Our customers honor our values, which include reliable and high quality products backed by a strong future proof roadmap. We will also continue our very direct sales approach with intimate knowledge of our customer’s core business. In addition, we’ll continue to provide world class leading technical support – from product planning, design-in and approval support and eventually to the after sales phase. These were our core values within Siemens Wireless Modules and these will continue to be our core values as Cinterion Wireless Modules. The new company structure adds more momentum, speed and flexibility on top of these values.

PE. Since 2006, the company’s market share has grown steadily and the Wireless Modules division has won the biggest contracts in its history. Can you tell us more about these and any of your other achievements?
NM. Achievements of such nature are never brought about by a single individual, the team has to function well and be hungry for success, has to have a passion for what we do. And that’s exactly why heading Cinterion Wireless Modules is a very motivating and rewarding responsibility. We are close to the customer, we have high business ethics, we keep our commitments and we are a fantastic, energetic and passionate team. And we do have our share of fun as we enjoy working together.

PE. The company specializes in wireless machine-to-machine communication (M2M) based on GSM technology. Can you explain what exactly these systems do?
NM. Machine-to-machine communication describes the wireless exchange of data between machines. GSM wireless technology allows machines to connect and communicate in a very reliable way over great distances. A major advantage of M2M communication via GSM is also the ease of installation without the need of costly wiring or infrastructure build-out.

M2M communication connects remote parts of a business (such as fleets, equipment, meters, alarms, etc.) with the center of operations enabling management to respond to needs immediately. Companies can benefit in many ways from M2M communication. Access to business information, in real-time, can help increase productivity, efficiency and flexibility and can also enable new business models that give enterprises a competitive advantage.

PE. What are some of the biggest trends/developments in the M2M arena?
NM. There is a continuous trend for strong market growth across all vertical segments and regions. Examples of this can be seen in the tremendous growth in telematics (car infotainment and real-time information services in cars) and automated electricity meter readings. Often , these projects are mandated by government regulations. For example, the European Union is pushing to make eCall – an emergency call either generated manually or automatically when an accident occurs –  a mandatory service in every new car by 2011. In this example, the M2M solution must have a lifetime of more than 10 years, which makes reliability and quality a prerequisite of the implemented modules.

Many companies (e.g. OEMs) increasingly use M2M to implement ‘smart services’ in order to achieve a competitive advantage. This drives the adoption of M2M in many applications. As a result, different players are developing dedicated M2M communication service offerings, i. e . traditional MNOs or MVNOs have begun offering optimized feature sets and tariffs for M2M applications. 

We see that GSM continues to be the dominant M2M technology. GSM and EDGE networks have excellent worldwide coverage and are perfectly suited for all M2M applications. Actually, these networks are still being enhanced (e.g. EDGE Phase II) and expanded, and since there is a tremendous installed base of GSM handset users, Mobile Network Operators will continue to operate these networks for many years to come.

At the same time a lot of resources are invested into the evolution of new cellular technologies (e.g. HSPA and LTE). They will gradually be deployed in the networks, and consumer applications (e.g. PC Cards) will be among the first to take advantage of these new technologies. At some point, some M2M applications will also benefit from these new technologies and capabilities, and they will coexist next to 2G networks.

PE. Can you explain how the M2M field gives utilities the opportunity to enhance their range of services and increase the benefits to customers?
NM. M2M communication allows utilities to manage their resources more efficiently. The distribution side can be monitored and controlled. Installments can be remotely supervised reducing downtime. On the customer side, consumption can be measured in real time allowing for more accurate monitoring and efficient energy use. In addition, general business processes can profit from M2M communication. For example, logistics can be streamlined and company vehicles can be managed better to save time, fuel and maintenance costs.

Customer benefits of M2M technology include real time consumption control, on-line information about tariffs and prices, fast detection of network errors and more. In a deregulated market, customer satisfaction is extremely important since customers have the possibility to change their supplier. Additional services provided via GSM M2M technology can offer a significant competitive advantage for utilities.

M2M communication can also help manage resources. For instance, if a utility company knows the current demand in real-time, they can react more precisely on delivery or manage and control energy distribution in a more efficient manner.

PE. Security considerations are an important factor for utilities. How can GSM technology make existing systems more secure? What other security measures do your systems have in place?
NM. The GSM standard and successor standards based on GSM offer a high level of built-in security. With GSM, security aspects have been considered from the beginning in system architecture and at the specification of the protocols. Starting with the Subscriber Identification Module, the SIM is a dedicated security hardware component of the customer application that gives a unique identity to the application. It offers strong authentication mechanisms and encryption functionality for the air interface as well as a highly secure data store for keys, algorithms and other data. The air interface is encrypted by default so that data is protected in the GSM part of an M2M system.

On top of that, it is possible to build up additional end-to-end security channels based on Internet protocols like HTTPS/SSL between the cellular communication modules from Cinterion and the customer target system. By these security channels the IP based connection through the internet is also protected. With the flexibility to get utility information even on a daily basis, fraud and manipulations at the utility can be detected very early based on atypical consumption patterns. Technical problems and abnormal behavior can immediately trigger an alarm that the service department can respond to in real time to avoid costly damages and/or restriction of service. All together, these security measures show how GSM-based M2M technology applications can help utilities secure the power supply as well as business and service operations.

PE. How would you like to see the company moving forward in the future? Are there any new technologies that you predict are likely to make an impact?
NM. For Cinterion , the 2G – 3.5G wireless standards are the most important technologies for cellular M2M communication today. There is excellent global coverage for these standards and high network availability. This is very important for reliable solutions. Attractive tariff models especially for M2M make it the standard choice for our industrial customers. There are a lot of promising new standards but what counts for the customer is a reliable , well-approved technology.