Introduction

With 5G and edge computing solutions rolling out, there would be new kinds of edge networks, micro data centers, RAN sites, and millimeter waves, leading to network and device densification, requiring an antenna every 500 meters and a micro data center every 1-2KM for a reliable network. The added complexities, monitoring, and troubleshooting would become very difficult and need a remodeled and unified view towards an infrastructural overhaul.

Wipro BoundaryLess Universal Edge (BLUE) is a holistic framework that addresses some of these aspects by delivering robust and production-grade 5G edge solutions. “5G-Edge Suite”, our first offering under the BLUE framework, is a comprehensive platform driven by the gig economy, AI (artificial intelligence), and AR (augmented reality) / VR, providing complete lifecycle management for telcos and enterprise businesses. It offers a rich set of features, from managing/monitoring device networks, processing and visualizing collected data, to integrating with enterprise systems based on open source APIs.

Challenge

• With 5G gathering momentum, telcos needed to roll out sites quickly but were unable to automate the complete process.
• With multiple configurations on workload, power consumption, load weight, and other operating conditions as part of infrastructure sizing, it was a complex task to provide an estimate to our clients with a sufficient degree of confidence. Lack of templates, suggestions, and comparisons often led to incompatibilities.
• There was no option to identify errors and loopholes in IT sizing during the initial design process. This translated into lower operational efficiency and higher downstream costs. Added to this was a failure to incorporate best industry practices.
• A significant concern for our clients was ‘uncertainty’. With only mental pictures to envisage the structure, clients were unsure whether a particular configuration was the right fit.

Solution

Wipro’s CIS (Cloud & Infrastructure Services), which anchors such conversations, concluded that a model-driven tool could right-size our client’s infrastructure sizing requirements. Based on our vast experience, the CIS team was also fairly acquainted with the operating conditions representing typical use cases.

Wipro leveraged the AR / VR capabilities of startup partner Plutomen to jointly develop a “Wipro Digital Design Studio” – a comprehensive solution that spans creating a 3D model of IT estate, OEM-based catalogue customization, and downstream ERP / CRM integration for billing and invoicing. Further, the solution was augmented with an AI assistant, thereby powering voice, gesture, and chat interactions to fast forward the workflow.

Business Impact

With the “Wipro Digital Design Studio” offering a comprehensive “virtual” layout of the data center, it enabled the following key operational benefits -

• Accurate IT sizing through real-time visualization to rapidly scale up and scale down infra capacity.
• Meet regulatory compliance requirements for sensitive workloads.
• Reduce downstream costs as it was now easier to check whether a new layout was viable or how minute design changes would look. Remodeling is straightforward, eliminating costly changes post customer sign-off.

Crucially, our Digital Design Studio leaves no blind areas for our clients as it provides an accurate depiction of the physical infrastructure layout, which is virtually enabled.