5 minute read
Paving the Way to a Digital Revolution
Director of Openreach NI, Garret Kavanagh.
With demand for online services continuing to increase, the role that Openreach Northern Ireland (NI) plays in keeping people and businesses connected has never been more important.
Openreach, Northern Ireland’s largest digital infrastructure provider, continues to invest in the economic future of Northern Ireland (NI) with more than 80% of homes and businesses now able to get its next generation Ultrafast Full Fibre broadband – that’s four out of five properties.
Full Fibre broadband is up to ten times faster than the average home broadband connection. For example, you can download a two-hour HD film in less time than it takes to make a cup of tea. And video gamers could download a 5-gigabyte virtual reality (VR) game in 1.7 minutes, instead of waiting half an hour with a traditional copperbased broadband line. The service is delivered over fibre optic cables running right to the property or business, which also means Ultrafast Full Fibre broadband is five times more reliable than traditional copper-based broadband connections. Greater capacity means more devices can be connected – so more people can get online at once without experiencing any slowdown, buffering or dropouts. And demand continues to grow, with more and more NI homes and businesses ordering a Full Fibre service.
Chief Executive of NI Chamber Ann McGregor says: “Openreach is one of the biggest investors in infrastructure in Northern Ireland, continuing to lead the way in terms of its transformative broadband technology, and to achieve more than 80% coverage of the region is a fantastic achievement.”
Ann adds: “The digital future of Northern Ireland is extremely positive. The Openreach investment puts Northern Ireland in an enviable position well ahead of our near neighbours, as the most connected region in the UK and in Ireland. In fact, access to 1000 Mbps Full Fibre broadband in Northern Ireland is on a similar footing with global leading countries such as the Nordics and the Asia Pacific region.1 This is a fantastic opportunity for local businesses to take advantage of, while we are ahead of other regions.” The pandemic highlighted our reliance on fast and robust broadband. In fact, demand for broadband over the Openreach network doubled during 2020 and increased a further 20% during 2021.2 Director of Openreach NI, Garret Kavanagh, commented: “What we are doing at Openreach has an important impact on the lives of everyone in Northern Ireland. Reliable broadband is now viewed like water and electricity. We’ve gone from the internet being a source of information to it being our primary channel for communication, work and education. And as NI continues to grow its global reputation as a tech hub with world-leading financial technology and cyber security clusters, we’re proud that our build programme is part of this – helping to make NI a leader within the UK and keeping the region at the forefront of digital technology. “The past couple of years have really accelerated already established trends where we’ve seen the use of online solutions becoming a significant part of our lives and businesses. For example, many
transactional services have moved online, and people feel much more comfortable and confident with things like paying using contactless technology, booking appointments through an app, or having a meeting using Teams or Zoom rather than face to face.”
The ambition which has been set out in the Department for Economy’s ‘Vision for the Economy’ embraces innovation to deliver ten times better economic growth, and with the current availability of gigabit capable broadband to residents and businesses, the opportunities for digitisation are enormous.3 International benchmarks show that Full Fibre broadband coverage can accelerate economic growth. In Sweden, where there is similar coverage, studies have shown that those connected to Full Fibre broadband are 11% more active online, have more devices connected to the internet and have higher customer satisfaction levels. The same report shows 4.8% more start-ups in French municipalities with high levels of Full Fibre access.4
Garret continues: “This Full Fibre technology will open up endless opportunities, enabling and encouraging the set-up of new businesses, products and services that we can’t even imagine yet. It will support economic and social regional rebalancing as high-speed connectivity means people don’t have to live in large urban centres for high paid jobs or to access the best goods and services. “As more people continue to work flexibly, it will also support a more sustainable future, leading to fewer journeys and reduced CO2 emissions. A recent report by the Centre for Economics and Business Research predicted a saving of 700k tonnes of carbon from reduced commuting as a result of upgrading the UK to Full Fibre.”
Keen to live out sustainable values in its own business, Openreach NI has also pledged to convert all of its diesel fleet to electric by 2030, aiming to achieve its ambition of net zero carbon emissions. Installing and maintaining the digital network is a huge operation, and with one of the largest van fleets on the road in Northern Ireland necessary for essential work every day, reducing its carbon footprint is a big focus for Openreach NI. “We understand the need to act on climate change and we are committed to reducing our operational impact. We’ve created a dedicated Openreach project team, focusing on cutting fleet emissions and helping to identify alternative, cleaner technologies – actively looking to phase out diesel vehicles by replacing them with electric vehicles. It’s important that we pay back to the communities we live in,” Garret says. The UK Government has set a target for the digital infrastructure industry to achieve 85% Full Fibre coverage by 2025. In Northern Ireland Openreach has already achieved 82% coverage and build work is continuing to extend the network further. Full Fibre technology will offer benefits to everyone right across Northern Ireland and now’s the time for individuals, communities and business owners to take advantage of all the possibilities this digital capability offers.
