Assoprovider's online events return: on Thursday 21, the webinar “APLab 4.0” was broadcast live, focusing on the presentation of new technical solutions for the future of connectivity, with contributions from our members such as NPO Net, AIKOM Technology, Advantec, and Compass Distribution.
The event, moderated by Antonella Oliviero, national advisor of Assoprovider, was also an opportunity to present the "Torri di Assoprovider" project and the opportunities of the Tax Credit 4.0 and the new incentives dedicated to female entrepreneurship.
The growth of Assoprovider
Marcello Cama, national vice president of Assoprovider, introduces the proceedings, recalling the activities carried out so far by the association and the goals for the future.
«Assoprovider – explains Cama – is becoming a war machine: since the beginning of the year, we have already had 17 new companies registered, but the goal is to become even larger, so as to make our positions weigh even more on political tables».
For this purpose, a new role has been established within the association, that of Network Development Manager, held by Giuseppe Scinica. His task? Scouting for new members.
«The objective – explains Scinica – is to increase the number of members to give as much strength as possible to Assoprovider: I hope to bring exciting new developments to the association».
Review the entire Focus here:
NPO Net, the new Icotera solution for WiFi6
The discussion then moves to the details of the technical solutions presented by some members during the webinar. Donato Ninno from NPO Net is the first to speak, presenting the Icotera series i4880 solution.
«As NPO Net – Ninno recounted – we strive to quickly grasp new market trends to provide greater value to our clients, especially service providers».
Hence the interest in the Icotera solution, which is a router for WiFi6, with an Ethernet connection featuring a 2.5 GB port and two FSX ports for VoIP services.
Ninno then highlights some features of the product, such as the spatial stream dedicated to transmission, the DFS (Dynamic Frequency Scanning) to check if the band is occupied, and Beamforming, the ability to exploit bounced waves in small environments (from floor, ceiling, and walls) to increase the available bandwidth and thus the power achieved.
Review Donato Ninno's presentation here:
Aikom and passive fiber optic networks with GPON technology
It is then the turn of Luca Vecchiolini from Aikom, a company that likes to define itself as "Innovation Enabler, why – explains – we help our partners propose new technologies and integrate them with each other”.
During the webinar, Vecchiolini specifically presents the so-called GPON (Gigabit Passive Optical Network), an EkSelans technology for passive fiber optic networks FTTH-FTTR, with several advantages.
The first and foremost is the ability to distribute signals and services directly inside buildings — thus homes, rooms, offices — reaching them directly with fiber optics, without the need to install floor cabinets and related power supply.
A solution that allows high speeds (up to 2.5Gb per port) and efficiency, designed especially for the hospitality sector, where there is a need to deliver services to every single room, but also to enable the new paradigms of industry 4.0.
Review Luca Vecchiolini's speech here:
Advantec, the opportunities of licensed Radio Links
Next, it's the turn of licensed Radio Link solutions proposed by Advantec, which offers solutions from SIAE Microelettronica, a completely Italian company.
They are presented by Sandro Cavalieri Foschini and Alberto Sormani from Advantec. They remind us how the reduction in ministerial concession fees for frequencies has significantly decreased since December 2021 (also thanks to a long battle by Assoprovider) and has opened many new opportunities for Proximity Operators.®.
To leverage them, however, the right technologies are needed. Advantec therefore offers a range of solutions, both Full Outdoor and Split Mount.
In detail, during the webinar, the machinery presented were:
- ALFOPlus, a thoroughly tested full outdoor microwave link available in licensed frequencies from 6 to 42 GHz with a maximum capacity of 460 Mbit/s, offering an excellent price/performance ratio.
- ALFOPlus2, dual carrier version with dual polarization, with a maximum capacity of 2Gbit/s and support for wider channel widths.
- ALFOPlus80HDX, to switch to the E-band with a licensed frequency at 80 GHz, with a maximum capacity of 20 Gbit/s. Through a Multi-Band solution, it is also possible to extend the length of the links.
Review Advantec's intervention here:
Video surveillance and Point-to-MultiPoint wireless connections with Radwin and Compass Distribution
To conclude the technical presentations, Carlos Martinez and Michele Zotti, from Radwin and Compass Distribution respectively, who present the solutions of the Radwin group, a company with 25 years of history,with a clear focus on proximity operators, for both residential and business customers," explains Martinez.
Compass, which distributes Radwin in Italy, offers various solutions for WISPs, as Zotti recalls, particularly "solutions for video surveillance and connectivity, with unlicensed and high-bandwidth capacity, aimed at both residential and business sectors.
Radwin's portfolio of solutions can be divided into three solutions – high, medium, and low density – which can cover different segments based on length.
In particular, Zotti then illustrates the NEO DUO and JET DUO solutions, which can in turn be divided into services best effort or guaranteed bandwidth, in addition to MultiSector technology for multipoint connection.
Review the intervention of Radwin and Compass here:
The Towers of Assoprovider
The focus then shifts to the association's new project, renamed the "Torri di Assoprovider," already presented during the APBG22 event in Bergamo (which can be review here). The floor is given to the national advisor Marco Liss, one of the promoters of the project.
Everything originates from a partnership with the company CESAF, which aims to build approximately 2,000 towers in Italy, supported by the investment fund Green Arrow Capital.
It is a company, CESAF, that is involved in the construction of the infrastructure and therefore does not offer services, thus not competing with Proximity Operators.®.
What do they ask of Assoprovider and its members? The proposed forms of collaboration are varied, but primarily concern the identification of sites for antenna installation, thanks to the operators' knowledge of the territory, and someone to assist with bureaucratic aspects.
«They need us – explains Liss – because they clearly cannot know the entire territory: they need someone who truly knows it and can interface with the relevant public entities. This is an opportunity to use new, qualified, and well-located infrastructures throughout the territory to expand their network or replace critical or congested sites.».
As Marcello Cama then recalls, "a memorandum of understanding has been created between Assoprovider and CESAF which stipulates that the opportunity is reserved for our members. Therefore, I invite operators to consider the positions they would like to occupy, also because the costs, in light of the many advantages, are negligible..
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News on Tax Credit 4.0 and Female Entrepreneurship
Finally, the event concludes with Dr. Roberto Iannaccone, consultant for facilitated finance at Assoprovider, who focuses on the latest developments in tax credit and incentives for female entrepreneurship.
Iannaccone recalls that "the Industry 4.0 Plan has been modified by the PNRR and the last two financial laws, extending the range of beneficiaries to practically all companies residing in the national territory.
The incentive concerns the purchase of new instrumental goods, both tangible and intangible, that meet specific characteristics:
- Control via CNC.
- Interconnection to factory systems.
- Automated integration with all enterprise systems.
- Human-machine interface.
- Compliance with minimum workplace safety requirements.
An important development in recent months concerns intangible assets: following a modification of the latest financial law, these have been "disconnected" from tangible assets and can therefore be facilitated independently. We are therefore thinking of cloud solutions, management software, digital platforms, and so on.
For the year 2022, the incentives amount to 40% for tangible assets and 20% for intangible assets: in subsequent years, the consultant emphasizes, the percentages are expected to decrease.
Iannaccone then informs us of a new interesting opportunity for female entrepreneurship. By using the PNRR funds for this purpose – which amount to a total allocation of 194 million euros – not only newly established female-majority enterprises will be facilitated, but also those already established, which intend to present projects for the development and consolidation of their activities.
Let's talk about non-repayable grants, which range from 80% for newly established companies to 50% for already established ones, with the remaining part to be repaid through zero-interest financing.
What assets are included in the measure? Tangible and intangible assets: equipment, installations, cloud systems, management services, digital platforms, and so on. Even the employees dedicated to the new project are among the facilitated activities.
Review Dr. Iannaccone's speech here:
