DEKRA joins O-RAN Alliance, the community reshaping the mobile network industry

Oct 18, 2021 Digital & Product Solutions

DEKRA will support O-RAN Alliance in its aim of ensuring that mobile networks components from different vendors can properly operate together.

DEKRA has become a member of the O-RAN Alliance, a worldwide community composed of the main players in the telecom industry. O-RAN initiatives aim to liberalize the industry of Radio Access Network (RAN), which is a component of the wireless telecom system that connects cell phones or computers to the network, by creating an open and standardized architecture that allows using RAN components of different vendors. DEKRA aims to provide testing & certification services, supporting O-RAN members to test and integrate RAN components, as well as participating in working groups to continue developing optimizations.
"It’s an honour to be part of O-RAN Alliance. We are committed to contributing to O-RAN Alliance’s labour of improving RAN efficiency, interoperability and user experience with our expertise in testing and certification for networks, and our constant foster of technological innovation", said Alejandro Torrecilla, Managing Director at DEKRA Testing & Certification S.A.U.
"This is really a very important step ahead in DEKRA's strategy for the development of services related to 5G O-RAN, private networks and industry 4.0. We are very excited about this challenge, and we do trust that our contribution could bring value to OEMs and MNOs in the development and deployment of this disruptive technology along the next months", said Francisco Mazo, Head of Network Services at DEKRA Testing & Certification S.A.U.
O-RAN Alliance's mission is to re-shape the RAN industry towards more intelligent, open, visualized and fully interoperable mobile networks. To do so, they propose standards to enable a more competitive and vibrant RAN supplier ecosystem, with faster innovation to improve user experience.
As a member, DEKRA aims to provide testing and certification services for RAN and networks, supporting the adoption of O-RAN specifications, as well as testing and verifying conformity, interoperability, functionality and performance of O-RAN equipment. Furthermore, DEKRA also goals to proportion regulatory certifications for those components, and cybersecurity services, as evaluation of equipment following 3GPP best practices and particular requirements defined by O-RAN Alliance, to secure O-RAN interfaces and components.
In respect of research & development, DEKRA will also participate in O-RAN Alliance working groups focused on relevant topics for O-RAN growth and optimization.