New Industrial Networks: Driving High-Quality Growth

At the intersection of technological revolution and industrial transformation, the industrial sector is undergoing a rapid transition from digitalization toward intelligentization. As the paradigm evolves from Industry 4.0 to Industry 5.0, the deep integration of digitalization, networking, and intelligence has emerged as a pivotal driver of new industrialization.

Industrial networks are experiencing a fundamental transformation—from traditional “connectivity infrastructure” to intelligent “central systems” equipped with sensing, computing, and decision-making capabilities—emerging as the key infrastructure underpinning enterprises' digital and intelligent transformation.

This article will explore how new industrial networks are redefining their capability boundaries under the trends of multi-technology convergence and network-service integration, and how they drive the industrial ecosystem toward greater openness, collaboration, and intelligent decision-making.

New Industrial Network Momentum

Coordinated Development of Information Technology (IT), Operational Technology (OT), Communication Technology (CT), and Data Technology (DT)  

From the automation of Industry 3.0 to a new era of industrialization marked by Industry 4.0 and even Industry 5.0, the central theme has always been the deep integration of digitalization, networking, and intelligence. As a core pillar of new industrialization, intelligent manufacturing is powered by intelligent equipment, industrial software, and industrial networks. Compared with the fragmented development of intelligent equipment and industrial software, industrial networks offer more replicable and systematic pathways to significantly improve overall efficiency, becoming the key lever to break through this fragmented pattern.

By linking production elements—people, machines, materials, methods, and environments—new industrial networks enable data-driven precision decision-making and foster cross-layer, cross-domain industrial ecosystems through the coordinated integration of IT, OT, CT and DT.

In terms of technological synergy, the deep integration between industrial Internet platforms (IT) and production line automation systems (OT) enables efficient data flow from the production floor to management layers, accelerating the digital and intelligent transformation of OT systems. For example, real-time data collection and analysis via industrial networks allows for dynamic optimization of production parameters, enabling predictive maintenance and iterative process improvement. Meanwhile, the deep involvement of CT—such as 5G and time-sensitive networking (TSN)—provides deterministic network assurance for low-latency scenarios, while DT—including big data and AI—drives innovation in production models through data modeling.

Transition from Network-Service Separation to Integration

The development of China’s 5G networks has been driven by operators. It has progressed from the large-scale deployment of virtual private networks to the continuous exploration of independent private networks, forming a critical part of the new industrial network landscape.

5G virtual private networks exemplify the concept of the sharing economy by offering enterprises efficient access to public network and cloud resources, thereby accelerating the convergence and upgrade of IT informatization and OT automation. In this model, enterprises can deploy non-sensitive services in mature cloud service environments provided by operators, enabling flexible access and unified management similar to that of "external network services.” This approach not only reduces network construction costs but also presents operators with a high-value entry point into the government and enterprise market.

In contrast, independent private 5G networks focus more on enterprises' core requirements for data sovereignty, flexible network scheduling, and service security and reliability. By integrating innovative technologies such as digital twin, artificial intelligence, and computing-network convergence, they serve not only as dedicated communication channels but also as key enablers of enterprises' digital and intelligent transformation.

These two network models fulfill distinct yet complementary roles, collectively driving a paradigm shift in industrial network construction—from the traditional "network-service separation" toward the emerging "network-service integration." This evolution not only enhances the agility and adaptability of enterprise networks, but also fosters deeper collaboration between enterprises and network operators, laying the foundation for a more intelligent and service-oriented industrial ecosystem.

Digital and Intelligent Pathways for New Industrial Networks

As digitalization and intelligentization rapidly converge, industrial networks are evolving from providing mere "connectivity" to "service." The introduction of new technologies such as 5G and edge computing has not only enhanced network capabilities, but also driven the industrial Internet ecosystem from isolation toward openness, and from fragmentation toward collaboration, laying a solid foundation for building a smart, flexible, and sustainable next-generation industrial system.

Beyond Connectivity: Unleashing 5G for Enterprise Digital Transformation

5G networks originate from the mobile cellular architecture and were designed from the outset to meet widespread, ubiquitous mobile communication needs. With features such as unified planning, centralized management, and a service-oriented architecture, 5G networks align well with the trends of new industrialization. They demonstrate greater adaptability and enhanced support, especially as enterprises evolve from single production lines to multi-site collaboration and from closed internal manufacturing to socially distributed production.

Moreover, 5G networks offer robust support for virtualization and can be deeply integrated with  multi-access edge computing (MEC), enabling coordinated use of edge computing resources and network capabilities. Through network slicing and SLA assurance mechanisms, 5G can flexibly construct a variety of specialized communication services—such as voice communication, cluster dispatching, broadcasting, high-precision positioning, and sensing and detection—tailored to the specific requirements of different industries and scenarios. This provides enterprises with richer network functionality options and greater customization space.

Therefore, in supporting enterprise digital transformation, equipment vendors and operators should not only provide standardized connectivity, but also leverage their accumulated expertise in network planning, system integration, and service assurance. By gaining insights into industry-specific needs, they can drive continuous innovation in products, solutions, and services, and jointly build an open, collaborative, and mutually beneficial industrial ecosystem.

From Connectivity to Services: Building the New Industrial Network Ecosystem

In the era of booming digital and Internet services, leading OT automation manufacturers have launched open architectures and product systems similar to application stores. In addition, operators and Internet enterprises are actively exploring cloud-native service models, aiming to provide comprehensive industrial Internet application services. From traditional CNC machines to modern AGVs and robots, a growing range of devices are evolving into intelligent equipment. This trend of technological convergence is blurring industry boundaries and creating a more symbiotic ecosystem.

Amid this trend of convergence, technology suppliers that have traditionally focused on a specific domain or a certain link of the industry chain can not only continue offering standardized products and services, but also, in a more open and collaborative manner, deliver innovative and intelligent solutions centered on customer value. These solutions, while retaining traditional automation technologies, integrate  technologies such as big data, AI and edge computing to meet customers' growing and diversified requirements. For example, the application of a digital twin cockpit in an automatic screw-fastening machine boosts production efficiency and elevates equipment intelligence, providing new directions for the future of the manufacturing industry.

To generate greater value in this transformation, it is necessary to look at the communications industry, whose success has been built on standardization, industry chain coordination, and the ability to provide standardized and customized user services. In the context of new industrialization, it is essential to fully leverage the mature mobile smart terminals and mobile Internet service models developed in the public network and extend them to enterprise-level industrial Internet applications. The key pathway to achieving this goal is the evolution from the traditional seven-layer ISO/OSI model to today’s cloud-edge-end architecture. This evolution is essentially a process of streamlining layers and restructuring functions, which helps reduce the complexity and costs of system coordination, data flow, and business integration for enterprises.

However, the industrial sector still faces a number of structural challenges. Traditional OT automation integrators tend to address specific problems with customized solutions. While such an approach can maximize benefits at a single point, it may not be optimal from a broader social efficiency perspective. Drawing on the experience of the mobile Internet, a centralized IT service model for enterprises—featuring standardized IT services and smartphone-like terminals—can effectively improve both social efficiency and the operational efficiency of large-scale enterprises. To support this shift, equipment vendors and operators should transform from being mere connectivity providers into service enablers, building a future-ready industrial Internet ecosystem together.

Towards Proactive Services: AI Agents Reshaping Capabilities of Industrial Networks

With breakthroughs in large AI models and AI agent technologies, industrial networks are transitioning from passive connectivity to proactive services. Traditional networks merely enable signal transmission at the physical layer, whereas intelligent networks, empowered by AI agents, enable perception, coordination, and autonomous decision-making across key production elements.

In complex manufacturing environments, intelligent agents can digitally represent devices, systems, and personnel, enabling cross-layer and cross-domain collaboration through distributed intelligence. For instance, when a production line fails, an intelligent network can respond automatically: isolating the faulty device at the physical layer, adjusting network resources at the network layer, and pushing repair instructions to terminals at the application layer. This creates a closed-loop system for fault management, improving both system resilience and efficiency.

In the future, industrial networks will go beyond their traditional role as communication pipelines. By leveraging AI agents and digital twin, they will offer value-added services such as proactive sensing, predictive maintenance, and energy efficiency optimization. New industrial network providers will not only be responsible for connecting physical infrastructure but must also embrace open innovation and architectural evolution—paving the way for a new paradigm of “intelligent connectivity + proactive services”.

As a key driver of high-quality industrial development, new industrial networks are providing enterprises with unprecedented momentum. ZTE remains committed to continuous innovation and the development of replicable models to unlock customer value and accelerate industrial development. We believe that through continuous technological innovation and real-world applications, the new industrial networks will enable enterprises to grow faster and smarter in the digital and intelligent era.