TELUS 5G Network Comes to Olds College Smart Farm and Community
TELUS 5G Network Comes to Olds College Smart Farm and Community
June 9, 2021, Olds, AB – TELUS has expanded its next-generation 5G network to Olds as part of a three year, $14.5 billion investment in Alberta to further support the province through the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent economic recovery. Local residents, businesses, and the Olds College Smart Farm now have access to TELUS’ blazing fast 5G network.
“The significant investments we are making in our world-leading network to rapidly expand our 5G footprint is enabling us to connect the citizens of Olds to the people, resources and critical information they need as we continue to navigate the global pandemic,” said Darren Entwistle, President and CEO, TELUS. “Now more than ever, TELUS is committed to keeping Canadians connected, productive and healthy. Indeed, the ongoing expansion of our next-generation 5G technology is bridging time and distance, allowing residents to live and work in any community without compromising productivity or economic opportunity. Importantly, as we look optimistically toward a period of economic and social recovery, our globally leading network will continue to drive the innovation that empowers the diversity and competitiveness of our country’s private sector and improves economic equality in our digital world, helping us answer the most pressing social challenges in health, education and the environment for the benefit of all Canadians.”
Improved connectivity on the field will allow for easily accessible cloud computing and responsiveness to data that is gathered and used in precision agriculture, and help unlock the potential of agtech innovations to enhance productivity and sustainability.
“Canadian farmers are leaders in the adoption of sustainable farming practices that are centered on using technology in the field to make data based decisions,” said Stuart Cullum, President, Olds College. “Having access to enhanced connectivity will allow our technicians on the smart farm to send larger amounts of data more quickly.”
5G will also improve connectivity for farm security - supported by TELUS Smart Automation and Security Solutions and automation, and IoT solutions, like the TELUS Agriculture Weather Station - that are currently deployed on the Olds College Smart Farm.
“Having access to TELUS’ 5G network will allow our team on the Olds College Smart Farm to send and receive large amounts of data from multiple sources faster,” said Dr. Alex Melnitchouck, Chief Technology Officer - Digital Ag, Olds College. “A great example of this is when we are collecting data from weather stations, analyzing the data, estimating a risk of crop diseases, and then sending out crop protection prescription maps to our field equipment. We are not too far away from the time when our field machines and sensors will be able to work online in real time, similar to the way multiple editors can work in Google docs together at the same time.”
“We’re excited for the promise of 5G to enable farmers to do what they do more efficiently,” said Chris Terris, Vice President of Global Strategy, TELUS Agriculture. ”With enhanced connectivity, farmers can better access information to make more accurate and timely decisions and unlock new technologies like soil sensors, drones and autonomous equipment to drive better yields, profitability and sustainability.”
In 2020, Olds College and TELUS Agriculture created a million dollar partnership in support of the Olds College Smart Farm and the development, acceleration, and integration of technology into the global agri-food value chain. On the Olds College Smart Farm, TELUS Agriculture has been testing innovations like security solutions, weather stations, field sensors, satellite imagery and rural connectivity solutions, and now TELUS’ 5G network.
To learn more about TELUS Agriculture, visit telus.com/agriculture
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