Pultrusion company Exel Composites plans to exhibit a range of its products for construction at JEC World 2018, taking place in Paris, France from 6-8 March 2018.
This includes composite laminates for infrastructure which have been designed for the LuxTurrim5G project which is aimed at making bigger data capacity available for companies and users through a network of smart light poles. Exel is collaborating with partners including Nokia Bell Labs to develop composite lighting poles designed to create a telecommunications network for urban environments. According to Exel, the higher frequency 5G signals required by companies may not travel as far as current signals and a dense network of antennas will be needed to boost the 5G signal locally. Integrating these thousands of antennas unobtrusively into city infrastructure could be a major challenge and as a result, the composite poles will incorporate integrated miniaturised 5G base stations to create a high-capacity 5G data transmission network. A pilot project is currently underway in the Finnish city of Espoo.
Longer life The composite pole functions as mast, architectural casing, weather protection and radome for the 5G antenna. The pole tubes are manufactured from glass fiber reinforced polyurethane resin using the pultrusion process. The laminate structure is designed to minimise the attentuation of the 5G millimetre-length radio waves as they travel through the pole wall. The composite pole also offers easy assembly and a longer life compared with steel and wood alternatives, Exel says. The LuxTurrim5G project has been shortlisted for a JEC World 2018 Innovation Award in the Smart Cities category. ‘Telecommunications and infrastructure are key markets for Exel Composites and with LuxTurrim5G we have the unique opportunity to unite our proven expertise in these sectors to create a new solution for the future urban environment,’ said Kari Loukola, senior vice president at Exel Composites.
This story is reprinted from material from Exel, with editorial changes made by Materials Today. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of Elsevier.
