Design and Plan 5G Networks and Advanced Wireless Technologies

This standard defines the competencies required to effectively design and plan 5G and advanced wireless networks to ensure they are scalable, resilient, and future-ready. It covers network architecture, capacity planning, spectrum management, security considerations, and the integration of next-generation technologies. It includes planning for network evolution, ensuring seamless upgrades to support emerging technologies, and the advancement of network slicing to meet diverse service-level requirements. These competencies are essential for building efficient, secure, and sustainable 5G networks that align with organisational objectives and regulatory compliance.

This standard is designed for professionals responsible for network design and planning to optimise the performance, scalability, and adaptability of 5G and advanced wireless networks as part of their workplace responsibilities.

1. Conduct stakeholder consultations to identify network requirements, ensuring alignment with organisational objectives, user needs, and regulatory expectations.
2. Evaluate current and future demands, including user density, latency, bandwidth, and emerging service needs, to provide scalable and future-proof network designs.
3. Select appropriate technologies and protocols to support 5G and advanced wireless capabilities while considering energy efficiency, sustainability, and long-term adaptability.
4. Develop 5G network designs that optimise capacity, coverage, and performance while minimising environmental impact and complying with energy efficiency and carbon footprint reduction policies and regulations.
5. Conduct site surveys and plan base station locations to maximise network performance, minimise energy consumption, and reduce environmental impact.
6. Use advanced simulation tools to predict network behaviour, assess performance under varying conditions, and optimise resource allocation for sustainability and efficiency.
7. Plan and manage spectrum resources effectively, to maintain efficient frequency reuse, interference management, and compliance with regulatory frameworks for spectrum sustainability.
8. Integrate existing 4G infrastructure into new 5G network designs to maintain seamless handovers, backward compatibility, and efficient utilisation of existing resources.
9. Implement design measures to enhance security, including encryption, access controls, and compliance with organisational, data protection, and privacy policies and regulations, while maintaining sustainable and energy-efficient security mechanisms.
   
   

1. Characteristics of 5G, including speed, latency, capacity, reliability, and its interaction with the core network.
2. 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) architecture, including control and user plane separation (CUPS), network slicing, and Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC).
3. Principles of beamforming, massive MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output), small cells, macro cells, and millimetre-wave (mmWave) spectrum for high-capacity networks.
4. Wireless network architecture, including capacity planning, traffic engineering, and infrastructure optimisation for scalability and efficiency.
5. Site selection and base station deployment, considering coverage, interference management, environmental impact, zoning laws, and regulatory constraints.
6. Use of simulation tools and predictive analytics to assess network performance, energy efficiency, and sustainability.
7. Strategies for integrating 4G infrastructure with 5G to ensure seamless handovers and backward compatibility.
8. Spectrum management and utilisation, including dynamic spectrum sharing, interference mitigation, and regulatory frameworks for allocation and licensing.
9. Security and data privacy, covering encryption, access controls, Denial of Service (DoS) mitigation, and compliance with cybersecurity regulations.
10. Energy-efficient network deployment, including power-saving techniques, carbon footprint reduction, and sustainable telecommunications infrastructure.
11. Ethical considerations in 5G deployment, ensuring responsible, equitable access and regulatory compliance.
12. Emerging technologies, including AI-driven network optimisation, Open RAN architectures, IoT integration, and edge computing.
13. Future network evolution, including advancements in network slicing, ultra-low latency applications, and the transition to 6G.