Private 5G operator in Korea: Sejong Telecom

February 27, 2025 | By Harrison J. Son (son@netmanias.com)

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Private 5G operator in Korea: Sejong Telecom (Wire-line Carrier)

Sejong Telecom Overview

In October 2022, Sejong Telecom was approved by the government as a private 5G common carrier, allowing it to provide private 5G services to corporate customers.

In December 2022, Sejong Telecom was allocated a private 5G frequency of 4.7 GHz (4.72-4.82GHz) by the government and built a private 5G network at TLB Cluster in Banwolshihwa Industrial Complex. Based on this private 5G network, Sejong Telecom is providing predictive maintenance and industrial safety services.

In October 2023, Sejong Telecom was allocated a private 5G frequency of 4.7 GHz (4.72-4.82GHz) by the government and began deploying a private 5G network with Nokia equipment at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and HD Hyundai Mipo in Ulsan. This made it possible to transmit and view 3D drawings on personal devices and visualize the current status of all processes, safety, logistics, quality, and materials in the workplace, creating a ‘visible shipyard’.

In December 2024, Sejong Telecom deployed a private 5G network with HFR Mobile's private 5G solution at the construction site of Merck Life Sciences' Asia-Pacific Bioprocessing Production Center, which is being built on 43,000 square meters in the International Science and Business Belt in Yuseong-gu, Daejeon.

Sejong Telecom's Private 5G Case Studies

Case 3: The Construction Site of Merck Bio Center

Customer

Merck Bio Cener

Private 5G operator

Sejong Telecom

Industrial segment

Construction

Connected devices | DX applications

CCTV cameras and IoT sensors |

Predictive maintenance and industrial safety

Private 5G freq.

4.7GHz (100MHz)

Frequency acquisition date

2024.11

5G network

architecture

5G Core control plane sharing

- Customer premise: RU, DU, CU, UPF

- Cloud: 5G Core control plane

5G vendor

HFR >>

Digital

transformation

applications

based on

private 5G network

Smart safety management system deployed at Merck Bio Center construction site

The mobile and fixed CCTV surveillance system uses the high-speed, low-latency capabilities of 5G to transmit large-volume, high-definition video data in real time, enhanced by AI video analytics to improve safety.

Additionally, smart safety equipment monitors workers' biometric data in real time, triggering immediate alerts or automated safety measures in response to abnormal signs, thereby preventing accidents and ensuring worker safety.

Merck private 5G overall architecture

Private 5G Network

Architecture

Private 5G network deployed at the Merck Bio Center construction site

Strategies to reduce the Cost of building Private 5G Networks

1. Reducing 5G Core Costs

Separated 5G Core to reduce construction costs

Merck's Daejeon site installs only the 5G core data plane (UPF) and RAN, while the 5G core control plane, the most expensive part of the private 5G network equipment, is located in the cloud (Sejong Telecom Gwacheon Center) and shared by multiple sites, significantly reducing the cost of building a 5G network per site.

2. Reducing 5G RAN Costs

Lower TCO by 43% with wider coverage than Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi, the existing private network technology, has the advantage of being low-cost compared to 5G equipment, but it also has the disadvantage of low power and narrow coverage of tens of meters. 5G offers a wide coverage area of about 1 kilometer, allowing a small number of base stations to cover the entire site, making it relatively inexpensive to deploy compared to Wi-Fi, which requires a large number of APs.

Materials

Netmanais One-Shot, Sejong Telecom and HFR Mobile build Private 5G Network at Construction Sites, 2025.02.20

Sejong Telecom, "Demonstration of a smart safety management system for the construction industry based on a private 5G network(Korean)," Private 5G Convergence Service Performance Sharing Conference, Ministry of Science and ICT, 2024.12.23

Related Video

Case 2: HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and HD Hyundai Mipo

Customer

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and HD Hyundai Mipo

Private 5G operator

Sejong Telecom

Industrial segment

Shipbuilding

Connected devices |

DX applications

CCTV cameras and Tablet |

CCTV monitoring, download 3D drawings

Private 5G freq.

4.7GHz (100MHz)

Frequencies acquisition date

2023.10.04

5G architecture

5G Core control plane sharing

5G vendor

Nokia

Digital

transformation

applications

based on

private 5G

network

1. Real-time site monitoring and accident prevention with footage from cameras installed on yard cranes in a shipyard

2. Downloading 3D drawings to field workers' tablets

Private 5G

Network

Architecture

Why did HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HD HHI) and HD Hyundai Mipo (HMD) decide to use a private 5G network rather than Wi-Fi?

[1. Problems with Wi-Fi] HD HHI and HMD have an area of 1 million square meters. If both companies build a private network with Wi-Fi with coverage within a few tens of meters, a large number of Wi-Fi APs are required. The cost of building Wi-Fi alone is over 20 billion won (about $14M). A private 5G network, on the other hand, has a coverage area of up to 1 Km, which means that only nine base stations are needed to cover the entire area.

[2. Problems with MNO's Enterprise 5G Service] HD HHI and HMD want to install dozens of 4K high-definition cameras on six Goliath cranes in the shipyard, and use them to remotely monitor the shipyard through a wireless network to the control center. The MNO's enterprise 5G service is pay-as-you-go, which means that the monthly fee increases significantly as data usage increases. For example, if only 10 4K cameras (16Mbps) are installed, the monthly data generated is about 50TB, and the monthly fee is over 40 million won (about $28K), and if 40 cameras are installed, it is over 130 million won (about $90K). On the other hand, private 5G networks are owned and operated by the companies, so there is no cost for data generation.

Private 5G network deployment model: 5G core sharing

- HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HD HHI): On-premise (Both 5G core and base station are installed: 1 5G core, 1 DU, 5 ORU (Ourdoor RU))
- HD Hyundai Mipo (HMD): 5G core sharing (shares HD HHI's 5G core, installs base station only: 1 DU, 4 ORU)

Private 5G Network deployed at HD HHI and HMD: Separated 5G Core to reduce construction costs