(Image Credit: iStockPhoto/Caymia)
Around 80 percent of homes and businesses in the UK connect via Openreach’s wholesale network, owned by BT. That means many residents have experienced long waits when engineers are needed to fix faults or install services.
BT aims to shorten engineer call-out times and speed up new deployments by reducing how far engineers must travel to collect equipment. After acquiring Pelipod, a company that provides connected parcel delivery solutions, BT plans to adapt its technology to create secure underground digital lockers stocked with essential parts and equipment.
Initially, BT will install lockers at 500 strategic locations across the country so engineers won’t have to return to central warehouses or distant stock hubs. The company intends to expand the network over time to “a few thousand Pelipods” nationwide.
The rollout will begin in the Midlands and forms part of a broader effort to improve logistics using Internet of Things (IoT) technology. Each locker will be physically secured with industrial-grade cables or bolts and protected digitally with temporary, single-use access codes issued only to authorised engineers or staff when needed.
Nicholas Hale, Managing Director of BT Wholesale and Ventures, said the company already provides supply chain services to BT Group businesses and several external customers. He added that Pelipod’s technology will strengthen BT’s supply chain offerings and deliver a competitive advantage by leveraging IoT innovations.
Besides improving operational efficiency, the lockers are intended to enhance customer service. By cutting travel time to remote stock locations, engineers can collect equipment more quickly, spend more time resolving faults and upgrades, and devote additional hours to maintaining and expanding broadband and phone services for customers.
Earlier this week, telecoms regulator Ofcom announced plans to separate Openreach from BT amid concerns that Openreach had prioritised its owner’s network over competitors. That decision raises questions about whether BT will retain exclusive use of the Pelipod lockers for its own operations or license them for use by Openreach so all service providers can benefit.
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