Communications tech firm Filtronic has landed a £900,000 contract with a 5G infrastructure provider.
An initial production deal will see the north firm, which has bases at NETPark in Sedgefield, Yeadon in Leeds and Maryland in the US, produce a product that increases the transmission distance for 5G signal. Filtronic's Morpheus X2 high power module was developed over six months and extends the range of E-band point-to-point radio, meaning outdoor transmitters can extend signal up to 12km.
This distance would otherwise need multiple "repeater stations", or, as Filtronic says, would more typically be installed through an optical fibre cable. An initial order of the Morpheus X2 product will take place next year, with further shipments expected in 2025.
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Richard Gibbs, chief executive officer, said: "We are delighted to secure an initial production order for our Morpheus X2 E-band transceiver from one of the world's largest 5G telecoms infrastructure equipment suppliers. Working closely with our customer's design team we were able to apply our unique power amplifier IP and E-band design expertise to deliver a high-power outdoor unit solution that will change the way in which 5G networks are deployed. We look forward scaling up the manufacture of Morpheus X2 solutions in 2024 and beyond."
Filtronic has seen a flurry of contract activity in recent months, and this latest update follows a 5% uplift in half year revenues posted by the firm. Investors were previously told demand within the aerospace and low earth orbit (LEO) sectors had come faster than anticipated, meaning a boost to Filtronic's order book.
At the time, Jonathan Neale, the firm's chairman, said: “The importance of defence spending on electronic warfare and battlefield communications is more pronounced than ever, following the events in Ukraine, with governments acknowledging that spending needs to increase to protect its population and the deployment of 5G network infrastructure continues at pace with the insatiable demand for bandwidth driving people toward E-band frequencies."
But at the same time Mr Neale said trading this year would be largely dictated by the global semiconductor shortage which had shown some signs of easing but supplies of certain components were still inconsistent and prone to schedule change.
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