By Arpit GautamIIoT is being leveraged by a plethora of industries to streamline businesses processes & achieve higher productivity as well as operational efficiencies. So, whatis IIoT all about? What are its use cases & how can it solve business needs? If you have similar questions in your mind, then read on to know more!
What Is Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)?
To put it simply, the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) refers to the utilization of the Internet of Things (IoT) in various Industries & allied businesses.
Currently, there are billions of industrial devices such as machines, automobiles, aeroplanes & other equipment which contain tiny sensors. These sensors are connected with wireless networks so that data about various parameters of the industrial devices can be seamlessly collected& shared.
Due to the advancements in low-cost miniature sensors & high-bandwidth wireless networks, any industrial device/machinery can achieve digital intelligence. This means that almost every device can be tracked & monitored. Supervisors/Managers can get real-time data about the operating conditions & other parameters of machinery in factories or an automobile on the road. This data is then leveraged to make the business processes more effective & efficient.
Difference between IoT &IIoT
The Consumer Internet of Things shouldn’t be confused with Industrial Internet of Things. Both of these have some degree of overlap between them. However, Consumer IoT devices are used to make life easier. These devices comprise of smartwatches, smart home speakers, smart home devices such as door locks & lights bulbs, as well as clothes &shoes.
The core idea of the consumer IoT is the same as that of the IIoT: to utilize automation and sensors to make various daily processes effective & efficient.
The only difference is that Consumer IoT is used by consumers whereas Industrial IoT is leverage by Industries & allied businesses.
A Brief Business Guide to Industrial IoT
Industrial IoT is steadily gaining prominence among small & large business, budding startups & large-scale enterprises. This is because IIoT has the potential to simplify business processes & help organizations to drive business growth.
Here is a brief guide on how Industrial IoT helps various large & small enterprises.
How can Industrial Internet of Things solve Business Needs?
IIoT is increasingly becoming vital in various businesses due to its capability to enablebetter&faster decision making. In addition to that, many small & large businesses have undertaken digital transformation projects. IIoT can help accelerate these projects with the help of connected devices.
IIoTprovidescrucial information about various business processes in real-time. This data can be leveraged by companies to understand their business processes better. Apart from that, organizations can assess the data coming from sensors, & create their processes more efficient as well as open up new revenue streams. The IIoT can give them an insight into the broader supply chain, which allows businesses to coordinate and create further efficiencies.
Which Sectors are adopting IIoT?
Currently, the IIoT is being leveraged by retail, utilities & manufacturing industries.
The Utilities Industry can significantly reduce costs associated with sending repair technicians & allied personnel by installing IIoT devices in remote installations. These IIoT devices can notify the current status of remote installations & request for repairs if necessary.
IIoTdevices can help manufacturers to get a better understanding of the operational efficiencies of their production lines. Companies can leverage the data to received from IIoT devices to improve predictive maintenance& minimize downtimes.
Transport companies can leverage IIoT to understand the performance of their fleet of vehicles. On the other hand, retailers can identify various bottlenecks in their supply chain, and address them accordingly.
Apart from these industries, other sectors such as healthcare & government entities are showing interest in leveraging IIoT. Currently, the prices for IIoT devices are high. But with advancements in technology, these prices will go down & this will enable various industries to take advantage of IIoT tools.
The Scale of Industrial IoT
Worldwide spending on the Internet of Things (IoT) is forecast to reach a whopping $1 trillion by 2022. A huge majority of this spending will be done bysmall & large businesses.
According to leading market analysts, IIoT is already a booming business. While Manufacturers are willing to invest $197 billion, Transport & Utilities Business are planning to invest $71 billion& $61 billion.
On the contrary,around $108 billion will be spent onconsumer IoT. These spendings will mainly focus on smart home devices, connected vehicle infotainment&personal healthcare equipment.
Industrial IoT’s Future Use Cases
Rolls-Royce is a renowned company that has some brilliant ideas to leverage IIoT technology.They are planning to use swarms of mini robots with a size of 10mm in diameter.
The primary task of such robots is to help engineers conduct visual inspections of engines with the help of cameras. How do these robots achieve such a feat? They crawl through the engines! Dismantling aircraft is a costly affair. But with these tiny robots, inspections & preventive maintenance can be easily simplified.
These are a few things that you should know about the Industrial Internet of Things. ARSR holds expertise in Industrial IoT & offers various IoT-related services like Operations Efficiency, Engineering Efficiency, Supply Chain & more.
