With low-cost Internet links now saturating populated areas, it makes sense to take advantage of the ubiquitous connectivity by enabling all kinds of objects to join the network. This is the idea behind the Internet of Things (IoT), a suite of technologies and design principles that allow devices other than “traditional” ones (that is, other than phones and general-purpose computers) to communicate over the Internet.
What the IoT means to your business depends on the nature of what you do. Your organization may operate vehicles, in which case you may want to track their locations. It may have physical facilities, such as manufacturing plants and retail shops, which need to be monitored for safety and security reasons. Or, your business may operate industrial or agricultural equipment, in which case you may want to monitor the position of valves and switches, the rate of flow through pipes, and the level of water and other materials in tanks. You may want to give your customers an alternative way to report problems or ask for assistance.
When devices connect to the Internet and report data directly to the cloud, you can enjoy a near-real-time picture of what is happening throughout the system. You can then reconcile the data from the connected devices with other information, such as weather forecasts or traffic predictions derived from machine-learning models, to make more informed business decisions.
Furthermore, by setting up your IoT implementation to allow communication from a central control point to the devices, you can control devices remotely and optimize them for current and anticipated conditions. Valves might be opened or closed, or a gate locked, by central command.
In addition to monitoring and controlling devices directly, an organization might use more traditional communications methods in response to conditions. For example, SMS messages could be sent to the operators of vehicles identified as being in the path of an approaching hailstorm, or push notifications to mobile phones could welcome hotel guests who have just opened the doors of their rooms.
To identify IoT applications that may suit your enterprise, consider the fact that almost anything can now be made to communicate with pretty much anything else, as well as with a central logging, analysis and control environment.
Examine your existing processes.
Are there situations in which a person has to manually report information about the state of a machine or other object?
Are there times when someone must physically go somewhere to operate or adjust something? Have you given privileges – such as physical access – to someone, just because there was no way to manage that person’s activities centrally?
Are there times when you don’t know where something or someone is, and it would be better if you did?
Those are the cases for which you should investigate IoT solutions. The market is full of inexpensive and highly capable sensors and control devices with Internet connectivity. CloudWave can advise you on which of these can help you solve your problems, and how to connect them to the cloud to achieve the monitoring, analysis, interaction, and control capabilities you need.
Cloudwave are Australia's best cloud contact centre service provider, offering a range of products and professional services to suit all sizes of business including Cloudwave Neon, Twilio Flex, and Amazon Connect. All of which are provided by our team of industry experts driven to provide your business with the right solution to drive internal efficiencies and an incredible customer experience.
Comments