Ensure ROI from your IoT
Ultimately, buying into IoT must generate a substantial ROI for your business. Here are five things to consider as part of your implementation strategy that can keep costs low while still fulfilling your objectives. A good technology partner will be able to advise you on all these aspects and more.
1. Align sensors with the use case and your goals
Your IoT strategy should focus on achieving specific goals that are directly beneficial to your operations. Try to buy only sensors that have specific purposes: do you really need an air quality sensor that measures five different gases if you only need to see carbon dioxide levels? However, if it is important for you to measure five types of gas, one sensor may be sufficient and is usually cheaper than a separate sensor for each reading.
2. Data driven
IoT is about collecting data that you can action through immediate intervention or in longer-term analysis. Leaving sensors passively aggregating data without actioning this information will not bring you any additional value.
You need to work out how IoT will fit into your current data hierarchy and consider how this structure might be altered to leverage and accommodate the new input. Having a fully digital and unified platform for all your works management, data and compliance will allow you to get full value from any IoT you install. Your IoT strategy should focus on achieving specific goals that are directly beneficial to your operations.
Try to buy only sensors that have specific purposes: do you really need an air quality sensor that measures five different gases if you only need to see carbon dioxide levels? However, if it is important for you to measure five types of gas, one sensor may be sufficient and is usually cheaper than a separate sensor for each reading.
3. Choose the right transmission technology for sensors and hubs
The costs associated with connectivity can be significant, so it is worth evaluating your options to get the right network first-time.
WiFi
High bandwidth and low latency that’s ideal for video-streaming. It can be expensive: you will need many hubs to cover a large area. It can also be tricky to configure.
Cellular
More reliable. Long range, low power draw. The most popular connectivity solution due to it’s security and reliability. Does not have the same speed or capacity as WiFi.
A diverse network
Many businesses adopt a mixed approach to their IoT network to better protect it against faults – if either the internet or your cellular coverage goes down, having a back-up system can minimise down-time.
LoRaWAN
An increasingly popular IoT transmission technology that lets you send messages further (in theory) and does not require cellular or internet coverage. Relatively new but cost-effective and particularly useful in areas without cellular coverage.
4. Consider data frequency
This may seem like a minor issue, but a high upload rate can cause costs to quickly stack up due to increased power consumption, processing and storage requirements. To combat this, consider the efficiency and use case of your network: do you need to know every 10 seconds if a fridge is at the correct temperature? You might do if you transport or store pharmaceuticals, but every 15 minutes will do if you’re storing food.
5. Check installation costs
IoT implementation isn’t only about the hardware and software costs. Installation prices can vary greatly, as can the cost of any additional network set-up. There are several questions to ask before you can estimate the cost of installation. Do the sensors need a specialist to install them or are they plug and play? Does the mounting come with the sensors, or is there an extra cost? Is the mounting robust enough to deter theft or prevent damage to the sensor?