Future proofing your business: 11 actionable tips for affordable IoT solutions

What used to be fiction 10 years ago is now a reality. Science has advanced on so many frontiers that the difference between dreams and reality is getting thinner each passing day. IoT is one such wonder that has accomplished itself as a self-reliant piece of future proof technology. Internet of Things has seen things (devices) talking to each other and working in tandem without human beings’ involvement. IoT is a common sight in offices and homes. Users employ the Internet of Things for different applications turning on the lights, controlling ambient temperatures, place online grocery orders, etc. The most efficient use of IoT lies in the area of supply chain operations and management. IoT makes the best use of available technologies. It brings all of them together to render an integrated solution for all stakeholders.

IoT can be a big player in ensuring the safety of our workplaces. It is like hiring a digital security person who manages lock and unlocks doors, etc. IoT devices have motion detection capabilities, card readers, automatic opening and closing functionality. It can even check persons approaching the doors for their body temperature and only let healthy people in. The world has seen several new connected devices and IoT technologies emerge. They vary as consumer IoT devices like wearable devices and commercial or industrial IoT devices like alarm systems. They can even oversee access management. For your business, it makes sense to have such digital security cover work round the clock. In the event of an intrusion, the automated systems can send out alarm notifications to all stakeholders, including the police.

Source: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1183471/iot-revenue-worldwide-by-vertical/

We explore 11 actionable tips for affordable IoT solutions that help your business become future proof.

1. Shipping trackers

The bluetooth cold chain monitoring device accelerometer manufactured by the Shenzhen Eelink Communication Technology Co Ltd is your one single best choice device. It covers all aspects of the cold chain and protects you from the risk of any unforeseen risks like mechanical breakdowns, temperature fluctuations, and also provides unexpected fall detection. It has a temperature sensor, humidity sensor, and an accelerometer. Its life is boosted with low energy consuming long-range Bluetooth 5.0 future business technology. And the interactive and robust intelligence software works non-stop. Hands down, it is best in class equipment and even gives the expensive sensors a run for their money. It is fully compatible with mobile Operating Systems like Android and Apple iOS. The battery lasts up to 3 years, and the device also has an active tag. It can be easily configured for use with the BLE platforms Eddystone and i-Beacon.

2. Mobile payments

The Point of Sale machine is no longer a heavy cash register found on the checkout desk at a convenience store. Thanks to IoT, it has gone mobile. It’s popularly known as mPOS. Your staff on the field can accept card payments without the need to plug in a card swipe machine into a power plug or to a wired internet connection. Connect the mPOS to your smartphone, and it is ready to start accepting payments. You can have a standalone mPOS device equipped with Wi-Fi/ cellular connectivity or have a separate attachment for your mobile phone. Install the relevant payment App, and you are ready to accept payments. So now you do not need to bother about handling cash. It is convenient for your customers. It reduces the chances of coming across accounting errors.

3. Plan to scale up

IoT technology is definitely going places. The more number sectors it disrupts, the number of new IoT devices will be higher. At the current pace of growth, the number of IoT devices on the planet will outnumber humans. The number of IoT devices is expected to grow to 20.4 Billion devices by the end of 2020 (data awaited). As the number of devices grows exponentially, the complexity among devices and device-to-device communication is bound to get complex. The numerous digital interactions will generate a huge amount of data. The spectrum of devices will stretch from a small IoT beacon that monitors humidity and temperatures to a giant wind turbine.

As your present IoT deployment braces for the changes about to come in the near future, it makes sense to keep your infrastructure ready to scale up quickly. Your IT infrastructure will quickly move from a few hundred devices to a million devices. These devices may or may not be in your company’s network when smart devices begin to exchange information with your customer’s and suppliers’ networks. It definitely makes sense to scale in order to control the range and sophistication of devices.

4. Asset tracking

Bluetooth technology is rapidly evolving (Bluetooth 5.0). It is making significant progress in developing a cost-effective, efficient, precise offering that fits the budget needs of companies of all sizes. BLE technology finds it is the best use in asset tracking, equipment tracking, and monitoring equipment conditions. This kind of tracking enables for indoor as well as outdoor tracking of movement of assets. With the advent of IoT enabled Bluetooth low energy asset tracking tag, the system’s efficiency has grown to many sophisticated levels. There is no need for human intervention in tracking. In consultation with your company’s

5. Inventory management

As you have noticed in the videos online or on TV, Amazon has already automated several warehouses with robots. As soon as trucks are offloaded, the robots carry the items to their specific storage space in the warehouse. As and when the order is placed online, the robots swing into action and carry the items from their holding shelves all the way to the vehicle that is going to deliver the items to the client location. Small businesses already use barcode scanning, radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags, and IoT devices for inventory control. The concept of smart stores comes from the fact that these intelligent technologies can be made to work together in one IoT ecosystem and run stores independently without the need for workers.

6. Voice assistants  

Google Assistant, Apple Siri, Amazon Alexa, and Samsung Bixby are popular examples of intelligent voice assistants. They feature artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing (NLP) software. These assistants can perform basic tasks like taking notes, set reminders, and deliver alerts. In addition to these, these assistants can be integrated into IoT devices that can work by setting rules. Rules are commonly known as ‘Commands’.

They help improve productivity at work and home. They have been adopted into automated voice and text response systems as part of customer care operations.

7. Surveillance cameras

CCTV security cameras have been used for years. They are a handy companion in tracking the movements of people in particular work premises. They initially started with costly wiring that would be a mess to manage as the scale of operations grew larger. Wireless and connected cameras made it possible to monitor premises while being situated remotely. Now Wi-Fi and cellular connectivity enable IoT cameras can work in tandem with smart locks for better surveillance. They can even record high-quality audio from the surroundings. They sense motion, shocks, or even sounds and start recording. Hence, connected cameras allow business owners to monitor offices, warehouses, entrances, and other remote areas. Now there is no need to purchase and implement costly servers that take up physical space and need constant storage upgrades to continue to record videos. As IoT devices work over the cloud, the videos are records and stored on a remote server, out of reach for any offender on the premises. Footage can be saved limitlessly in the cloud. The absence of cables and expensive fittings make it convenient to install IoT cameras. They are like a simple plug and play option for small businesses.

8. Supply chain monitoring

The DB01 BLE Temperature Sensor Beacon features a humidity sensor, which is critical for the supply chain processes related to the nature of the items being moved. The beacon’s unique design enables it to measure various aspects of the equipment it is fitted to. It can easily detect and report movements, temperature, humidity, lighting level, and fall detection. Another striking feature of his unique piece of advanced tech is its ability to record and store up to 54,000 history records.

The beacon has Bluetooth accelerometer sensor-enabled and fully compatible with iBeacon and Eddystone (UID, URL, TLM) protocols. The beacon easily converts its surrounding environmental changes i.e., temperature and humidity, and releases the correspondent digital signals.

9. Ambiance monitoring

Ambiance monitoring can be explored for the case of greenhouses. IoT sensors monitor the weather conditions within the greenhouses and work towards maintaining the set requirements. They can automatically start the fans to cool down the greenhouse. They can sense the soil’s moisture levels or planting medium and turn on or off the taps for irrigation.

IoT enabled smart sprinklers can even work on localization where only a small part of the greenhouse is watered depending on change in its local conditions. Microgreens are very delicate and rely heavily on the right amount of light radiation. This is controlled through IoT lighting systems that monitor the light intensity round the clock.

10. Smart lights  

Offices can significantly reduce their energy bills by installing smart lights and smart plugs. Smart lighting products help businesses monitor their premises remotely, increase staff safety, and even manage their parking premises. Smart lights can be controlled through smartphones and other devices using Wi-Fi.

11. Home and Office thermostats

Popular with tech-savvy professionals, smart thermostats are now slowly taking over the market. They merely do not monitor the temperature. They can monitor changing weather conditions outside to regulate conditions indoors. They can speed up or slow down the ventilation. They can detect the owner’s location and warm up the home as soon as the owner steps out of their office. The smart IoT devices can monitor and control heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) around the premises centrally and remotely.