Digital connectivity is transforming business and the world as we know it. Advances in connectivity have been driving the Internet forward and rapidly reshaping the world for the last 20 years. We are now entering a new phase of transformation, which will radically change the way business is conducted.
Connectivity has progressed in three major stages to the point that anything and everything can be expected to soon have access to the internet.
The first wave of transformation occurred when high speed internet connections like cable modems and DSL enabled web applications to reliably reach their customers and deliver ‘always on’ connectivity. With this came “the cloud” and SaaS model applications, which leveraged high speed connectivity to expand the reach of the internet further across businesses.
Next, came the proliferation of wireless data connectivity, as rapid advances in mobile phone technology changed the way we used ubiquitous connections. Now everything on the internet can be accessed instantly anywhere.
The third wave of connectivity evolved from earlier cloud and web applications, further leveraging wireless and mobile devices. The Internet of Things was slowly developing as Machine to Machine (M2M) technology, but now rapid advances in wireless technology and cheaper, lower power digital electronics have moved IoT into hyper growth. Today, the Internet of Things is expanding cloud-connectivity to remote devices across both consumer and enterprise markets.
Anything that generates data can now be connected, stored, analyzed and utilized by other apps and platforms housed in the cloud.
Wherever a device is interacting with the physical world, sensors can be used to record and connect it to the data world. From consumer wearables to medical devices to industrial systems, the same rules apply. Backend systems can now pull data from devices into the cloud, analyze, and match that data with relevant systems, producing incremental value that only ‘big data’ solutions can provide.
SemperCon has lived through the progression of all three connectivity waves. We’ve been quietly enabling businesses across the nation to transform their services, workflows and success models with cloud connected technologies: first developing cloud-based web applications that offered browser interfaces, then using new connectivity options to extend cloud-based web apps to mobile device interfaces and now connecting IoT device interfaces. Each successive wave has built upon the preceding one as the internet further integrates into the physical world.
Now, more than ever before, we have the ability to transform businesses by developing connectivity solutions that unlock previously isolated data silos, and direct data to central systems where big data tools can unlock the compounding, incremental value associated with connected data streams.
Industries are already being transformed as Industrial Internet and consumer IoT solutions become more accessible. Soon, smart industrial systems will become as ubiquitous as smartphones and smart TVs.
In the coming months, we’ll be releasing materials explaining what to consider when developing and deploying an Industrial IoT solution. Devices, business models, flexibility, administrative management and more will be addressed. Stay tuned!