The Internet of Things (IoT) is a term that most people are now familiar with. But what is the real potential of this digital ecosystem and how are we navigating it here at Succorfish?
Connectivity is something that has become an integral part of our daily lives in recent years. Of course, we are all attached to our phones and mobile devices in 2020 but the number of appliances, technologies, fixtures and fittings that are applying a joined up approach – digitally speaking – is growing at a rapid pace.
Whether we’re talking about “smart” TVs, fridges or thermostats, the Internet is now embedded in every corner of the home and workplace. While there are genuine benefits to hooking up a device to the WiFi – turning the household heating up remotely on the drive home in winter, for example – most of the work being done in this ecosystem really takes place in the background with minimal human intervention. In fact, for modern businesses, the quantity and quality of data being recorded and monitored in this hyperconnected world has huge potential.
At Succorfish we’ve long been aware of how IoT will shape the future. And the application of our technologies across a range of different sectors is designed to harness this advanced connectivity – be it for tracking, monitoring or communicating.
From our SC2 Gen 2 communications hub, which enables global tracking of assets on land or sea, to our XPEDIATE personal tracking device for lone workers in high-risk environments, our products and services provide intelligence and insight to organisations.
The value and efficiency of IoT has grown, in large part, due to a number of crucial advances in technology, including:
- Connectivity – network protocols for the internet have made it much easier to connect sensors to the cloud and other assets to facilitate efficient data transfer
- Cloud computing – the arrival of the cloud has given technology the ability to function anytime and anywhere, as well as making solutions truly scalable and flexible without huge additional costs.
- Availability of low-cost, low power sensors – the manufacture of more affordable and increasingly reliable sensors has opened the door to more businesses looking to incorporate IoT into their products and services.
Of course, producing vast quantities of data has made it impossible for humans to manually read and interpret every byte of information that comes through. And so the advancements in machine learning and AI have made it possible to process and analyse this wealth of data, putting the insight that really matters at a user’s fingertips.
At Succorfish our utilisation of industrial IoT has enabled us to develop technologies designed to improve communication, tracking and safety. For example, our XPEDIATE solution is perfectly suited to lone workers in the rail, energy or oil and gas industry where communication might be difficult to maintain and navigation may be tricky. Users can be notified of accidents or hazards in real time, and rescued from dangerous
situations using GPS pinpointing.
Geofencing is particularly important in these sectors. The geofencing of assets can help to protect against theft, removal or misplacement – functionality that can be hugely significant in fleet management. Similarly, and perhaps more importantly, geo-fencing functionality has important applications for lone workers, providing crucial alerts when they stray beyond “safe” zones out in the field.
A key growth area for IoT in the last 12 months has been healthcare. The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of asset monitoring in managing the availability of equipment and assistance tools across not only a single premises but also across an entire trust or even national supply. From wheelchairs to ventilators, managing the deployment of assets using technologies like ours can genuinely mean the difference between life and death.
For more information on our products and their applications, contact us.
The stigma around IoT security
One of the primary concerns levelled at greater connectivity and the Internet of Things is the fear of a breach. You don’t have to dig too deeply into media coverage of the tech industry to find horror stories about home assistants divulging personal information or smart buildings presenting an entry point for malicious hackers.
Yet the difference between consumer products and our military-grade solutions is based on strict security and reliability. We guarantee encrypted, resilient communications across our products and software to provide operational and situational awareness that always remains private.
Looking to bring greater connectivity and “smart” technologies into your organisation? Explore our product suite here.
