IoT services: devices that keep working
An IoT project is ten percent the device and ninety percent everything around it: the network it hangs on, the platform the data has to reach, and the question of who is watching when it goes quiet. We do that ninety percent (supply, connect, integrate and manage) for business environments.
Where the service starts and stops
Four parts, and the fourth is a boundary rather than a part.
- The devicesSensors, scanners, shelf labels, screens and cameras: supplied, configured and registered, so that a year later it is still possible to say what hangs where and when it is due for replacement.
- The network underneathIoT devices are network devices. We design and manage the wired and wireless network they hang on, separated from the office environment where that is the right call.
- The integration and the managementThe data has to go somewhere: your platform, WMS or dashboard. We keep the devices connected, the data coming through clean, and a failed device noticed before anyone misses it.
- The platform belongs to a third partyThe IoT platform or analytics environment comes from the supplier you choose, and the business rules in it are yours. We integrate and manage; we do not set prices, thresholds or decisions.
How an IoT environment runs with us
Three steps, and the last one is the service.
Inventory
What needs measuring or showing, where does it hang, and what is already there? That produces a design with devices, network and integration, and with what does not need to be in it.
Roll-out
Devices prepared, mounted, connected and tested, per site and with a list of what was delivered. Across several sites the roll-out runs as a project, with a script per building.
Management
Monitoring, updates, replacement and the service desk for the tickets. An IoT environment nobody manages is, two years on, a list of unfindable devices with expired firmware.
What goes with this
IoT touches the network, security and the devices already hanging there.
Questions we get about this
The ones that come up most, answered briefly.
Do you supply the IoT platform itself as well?
No. The platform or analytics environment comes from the supplier you choose, and the business rules in it are yours. We supply and manage the devices and the network, and make sure the data arrives there clean, so it stays clear who is responsible for what.
Which devices fall under IoT services?
Anything that measures, shows or registers and hangs on the network: sensors, scanners, electronic shelf labels, screens and cameras. The test is not the brand but whether the device needs managing, if it is not listed, just ask.
What about the security of all those devices?
IoT devices belong on their own network segment, with their own rules about what they may reach, and their firmware should stay updated. That is part of the management. For the wider question (what an attacker can do with a poorly secured device) the site has a separate page on OT and IoT security.
What does IoT management cost?
It depends on the number of devices, the number of sites and the cover you want. You get a fixed amount up front, based on what is actually managed; extensions we agree before we carry them out.
IoT that is managed
Tell us what needs measuring or showing and across how many sites. You get a design with devices, network and integration, and a fixed amount for the management.
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