Right now, your toaster oven has access to the net. Your Roomba is collecting vital information about your cleaning habits. Your Alexa device is analyzing your wants and desires and even predicts what products you’ll likely buy. Today, most of your physical objects – devices and sensors – are connected to the internet — they form a network. They are collecting and exchanging data through that wonder, allowing you to monitor and control them remotely. The Internet of Things – IoT – is revolutionizing the way organizations manage their assets. From connected devices to predictive analytics, IoT asset management solutions are providing unprecedented levels of visibility and control over asset performance. As the market continues to grow, several key trends are emerging in IoT asset management that you and your businesses should be aware of.
What is IoT-enabled asset management?
IoT-enabled asset management is the process of supervising physical assets using the Internet of Things – IoT – technology. It enables the tracking, monitoring, and control of physical assets such as vehicles, machines, and equipment in real time. IoT-enabled asset management systems can help organizations increase efficiency and reduce costs by providing insights into the performance and condition of their resources and goods. They also provide data that can be used to improve decision-making in areas such as maintenance scheduling and inventory control. By utilizing IoT-enabled asset management systems, businesses can gain visibility into their operations and maximize the value of their assets.
The real power of IoT devices isn’t so much what their features are but what they collect — It’s the power of leveraging Big Data in your business’s favor. For example, IoT devices, such as sensors and RFID tags, and GPS trackers can collect data on the assets’ location, usage, and condition, and send that info back to a central system for analysis. Those facts and statistics can then be used by the organization – or its software and AI tech – to identify potential issues, and areas of improvement. At their core, Big Data can enhance your organization’s KPI reports — giving you precise information on the assets working, including their health. Additionally, IoT can also enable companies to optimize their supply chain, increase efficiency, and reduce costs.
Key trends in IoT asset management solutions
Let’s take a look at some of the fads and manias that IoT asset management is bringing to most organizations.
Asset Lifecycle Management
Asset lifecycle management – ALM – is the process of managing the entire lifecycle of an asset, from acquisition to disposal. It involves identifying, acquiring, maintaining, and disposing of assets in a way that maximizes their value and minimizes costs.
IoT plays a crucial role in ALM by providing real-time monitoring and tracking of assets, collecting data on usage and condition, and allowing for predictive maintenance. This can help to improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the ALM process and ultimately help to maximize the value of assets over their entire lifecycle.
Asset workflow automation
One of the critical characteristics of IoT devices is their ability to integrate into other platforms, software, and tech. For example, IoT devices and systems can be linked with other company assets, such as enterprise resource planning – ERP – systems, to provide a more comprehensive view of the entire asset management process. This is extremely valuable and revolutionary for companies since it gives them a multitude of benefits — one of them is the ability to automate their workflow.
When it comes to IoT management, asset automation – and their workflow – is the proverbial pot at the end of the rainbow for most companies. Asset workflow automation refers to the use of technology to automate the various tasks and processes involved in the management of their estate. This can include everything from acquiring and tracking assets to scheduling maintenance and managing inventory.
Some examples of asset workflow automation include:
- Automated asset tracking: Using RFID or barcode technology to automatically track the location and usage of assets in real time.
- Automated inventory management: Using software to automatically track inventory levels and reorder parts as needed.
- Automated maintenance scheduling: Using IoT sensors and analytics to automatically schedule maintenance based on the usage and condition of assets.
- Automated reporting: Generating reports on asset usage, maintenance, and inventory automatically.
- Electronic Approval Process: Automating the process of approving purchase orders, work orders, and other documents.
Security
As IoT devices and systems collect and transmit sensitive data, security has become a critical concern for IoT asset management.
IoT – Internet of Things – devices, by connecting physical assets to the internet, open up new opportunities for automation and data collection. However, this also increases the potential for security risks. Some of the key security concerns with IoT include:
- Device security: IoT devices are often designed for convenience and cost-effectiveness, which can make them vulnerable to hacking or other types of cyber attacks.
- Network security: IoT devices are often connected to a network, either directly or through a gateway, which can create new attack vectors for hackers.
- Data security: IoT devices generate and transmit large amounts of data, which can include sensitive information. This data needs to be protected from unauthorized access, modification, or disclosure. Look into IoT cloud security solutions to protect your business.
- Privacy: IoT devices can collect and transmit sensitive personal information, which can be used for targeted advertising or other malicious purposes.
To secure IoT devices and networks, companies should consider using a combination of technology, policies, and procedures. This can include things like encryption, secure communication protocols, firewalls, and intrusion detection systems. Additionally, companies should also implement regular security audits and testing to detect vulnerabilities and respond to security breaches. It’s also important to keep the firmware and software of the devices updated with the latest security patches.
IoT security, if properly utilized, can make a company more dynamic – safeguarding operational frameworks, IPs, and critical data. With the inclusion of blockchain tech, IoT is becoming more robust when it comes to security and allowing companies to better their platforms while also leveraging the power of IoT’s security measures to protect their systems.
Predictive analytics
Predictive analytics with IoT involves using data recovered by devices, such as sensors and RFID tags, to foretell the future, anticipate events or speculate on patterns. This can be used for various applications, such as predictive maintenance, energy management, and supply chain optimization. By analyzing data from IoT devices in real time, companies can identify potential issues before they occur, allowing them to take proactive measures to prevent downtime or other problems. Predictive analytics also enables companies to optimize the performance of their assets and operations, resulting in cost savings and improved efficiency. Additionally, with the help of machine learning algorithms, predictive analytics can also learn from historically gathered data and improve its accuracy over time — they can, for example, use weather patterns or meteorological forecasts to help in the mapping of delivery routes. Predictive analytics with IoT can be beneficial in various industries such as manufacturing, transportation, healthcare, and agriculture.
Asset Health Monitoring
Companies can supervise the health of their goods/assets by using IoT devices such as sensors to monitor the condition and performance of assets in real time.
This can include keeping an eye on things like temperature, vibration, and pressure, as well as other parameters specific to that asset. By collecting and analyzing this data, companies can identify potential issues and take measures to prevent downtime or other problems. IoT-based asset health monitoring can also be used to detect and diagnose equipment failures, schedule predictive maintenance, and improve overall efficiency.
Remote asset tracking
IoT asset management solutions allow for the following:
- Real-Time Tracking: companies can track the location and usage of their assets in real time, providing visibility into how assets are used and where they are located.
- Remote Monitoring: IoT devices can be used to remotely monitor the condition of assets, such as temperature, humidity, and vibration, providing early warning of potential issues.
Thanks to sensors, companies can supercharge their infrastructure and use IoT data to improve various applications, such as inventory management, supply chain optimization, and logistics. By collecting and analyzing data from IoT devices, companies can track the location and movement of assets, monitor their usage, and optimize their operations. This can help companies to improve the efficiency of their operations, reduce costs, and improve customer service.
Remote asset tracking can also help companies to better the security of their assets by detecting and preventing theft or loss. Additionally, with the help of machine learning algorithms, the system can also predict the potential loss of the asset and alert the management team, enabling them to take preventive measures.
It’s also important to note that thanks to IoT and its dynamics most systems and company parameters are increasingly pivoting to a cloud-based infrastructure, which enables real-time data access and analytics from anywhere, and also helps when it comes to fast scalability.
Real-time alerts
By using IoT device features such as sensors and RFID tags companies can monitor the condition of assets and send notifications to the relevant parties in real time.
Real-time alerts can be set to notify when something out of the norm occurs with an asset — for example when it is out of its predefined location or range, providing an early warning for potential theft or loss.
Additionally, with the help of machine learning algorithms, the system can also predict the potential failure of the asset, providing an early warning to the maintenance team.
Benefits of IoT-based asset management
IoT-based asset management, if truly leveraged, can bring several benefits to organizations, including:
- Improved asset visibility: By collecting and analyzing data from IoT devices in real time, companies can improve the visibility of their assets and gain a better understanding of how they are being used.
- Predictive maintenance: By using IoT-based monitoring and analytics, companies can predict when an asset is likely to fail and schedule maintenance before the failure occurs.
- Increased efficiency: IoT-based asset management can help companies to optimize the performance of their assets, resulting in cost savings and improved efficiency.
- Better decision-making: With real-time data and analytics, companies can make more informed decisions about their assets, leading to more effective and efficient operations.
- Reduced downtime: By identifying and addressing potential issues with assets promptly, companies can reduce downtime and improve the reliability of their operations.
- Improved security: IoT-based asset management can help companies to improve the security of their assets by detecting and preventing theft or loss.
- Cost savings: IoT-based asset management can also help companies to reduce costs by optimizing operations, extending the life of assets, and reducing downtime.
