IoT is rapidly growing because of the rapid digitization of everything, from healthcare to supply chains, manufacturing plants, and smart cities. Juniper Research predicts that the number of IoT devices will rise from 35 billion connections by 2020 to 83 billion in 2024. This is a 130% increase in four years. Enterprise IoT users will expand their IoT ecosystems in order to improve operational efficiency and generate real-time insights.
Building competitive advantages
According to Terry Storrar (Managing Director of Leaseweb UK), the pandemic has prompted organisations from every sector to invest more in digital transformation projects. Technologies like IoT allow customers to be rethought, automate tasks, track assets and identify inefficiencies and re-invent business models.
McKinsey predicted that IoT applications could generate as much as 11 trillion dollars in economic value by 2025. A global study of companies that have implemented IoT in their IT strategy revealed that 83% of them reported increased efficiency.
IoT’s increasing success can be attributed to its close relationship with cloud computing. Cloud computing provides more than the connectivity IoT devices rely on. IoT devices rely on cloud storage to keep important data together in one place that can be managed and shared in real time.
Let’s look at four reasons organisations should use the cloud to unlock the full potential of their IoT devices.
1 Scalability and deployment
Cloud solutions can be used to help organisations overcome significant cost and technical hurdles when deploying IoT solutions. Cloud platforms eliminate the need to create and maintain physical servers, deploy databases, manage networks, and perform other infrastructure tasks. They make it easy to spin up virtual servers and launch databases.
Implementing an IoT-powered cloud system is much easier than implementing an on-premises IoT network infrastructure. It is easy to scale up the number IoT-enabled gadgets by renting another virtual server or additional cloud space.
Similarly, cloud services streamline remote device lifecycle management. Cloud services provide a 360-degree view and tools to automate software and firmware updates.
2 Data management and communication
IoT devices can be valuable for both consumers and enterprises because they provide information. They are even more valuable when they communicate with one another. Smart thermostats can alert smart refrigerators when it is too hot, and connected microcontrollers can determine when preventative maintenance is required to stop an assembly line from grinding to a halt. Cloud can streamline and optimize machine-to-machine communication and facilitate this across interfaces.
Organisations will need to find cost-effective ways to store, process, and access the data they generate from IoT solutions due to increased interactions between devices. They must be able scale up to meet increased demand, or to expand the infrastructure to support additional functionality when they add new features to their IoT solutions.
IoT solutions produce large amounts of data. Cloud can be used to host Big Data and analytics at a significantly lower cost by providing cloud with in-built management tools, processing capabilities, and other support for data transfer between devices efficiently and effectively.
3 Data Mobility and Interoperability
Cloud servers store data and can be accessed anywhere on the planet without any restrictions or infrastructure. Similar to the cloud server, data can also be accessed remotely from any device, anywhere in the world, and at any time.
Enterprises may not be able to connect or integrate data from IoT devices with other data sources due to interoperability. The cloud can link all data sources and seamlessly integrate them so that they can be analysed. The cloud can also help organisations integrate their IoT solution to other smart products from third parties, generating additional value for customers.
4 Safety
Recent headlines have focused on concerns that security breaches and failures in updating IoT devices have opened the door for cyber criminals. Two ways cloud platforms can be used by enterprises to improve their security posture are: First, cloud providers allow users to update their software and firmware regularly, as can be seen. These updates can be signed by digital certificates, which assure that the updates are legitimate and secure.
Cloud platforms allow you to create customised client- and server-side encryption. This protects data both as it flows through IoT ecosystems and in resting in databases. Cloud providers often offer 24/7 monitoring to help minimize the impact or risk of major security breaches.
Cloud-Powered IoT – A scalable, agile and cost-effective solution
Many organisations want to use IoT technology, but those who are still dependent on legacy infrastructures will be at a disadvantage. Enterprises will see a rise in connectivity and ROI due to the cloud’s power for IoT device communication and memory. If IoT platforms and cloud are not properly integrated, it will be difficult to keep up with growing demand for IoT services or manage IoT devices.
IT teams can adopt a hybrid cloud strategy to ensure they have the right mix for hosting options that allows them to quickly roll out and enablement. This will make it possible to get the most out IoT devices without spending significant time, money and effort on expensive infrastructure.
The cloud can be used to help companies develop IoT products quicker, manage all data produced, secure the IoT ecosystem and integrate with other IoT devices.
The cloud can be a key tool for organisations looking to scale up their IoT ambitions. It will allow them to achieve a quicker time to market and provide greater flexibility and lifetime value for their IoT deployments.
