Study shows maturation of IoT in transportation

Aaron Huff

| @AaronHuffCCJ

| November 20, 2017

Bsquare, which provides Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) systems, shared findings from its first IIoT Maturity Study that explores current IoT adoption progress of businesses in Manufacturing, Transportation, and Oil and Gas (O&G).

Responses to the annual study were evaluated using a IIoT Maturity Index that outlines the stages commonly associated with Industrial IoT technology adoption. Those stages are:

1) Device Connectivity – on-board logic to collect data and transmit to cloud databases

2) Data Monitoring – dashboard and visualization tools to monitor real-time data

3) Data Analytics – machine learning and analytics to develop device models and insight

4) Automation – development and execution of logic rules that automate business activities

5) Edge Computing – distribution of analytics and orchestration to the device level

According to the 2017 study, 86 percent of industrial organizations are currently adopting IoT solutions and 84 percent believe those solutions are very or extremely effective. In addition, 95 percent believe that IoT has a significant or tremendous impact on their industry.

However, the study shows that most IIoT investments are focused on connectivity (78 percent) and data visualization (83 percent). In addition, only 48 percent are doing advanced analytics on that data and only a small number (28 percent) are automating the application of insights derived from analytics.

“Our study shows that while industrial organizations have enthusiastically adopted IIoT, a majority have not yet moved to more advanced analytics-driven orchestration of data insights,” said Kevin Walsh, vice president of marketing at Bsquare.

The later stages of IIoT maturity “tend to be where most of the ROI is realized,” Walsh explained. “This is especially important because, according to our study, the number one reason cited for IIoT adoption is cost reduction.”

Bsquare’s 2017 Annual IIoT Maturity Study was conducted in the United States in August 2017, and reached more than 300 respondents at companies with annual revenues in excess of $250 million. Participants were evenly divided among three industry groups (Manufacturing, Transportation, and O&G).

Key highlights from the report include:

• The vast majority (86 percent) of organizations are deploying IIoT solutions, led by Construction/Transportation (93 percent) and followed by O&G (89 percent) and Manufacturing (77 percent).
• Nearly two-thirds (73 percent) of all businesses plan to increase their IoT investments over the next 12 months.
• Nine out of 10 decision-makers feel it is very or somewhat important for their organization to adopt IoT solutions. And 95 percent perceive IoT as having either a significant or tremendous impact on their industry at a global level.
• More than half of organizations are using annual subscription models for their IIoT solutions, and 77 percent use a cloud-based model. Amazon and Microsoft were tied (14 percent) for the preferred cloud service provider.