10 Benefits of IoT for Industrial Operations: IIoT for Businesses

From wearables and connected appliances to virtual assistants and smart sensors, we see the Internet of Things (IoT) all around us. Now, this technology has gone beyond and entered the realm of manufacturing. It’s called The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). 

You may have heard about it before, but do you know how IoT industry solutions can drastically change industrial operations? Is there a process to get the best out of your IIoT manufacturing solution?

What Is IIoT?

The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), or Industry 4.0, means gathering data in manufacturing facilities using connected gadgets and sensors. With industrial IoT, you can improve productivity, maximize output, and predict maintenance just by monitoring production data.

Artificial intelligence, 3D printing, and robots are just a few examples of this cutting-edge technology bringing this new age of production. The IIoT is a big part of this transformation because it gives these technologies the data necessary to work well. 

The IIoT has the potential to significantly alter business processes as it evolves. When it does, it can change industrial operations in many ways, including industrial automation. Now, you may ask, what is industrial automation?

What is Industrial Automation?

Industrial automation is when you use software and robots to replace humans in controlling machines and processes. Manufacturing, quality assurance, and supply chain management are at the heart of industrial automation.

Benefits of IoT Industrial Solutions

Using an IoT system, you may have access to a plethora of data previously unavailable. When manufacturers keep tabs on their machinery, they can apply the data they collect to boost productivity, transparency, and safety. Here are the main benefits of IoT for businesses. Instead of analyzing the benefits of IoT by sector, we’ve only focused on the manufacturing sector.

Error-Free Data Collection

Manual data collection is still common in conventional workplaces. There are many cases where using paper-based techniques and the inevitable human error has compromised the data integrity.

However, automatic, real-time data collecting is now possible with online connectivity of equipment and gadgets. This offers them reliable data and by having access to reliable data, companies can make better decisions.

Better Productivity

Factories can boost productivity quickly and easily thanks to IIoT. This is because the company can get relevant, credible data about the market and customers. This information is then utilized to enhance and optimize manufacturing and supply chain efficiency. 

With the help of IoT devices, people can get their jobs done quickly, which boosts productivity. In addition to enhancing the productivity of robotic and supply chain jobs, they help with the optimization of manual procedures.

Protecting The Employees

Employees' health and safety have a major impact on the success of the business. Investing in cutting-edge machinery helps businesses protect their plants, warehouses, and other workplaces from harm. In the factory, IoT sensors monitor things like air quality and dangerous gas leaks in real-time. You may also use sensors to keep an eye on workers' health and make sure they don't overdo it on the job.

Saving Money

Industrial operations have some of the highest operating costs of any commercial industry. By automating routine tasks, procedures, and workflows, IoT may significantly cut these expenses. Factories can get insight into their operations and make data-driven choices that can help them minimize their expenses.

Energy Control

Using an IoT energy control system, factories will always have full visibility into their energy use down to every piece of machinery or plant. Wearable devices, sensors, and other connected devices can gather such data at every stage of production.  

By lowering transformer losses, eliminating standby loads, and avoiding peak loads, the Internet of Things helps manufacturers save money. Manufacturing companies may benefit from a real-time monitoring system since it improves data collecting and reporting for energy audits.

Remote Outsourcing Management

It can be harder to maximize output if you use a lot of external suppliers and services. With IIoT, a unified dashboard allows you to monitor all outsourced activities. This is the best strategy for making sure all contractors follow the right procedures and the final products are in line with what was promised.

Real-time Monitoring

Adopting IoT allows companies to monitor production in real-time and get a complete insight into how their facilities operate. Managers and executives can monitor the condition of the whole plant by connecting to and pulling data from machines there.

Managers could get useful insights from analyzing this data, which may help them zero in on the source of a problem. As manufacturers make adjustments, the system improves over time.

Fewer Defects

One of the most vital IoT benefits is that it can minimize the number of errors that can lead to defects. Its sophisticated sensor technology allows it to detect problems early on in the production process. When you know the specifics of a problem's origin, you can take measures to ensure it never happens again. This improves product safety while also saving time and money by eliminating low-quality products. 

Equipment performance monitoring is another use for industrial IoT. By diagnosing and fixing problems before they become catastrophic, you can keep your machinery running for longer. 

Digital Twins

With IoT, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and the cloud, it is now possible to create digital twins of real-world things. Engineers and managers may mimic many processes, run tests, uncover issues, and get necessary findings using virtual versions of equipment and replacement parts without risking or harming actual assets.

With digital twins, we can examine the whole manufacturing line in real time to assess its efficacy and productivity. Digital recreations allow the viewer to zoom in for an in-depth look at a single machine or out for a bird's-eye view of the whole operation. If there are any slowdowns in performance, you can pinpoint them using this.

Advanced analytics

By collecting and analyzing massive volumes of data, businesses can find endless areas for improvement. The ability to predict problems in production and provide solutions is one of the key benefits of IIoT applications. With advanced analytics, managers may get unique insights into the company as a whole and use those findings to enhance all facets of operations.

Inventory Monitoring

Industrial IoT apps can help you keep track of and control your inventory. Keeping track of hundreds, if not millions, of items on paper is a tedious and error-prone process. 

It's possible that you won't get the best results if you try to optimize your storage without using software. With the use of IIoT, we may implement systems that instantly report stock levels and expiry dates. In addition, you may install smart sensors in the storage facility to maintain optimal levels of temperature, humidity, and other parameters.

How to Integrate IoT in Your Industrial Operations

You can see the benefit of using IoT for manufacturing, but you can only enjoy these IoT benefits if you implement the IoT project correctly. To get there, you need to ask yourself four simple questions:

Where Do We Want to Use IoT?

It is up to the company's upper management to establish the project's goals. This will help them determine which data points will be gathered by the IIoT in the future. During this time of introspection, you should also decide on a method of communication.

In order to successfully complete a digital transformation and open up new revenue streams in the manufacturing sector, careful decision-making is vital.

In What Scope?

Once this first stage is complete, you need to determine the technical scope of your industrial project. To do this, you need to answer several subquestions:

• How many sensors do you want to install?
• What kind of automation do you want?
• How do you want to store and process the data?

Last but not least, the business has to select an IIoT platform on which to store and analyze data (big data).

What are the Risks?

There will inevitably be certain security threats to the business by incorporating industrial IoT. Managers have a responsibility to assess these threats and implement solutions to guarantee the well-being and safety of their employees and the integrity of their organization's production and infrastructure.

When working with IIoT, businesses often face new security risks (such as deliberate network disruption or ransomware attacks). You need to find and implement the right solution (in this case, E2E encryption).

Does Our Team Have Enough Training?

IIoT is a cutting-edge technology. Therefore, a period of staff training and education is necessary before bringing the technology to the factory. Your team needs to clearly understand your goals for the IIoT project. Similarly, staff members need training in using cutting-edge technologies (such as sensors, smart meters, etc.).

FAQs

Where does software come in?

While the specific platform you choose is up to you, know that your products are always sending vast amounts of data. Using cloud-native services is crucial because they offer simple scalability across all components.

What is the difference between IoT and IIoT?

IIoT refers to a subset of IoT that is used in factories and other manufacturing facilities. It's not quite that simple, but it's the general idea. IIoT has to be more resilient and versatile than other IoT devices to meet the unique challenges of industrial environments.

What is the biggest benefit of IIoT?

The main benefit of IIoT is that it allows factories to automate their processes and improve their productivity. This can help them save costs and boost revenue down the line.

How important is hardware?

In order to assure the accuracy and credibility of the data acquired by IoT devices, reliable hardware is essential. If the hardware cannot generate accurate data, then everything else falls apart. So, you need to guarantee hardware quality and LANARS’s full-cycle IIoT development services are a great tool for that.