Though automation and Internet of Things (IoT) are much talked about technologies in India and abroad, it has been found that despite embracing these technologies, organisations and enterprises are not successful in extracting maximum profits from their IoT and automation projects. “India is emerging as one of the global markets at the forefront of connected services, that is being contributed by smart cities and other projects of the Indian government. We believe that in the near future and beyond, the main focus of IoT will be to monetise, or earn profit from, all the new connected technologies in the world. We find that all too often, organisations struggle to drive revenue from their IoT projects,” observed Arvind Mehra, general manager, India Delivery Center of CSG, a US-headquartered firm that is helping organisations to capture new revenue streams from the connected world.
It is a known fact that mainstream companies are rapidly embracing machine learning (ML), artificial intelligence (AI) and automation. The technology has already penetrated customer relationship management segments and other areas such as manufacturing processes. For instance, with the help of ML, manufacturing units can leverage data analytics and considerably improve their processes. Further, AI provides real time operational intelligence that supports product lifecycle management which includes process integration, automation and collaboration insights, monitoring, and diagnostics.
“Automation, that is often referred to in the context of the Internet of Things, is defined as billions of physical devices around the world that are now connected to the Internet, collecting and sharing data. We have been working with many communications service providers (CSPs) who are at the heart of the IoT revolution because they provide connectivity to enable sensors and devices to talk to each other and can enable the collection of data from the devices. However, connectivity only represents 5 per cent of the overall revenues promised by IoT according to the GSMA, so many CSPs are beginning to offer services beyond connectivity,” explained Mehra.
Interestingly, CSG is expanding its operations in Bengaluru. Currently, the company has around 500 employees in Bengaluru and is expecting to nearly double the size by the end of next year. As part of its India Delivery Center, the company will create new jobs in automation. “As we continue to innovate new solutions, we will investigate new patent opportunities too,” added Mehra.
Many experts believe that there has been a considerable rise in cyber attacks on critical technology infrastructure and cyber security has become a key area of focus among the users of industrial automation control systems. Nowadays, advanced industrial cybersecurity solutions have evolved to a great extent and are providing both behaviour-based anomaly detection and rules-based analysis that allows manufacturers to leverage deep inspection in order to uncover malware cyber attacks on their enterprise networks.
Besides this, industrial and manufacturing automation, and virtual reality is helping manufacturers to simulate a product or an environment in the digital realm. These automation technologies are also helping industrial users to showcase their digital products or information onto a real world environment.