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Adopting IoT as part of the greater service and business environment involves keeping up with industry changes as they take place. That means incorporating better measures when needs arise in any business area and keeping cost-effective solutions in mind for future progress of the company as a whole.

 

Research indicates IoT deployments are set to skyrocket over the next four years, growing 140% to exceed 50 billion connected devices by 2020...

As the cost and complexity of deploying connected devices continue to fall, IoT projects are no longer a far-fetched dream but a deliverable reality, already transforming a huge range of industries from Field Service to Manufacturing. Martin Clothier, Technical Director at Columbus UK, explains how businesses of all sizes can quickly seize advantage of IoT to deliver operational efficiency, provide actionable insights and improve business processes.

The Internet of Things has comfortably moved beyond the ‘hype’ stage of recent years, with IoT devices and projects now cheap enough to be viable for almost any business. Smaller IoT projects are capable of reaching full operational status in as little as a week. Deployments currently range in ambition from a dozen sensors to capture warehouse temperature, to monitoring the output and performance of remote oil fields across Africa.

There are more and more industries now taking advantage of IoT – and their success lies in identifying the right use case and ensuring they successfully harness device data to produce actionable insights.

 

Use Case One: Turning inefficiency into opportunity

The manufacturing industry is set to gain from IoT deployments that focus on using connected devices to provide a detailed, real-time picture of existing business operations and identify bottlenecks inefficiency. With repetitive processes running around the clock, any minor improvements to efficiency in the production cycle can generate major savings for a manufacturer.

 

"Identifying anomalies at an early stage can allow employees to take immediate corrective action to avoid excessive wastage, unnecessary asset strain or increased production cycle times..."

 

IoT sensors connected to machinery generate continuous streams of performance data, which can be analysed on platforms such as the Azure IoT Suite to identify leaks and bottlenecks hindering production. Identifying anomalies at an early stage can allow employees to take immediate corrective action to avoid excessive wastage, unnecessary asset strain or increased production cycle times.

This potential is not limited to minor efficiency improvements but can provide key metrics that drive business success. If we take, for example, the food and beverage sector – product quality is a top priority. Installing connected cameras above a production line enables manufacturers to introduce machine vision – monitoring and analysing the packaging, labelling and quality of products to ensure compliance and consistency.

 

Use Case Two: Space optimisation and the race against time

IoT monitoring is not restricted to simply monitoring and reporting physical asset conditions but can provide valuable insights into the two basic resources manufacturers have to juggle – space and time. At Columbus, we’ve worked to develop SpaceMAX that helps optimise usage of both workspace and time. With physical space at a premium for businesses – particularly in urban areas – optimised space usage can be invaluable in securing a competitive advantage.

Deploying connected beacons throughout a location such as a warehouse will capture the locations of assets, employees and vehicles from a forklift to a tow tractor. Harnessing the Microsoft Azure

platform, this location data can then be analysed to produce heat maps and identify hotspots, bottlenecks and other areas of inefficiency. By eliminating these we can optimise operations, product flow and the use of employee time.

 

Use Case Three: Tackling skills shortages by providing a helping hand to junior technicians

The threat of a skilled workforce shortage is well documented, with the UK cited as being particularly at risk. As the number of skilled engineers and field service technicians shrinks, the burden to complete detailed installation, repair and maintenance tasks falls increasingly on the shoulders of less experienced staff. Technology holds the answer to ensuring speed and quality is not compromised during remote site visits.

 

"The augmented reality aspect of the HoloLens can be harnessed to deliver contextual information such as service history and manuals explaining the maintenance process step-by-step..."

 

Here’s where developments such as the Microsoft ‘mixed reality’ HoloLens headset take centre stage. Using this headset senior workers can provide remote support and supervision for challenging maintenance tasks, tapping into a collaboration platform such as Microsoft Teams to discuss the task at hand. The augmented reality aspect of the HoloLens can be harnessed to deliver contextual information such as service history and manuals explaining the maintenance process step-by-step.

Remote assistance is just the first step for potential HoloLens applications. More advanced applications involve streaming real-time IoT data directly to the headset, such as telemetry of a production asset, assisted picking or put away, or projected life expectancy of individual components.

 

Bringing it all together – the icing on the transformation cake

By introducing connected devices to monitor environmental conditions, asset status and performance levels, we are generating significant volumes of data around the clock. But how can we translate data generated by machinery on the shop floor into actionable insights?

In order to make use of IoT data, businesses need to be able to collect, format and clean IoT data for analysis. Rules can then be set for actions to be taken if data falls outside of acceptable thresholds, such as staff being notified if a sensor detects a sharp rise in temperature. This is where cloud solutions come into play.

Cloud-based platforms such as the Azure IoT Hub introduce advanced machine learning tools to further identify complex patterns, and data visualisation for supervisors to closely monitor operational performance in real-time. By unlocking these previously unseen insights, IoT is enabling business leaders to make data-driven decisions to improve efficiency for the first time.

IoT can be also a significant asset to businesses by introducing increased automation of repetitive workflows – requiring just minor oversight from supervisors. Take field service as an example. Asset performance data from IoT sensors fed into the Azure platform can be analysed to detect anomalies, indicating a particular component is expected to fail shortly. Through a platform such as Dynamics 365 for Field Service, an automated work order can be created, scheduling an engineer to be dispatched with the correct component to complete maintenance before the failure ever occurs. This brings the added benefit of ensuring business processes are never brought to an unexpected halt through asset failure – an action which could cost thousands in lost revenue.

 

Staying ahead of today’s wave of digital disruption

The steady rise in successful enterprise IoT projects is testament to how IoT is today delivering on the promise of connecting people, processes and systems to enhance business operations and efficiency.

[quote float="left"]Businesses that have not yet developed an IoT strategy to enhance their operations are in danger of surrendering any competitive advantages developed through previous innovation.[/quote] Businesses that have not yet developed an IoT strategy to enhance their operations are in danger of surrendering any competitive advantages developed through previous innovation. But they must also be wary of avoiding the temptation of rolling out connected devices piecemeal, and instead opt for a comprehensive, measured IoT strategy that will consistently add value and deliver the in-depth business intelligence to make smarter decisions.

The real opportunities of IoT are often hidden in full view! Many businesses find it difficult to identify the areas from which they will gain maximum benefit and ROI. Partnering with an experienced company such as Columbus can provide a ‘third eye’, helping companies develop an IoT strategy, deploy suitable hardware and software with sufficient scalability, and support the project from planning stage through to go-live – and beyond.

Columbus is hosting an IoT Quick Start Workshop at the Microsoft HoloLounge in London, 2 October, to help organisations develop their own IoT proof of concept, break down existing use cases and identify operations where IoT can add value and provide actionable insights. Business leaders can secure their spot at the workshop by registering here.

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According to a new research report from the IoT analyst firm Berg Insight, the number of telematics service subscribers using embedded systems will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 31.9 percent from 49.0 million subscribers at the end of 2017 to 258.1 million subscribers at the end of 2023.

Moreover, Berg Insight forecasts that shipments of embedded car OEM telematics systems worldwide will grow from 26.8 million units in 2017 to reach 67.2 million units in 2023, which represents an attach rate of 71.7 percent.

Connected car services have evolved from being a differentiating factor to a common feature with a high attach rate among the premium car brands and are rapidly becoming increasingly common in mid-range vehicles. GM’s OnStar was launched 20 years ago and is today the market leader worldwide with well above 14.0 million users in total, out of which 12.3 million were in North America by year-end 2017.

BMW includes telematics hardware as a standard feature on all its cars sold in 45 markets worldwide and has the second largest user base of an estimated 8.0 million equipped vehicles. PSA Group is currently in third place with 2.9 million connected vehicles in Europe. The carmaker launched an emergency and assistance call service already in 2003. Additional automotive OEMs with over 2 million telematics subscribers also include Hyundai, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota/Lexus and FCA Group.

“There are several connected car services that experience growing demand from stakeholders including consumers, car manufacturers, governments and various third parties as awareness of the value of telematics spreads”, said Martin Svegander, IoT analyst at Berg Insight.

The leading carmakers are gradually exploring new use cases and business models for telematics such as premium concierge services, usage-based insurance and personal car sharing. “Recently, we have also seen GM, Jaguar Land Rover and Hyundai launch in-vehicle commerce platforms that create opportunities for retailers and merchants to connect with consumers”, added Mr. Svegander.

For field service organisations it will be interesting to see how this trend continues to shape the way we view fleet management and w2e are certainly beginning to see some maturation of a technology that will have a significant impact on our sector.

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Want to know more? Download report brochure: The Global Automotive OEM Telematics Market

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We are undoubtedly entering a new era of technology, automation and innovation, but in a world of rapid industrial evolution how will regulations also adapt? 

Oliver Rickett, Solicitor, and Caroline Churchill, Partner, at law firm Womble Bond Dickinson  share their insights on this crucial topic... 

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"Everything is true… everything anybody has ever thought." Philip K. Dick – Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep

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It is impossible to escape from the fact that technology, and increasingly artificial intelligence (AI), has transformed everyday life.

It all started with how we play our music, but Apple's Siri and Amazon's Alexa (along with other similar "virtual assistants") now have a daily interface with many of us. We are also, increasingly, now daily users of the Internet of Things (IoT) – connecting up smart fridges, boilers and alarm systems, each controllable from a smartphone. The "everyday" form of AI is almost unavoidable in the modern home, but, while not necessarily as obvious to you and me, there is also an ongoing, yet unseen growth in AI in the manufacturing sector.  What is still lacking, however, is concrete regulation in place for the use and development of AI in the industry.

This article looks at where AI regulation might be implemented and, specifically, what impact both AI has, and its regulation would have, on the manufacturing industry and what role the UK might have in this ever-changing sector.

 

What is "Industry 4.0" and how is AI related?

The term "Industry 4.0" is not a new one.  It relates back to discussions in 2012 of a forthcoming "Fourth Industrial Revolution", the idea being that the current trend of automation would increase, with technology enabling "smart factories". These factories take existing automated assembly line structures and include a cyber element, allowing for the underlying manufacturing machinery to communicate with one another and with the wider factory system as a whole via an IoT setup – increasing efficiency.

Machines with autonomy

The whole process is, and would still be, overseen by a human element, who the machines can also communicate with.  But one of the main goals of Industry 4.0 is to have the machines operating in a decentralised way and with as much autonomy as possible save only where exceptions, interferences or conflicting goals require additional input.

 

How is AI being used currently?

"So far, so sci-fi" you might think, but Industry 4.0 is alive across our manufacturing industry and there are already plenty of examples of manufacturers using this kind of technology across the sector.  Developments are being pioneered by high-end technology companies such as Tesla, Intel and Microsoft on an international scale, some through mere investment or others through actual manufacturing and application.

AI efficiencies and cost savings

Siemens has been using neural networks for a number of years in monitoring the efficiencies of their steel plants.  Siemens is now using this prior experience to make waves in the manufacturing AI sector, using AI to monitor variables (e.g. temperature) on their gas turbines which then adjusts the operation of the machine for increased efficiency and without unwanted by-products.

Others use system masters to spot potential problems and possible solutions, often before a human operator would notice such issues.  The use of this technology has resulted in positive improvements across their smart factories, reducing maintenance costs, as AI can now detect wear on machinery long before it becomes unmanageable.

 

The UK's role in AI and plans for regulation

In the UK, The Manufacturer's Annual Manufacturing Report 2018 conducted a survey on the possibility of a more widespread use of "smart factories" - 92% of senior manufacturing executives believe that digital technologies (including AI) will enable them to increase productivity levels.  Yet, the UK is generally seen as "lagging behind" many other developed countries when it comes to implementing AI in the manufacturing sector.  Is this an example of the UK "traditional mindset"?  With estimates on global turnover of the "smart manufacturing" market soaring to a projected $320bn by 2020 – let's hope not!

Sector-led regulation

Despite technology advancing at a rapid pace, regulation of AI is yet to emerge.  Whilst some commentators have theorised a Skynet-style AI uprising if the sector remains as unregulated as it is today, the UK government has provided a more pragmatic voice. According to the House of Lords Select Committee's report on AI[1], the UK "is in a strong position to be a world leader in the development of artificial intelligence" and with this comes some required element of regulation.

The report "AI in the UK: Ready, Willing and Able?" makes several recommendations as to how the law may need to be updated to account for these new technologies, but also states that "blanket AI-specific regulation, at this stage, would be inappropriate". The Lords instead believe that a sector-specific approach should be taken, with three new governmental organisations (the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation (CDEI), the AI Council and the Government Office for AI) each taking a lead role in developing regulatory policy going forwards.

Manufacturing sector

For the manufacturing sector, this is expected to cover a number of areas. A key area of focus is likely to be the availability of data access.  AI systems are notoriously expensive and this could clearly impact on the revenues of SMEs struggling to compete financially with international corporations if they were to be further bolstered by AI. A possible solution suggested by the Lords is to implement an "Open Banking" style model where some data can be made public in order to make the sector, as a whole, more competitive.

Safety concerns

Terminator references aside, safety is also one of the primary concerns in this new technology. The current law is a long way from Asimov's "Three Laws of Robotics" and currently fails to address liability issues if, for example, a worker was to be injured by a machine malfunction. As with all policy issues at the moment, the spectre of Brexit looms large and is specifically referred to in the Lords' report as an area of concern since many of the UK's AI initiatives are run jointly with EU counterparts.

Impact on workforce

Finally, aside from direct regulation, businesses across the sector must prepare themselves for potential changes in personnel. Much has been made of how AI will "cost jobs" but the reality is that work in this field is expected to create as many as are lost. It will be more a matter of retraining current staff to deal with the new equipment, and each business will have to assess how much of an impact this will have on their own operation.

AI promotion of innovation and growth

The use of AI in manufacturing will inevitably increase over the short-to-medium term before becoming the "norm" and with an encouraging approach taken by the Lords, aligned with UK Government – who are committed to regulation "that promotes innovation and the growth of new sectors while protecting citizens and the environment", it is likely that we can expect domestic investment in AI as well as the inevitable international investment.

Sustainable regulation required

As with all rapidly growing technologies, the focus should be on sustainable regulation (such as the recent developments in UK law on the use of drones).  However, while the regulatory forecast is still uncertain, what is becoming clear is a real sense of opportunity.

AI - an opportunity for all

With the possibility of the UK being front-and-centre of the new age for manufacturing, there is huge potential for our manufacturing and technology clients:

• those that embrace the change and move towards a technology-focused approach away from the traditional "industrial" style will surely benefit from the efficiencies that come with that change, and
• for the smaller UK SMEs and start-ups out there – dream big!  With the AI sector in such an early stage of development and with many larger corporations lacking the technological know-how (for the time being) to trail-blaze the industry, UK start-ups, with the technological background, have the opportunity to partner or contract with large industrials and have their say on what the future of the manufacturing sector looks like.

Womble Bond Dickinson takes a sector-based approach in all work that we do for our clients and are particularly strong in both manufacturing and technology.  If you have any comments or queries in relation to this article, AI in general, or questions about how we can help your business grow and embrace this new landscape, please get in touch.

We have seen a seismic shift within the field service sector towards adopting a more proactive approach to service - but is this a mega trend in itself or is it indicative of an even bigger shift in the way we view service delivery?

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Want to know more? This article is based around an exclusive fieldservicenews.com webcast which you can access @ http://fs-ne.ws/Y8ny30lsZUR

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Within our industry we are currently seeing a seismic shift - that is the move towards predictive maintenance and whilst the traditional modus operandi of field service operations of a break-fix approach will likely still have a place within most service organisations processes for the foreseeable future, predictive maintenance, empowered by the Internet of Things, is becoming a massively prevalent discussion amongst companies in all sectors who are looking to seek enhanced competitive advantages over their peers whilst simultaneously improving their own performance efficiencies.

One company who have such developments on their roadmap is Daikin Applied UK who recently joined Field Service News and Salesforce for an exclusive webcast discussion on how service organisations are harnessing technology to bridge the gap between the mobile workforce and their customer bases.

Indeed, it is a topic that we have covered extensively here at Field Service News, but is this shift to preventative maintenance set to be a megatrend within our industry, as many are predicting, or is it suited to specific industries and certain organisations within those industries?

 

"Even within sub-sectors within manufacturing, we are seeing companies have different results and taking different approaches..."

 

“I think it is absolutely going to be a mega-trend,” commented Scott Flatman, Regional Sales Director, Salesforce during the session.

“It is going to be a real competitive differentiator for companies that want to go the extra mile and stay ahead of the competition,” he adds.

“I do think that we may see this in different guises depending on the industry, however. For example, manufacturers at the moment seem to be at the forefront of this shift, but then even within the wider manufacturing industry it would be wrong of us to broad-brush it as a complete mega-trend.”

“Yet even within sub-sectors within manufacturing, we are seeing companies have different results and taking different approaches.”

“For us, this capability of connecting our products to our customers and to our business is really important, but it is not a one size fits all solution,” adds John McCarthy, CRM manager, Daikin Applied UK.

“It is certainly a trend across a lot of the sub-sections of our industry but it won’t suit all of our customers. However, we do need to be offering these types of solutions, for us to continue to be a leader within our sector.”

Of course, it is this ability to tailor a service solution to customer requirements that is a critical part of the discussion not only around predictive maintenance but also service delivery in general in today’s markets, which are becoming increasingly customer-centric. But is there a direct correlation between asset connectivity and increased customer engagements and satisfaction?

 

"We understand that our technicians and engineers are the front line and the face of our business. So we put a lot of time and effort into ensuring they have the tools and resources that they need..."

 

“There certainly is,” McCarthy responds when this question is put to him.

“For us, we understand that our technicians and engineers are the front line and the face of our business. So we put a lot of time and effort into ensuring they have the tools and resources that they need as well as also giving our customers the tools and resources they need to get the most out of the services they get from us.”

“Ultimately this technology doesn’t take away from the fact that we have highly skilled factory trained engineers, but it certainly enhances it,” he adds.

“I think it is also changing the expectations of the customers,” comments Flatman.

“The very best service experience is to have no service experience at all. Let’s take the Daikin Applied UK use case as an example. If you have a chiller that is operating outside of its normal thresholds - wouldn’t be great if an engineer was passing on his or her way home wouldn’t it be great if they could drop in and give it a check, make some tweaks or perhaps perform a rest so they can resolve the issue before it arises - as opposed to a company having to wait for it to go down.”

“That can help avoid not just a negative service experience for the contact, but also avoid all of the compound issues that could arise from that one failure.”

“If we can help our customers avoid that happening, who can then help their customers and so on, for me that is going to be the real win for businesses.”

This is perhaps the true mega-trend that preventative maintenance is part of the shift away from a number of businesses operating only alongside each other in a transactional way, to organisations becoming much more integrated partners within a true business ecosystem.

Indeed, this concept is at the heart of what many in the sector are now calling advanced services, which can yield greater profit margins in a much more stable business environment and predictive maintenance is set to become a cornerstone of such approaches to service in the not so distant future.

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Want to know more? This article is based around an exclusive fieldservicenews.com webcast which you can access @ http://fs-ne.ws/Y8ny30lsZUR

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Kris Oldland, Editor-in-Chief, Field Service News talks to Kevin Starr of ABB's Oil and Gas Division, to get his take on just how pivotal it is we all get on board with the digitalisation agenda…

Kevin Starr, Program Director, Advanced Digital Services, for ABB jokingly refers to himself as someone who is just getting started, having spent 31 years in the industry.

Given Starr’s wide-ranging background which encompasses installing industrial automation, working with pneumatics, then electrics, DCS and now digital and across roles that include R&D managers, software developer, data scientist and cloud specialist - he is perhaps the very personification and embodiment of how the field service sector is in constant flux on a journey of continuous evolution.

Yet, underneath all that evolution, there also remain fundamental goals in place that we mustn’t lose sight of either.

As Starr himself explains - across his varied career the core objective for ABB, regardless of the technology surrounding the discussion is always to allow their clients to “hit their value, production and quality requirements by providing them with solutions.”

 

"Regardless of the technology surrounding the discussion is always to allow their clients to “hit their value, production and quality requirements by providing them with solutions...”

 

However, Starr also absolutely sees a convergence in the various skill-sets he has honed across his career in the area and era of digitalisation we are all working within today.

Indeed, certainly within field service circles, when it comes to digitalisation Starr is to be regarded a leading subject matter expert – a fact that is attested to the fact he is a highly sought-after speaker at industry conferences as well being the host of a successful YouTube series and author on the topic.

“We definitely are in the industrial revolution 4.0,” Starr asserts with conviction when I spoke to him recently during whilst recording a forthcoming episode of The Field Service Podcast.

All well and good, but what exactly does this shift to the Industrial Revolution 4.0 actually mean in real terms for most companies, who perhaps are lacking the innovative streak ABB certainly have embedded at their core.

Whilst there are undoubted opportunities to be had, for many it means stepping into a brave new world of the unknown and for many, this can be a daunting proposition.

“We are definitely moving into an area where our customers may have some new concerns and fears. There are some misunderstandings that need clarification and there are a number of different issues relating to digital that they have to consider," Starr explains continuing, “so what we’ve tried to do is make this discussion feel more real for them, we’ve tried to make it concrete and actionable.”

 

"When clients hear things like Data Science, Cloud Computing, Big Data, and all the other tech jargon that is being thrown around, they can get nervous...“

 

When clients hear things like Data Science, Cloud Computing, Big Data, and all the other tech jargon that is being thrown around, they can get nervous.”

Additionally, the wave of technological innovation we are witnessing today is only part of the sea change of disruption that currently surrounds us.

“It is something of a perfect storm,” Starr agrees expanding on the topic.

“There is an ageing workforce, there is knowledge retiring, there are new people coming into the workforce who just aren’t ready to spend thirty years with the technology,” he adds.

Yet, it is exactly within these challenges that Starr sees big potential for innovation.

“We have here some opportunities to really change the game for our industrial clients and along with this is what is really an industrial explosion of automation.,” he explains.

“When I started off the controllers were on a wall, so the size of the service was aligned with the physical proximity of a wall. Now, you have dots on a screen. Where once you might have had thirty or forty devices, now you have three or four thousand.”

 

"What we’ve always done in the service space, doesn’t work today..."

 

This anecdote serves as a stark example of just how much service delivery has moved within just a matter of decades.  In terms of actual service delivery, automation, particularly in industrial sectors, has made the way work today almost unrecognisable from how things were done in the past.

This is something which needs to be fully understood and acknowledged for companies to be able to bring their business and operational processes in line with modern means of tackling service delivery.

“What we’ve always done in the service space, doesn’t work today,” Starr states bluntly.

“What this means is that there are a lot more failures, a lot more downtime and a lot more product instability. This leads to a lot more fear, uncertainty and doubt  - because if that phone rings and your client calls you and says my system is down - what do you do?  That is a terrifying call to get and it always has been, but with digital, we can solve all that.”

“In the Oil and Gas sector, for example, we have clients who are trying to remain competitive in an industry in which price changes sent a complete shockwave through the sector. Companies who used to have large corporate staff are shrinking, with reduced manned or unmanned solutions becoming more prevalent.”

“Yet, most solutions involve people working on a system, so we truly have a gap. We’ve got to keep the site running but we also have to make our production and our quality efficient - and of course first and foremost we have to make sure our people are safe.”

“To me, the digital arena is what will allow us to use devices to reduce this problem space.”

Of course, many of the challenges that Starr outlines are also prevalent in sectors well beyond the Oil and Gas industry and searching for solutions for those challenges within the digital realm is now well established as the correct path to follow.

Yet, one of the reasons perhaps Starr has proven to be such a popular speaker on this topic is his ability to blend the technical and the practical and to help those listening to visualise how the often vague concepts sitting under the umbrella of digitalization will manifest in real, pragmatic terms – something he demonstrated again when we spoke with a particularly neat and effective summary of how the implementation of such tools can really have a significant impact on service delivery.

“It’s kind of like a heads-up display in a car. When I have a problem, it advises me so I then know when to dispatch somebody and make sure they have the right tools at the right time,” he explains.

 

"When that happens, great things happen and you can actually push through and hit production, quality and cost to produce levels that have literally been unheard of..."

 

“When that happens, great things happen and you can actually push through and hit production, quality and cost to produce levels that have literally been unheard of.”

“That’s what keeps me just giddy with excitement,” he says before adding wryly “but if it was easy it would already be done.”

Here, of course, Starr has hit the nail firmly on the head with regards to the current dichotomy most service companies find themselves in.

Whilst it seems that digitalisation of service delivery offers us great opportunities they equally bring additional challenges. As with many things in life, it appears there is an ever-evolving arms race between these two. As one challenge is solved thus creating new opportunities, so a new challenge is born.

With this in mind, I was keen to see if Starr sees field service today as something that has been simplified by technology, or in particular as we consider the vast amount of data we are now generating, has it actually become further complicated?

“I was always one of ABB’s smart guys with a bag of tricks. If there was a problem I’d get a ticket and I’d go fix the site. But I was always able to do that because the problem space wasn’t as huge as it is today,” he replies.

“Today our guys have to worry about cyber attacks, IT Security, Back Ups, Disk Space, Uptime, Communication, Visualisation and much, much more – so it’s very difficult to have someone who is an expert in all of those areas - and we’ve got to quit trying,” Starr explains.

“What’s different now is that the components being produced, and ABB makes an awful lot of these, each has their own digital signatures. Basically, they have a built-in data stream associated with the asset.”

 

"If I go outside and see a vapour trail in the sky I know a jet went by – even if I don’t see the jet. That’s the same principle on every single connected asset – it will leave a digital signature behind it..."

 

“For example, if I go outside and see a vapour trail in the sky I know a jet went by – even if I don’t see the jet. That’s the same principle on every single connected asset – it will leave a digital signature behind it.

“I was fortunate to have been the fireman and put the fire out on the site, but I would think ‘If I had just been here yesterday and I could have seen this data trail I could have prevented the failure.’ So that’s where we started packaging that and we called those diagnostic solutions, benchmarks and fingerprints - where we would provide scope and insight.”

“We would go and harvest the data and fifteen or twenty years ago that was very difficult. We would go and hook up resistors and current line – but we learned the technique.”

But it was time well spent and a highly precipitous move that has placed ABB perfectly at home in today’s world where there is more data and storage than they’re ever has been.  And a reflection of their expertise in this area is that they are now getting more requests from customers for us to go and look at there data than ever before.

As the conversation begins to conclude Starr offered up one ore excellent anecdote that really helps visualise the importance of digital in service delivery today.

“I was driving along the road in Vietnam the other day when we came to a bridge across a river,” he begins.

 

"That’s what modern service is – you can either fish with a hook or fish with a net..."

 

“On the side of the bridge there were two men fishing with a line, but in the shallows, there was a man fishing with a net – and he was bringing in a far greater haul than those two guys with their lines.  I thought to myself, that’s what modern service is – you can either fish with a hook or fish with a net.”

“In our world of automation, you don’t need to physically go and touch every single asset, that is hurting people, putting them in harm's way. When there are digital components you can actually send out agents, pull that digital signature back, run data analytics and compare it to known failure rates, known performance and you can tell exactly where your systems are.”

“So you can actually know if your safe reliable and optimised and you can demonstrate it.”

If your organisation hasn’t done so already perhaps it’s time to start thinking about what your digital net should look like as well?

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Subscribe to The Field Service Podcast to be sure to hear the full interview with Starr by clicking here

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Samir Gulati outlines four key technologies that are forming the bedrock for twenty-first century field service...

Twenty-first-century technological advancement has transformed how businesses everywhere communicate and interact with their customers.

Gone are the days of the occasional customer service call. Mobile technology has forever changed how people connect with product and service providers.

Field-service businesses that have yet to embrace digital customer engagement methods and tools must work quickly to do so. Modern consumers don’t like losing whole days waiting for calls from service personnel. They expect field service companies to use the latest technology to streamline the customer experience, create visibility into appointments and reduce hassle.

But which technological innovations should field service providers focus on? Here are some of the key technological tools gaining steam among the customers of the connected age.

 

Customer portals

Because of the pervasiveness of mobile technology, customer portals are everywhere.

Although the quality of these web-based assets varies from business to business, there are a couple essential components that creators of customer portals will always include:

• Information-rich, personalized dashboards allow users to view critical service data.
• Payment and account management give customers transparency into their past service requests and a place to pay for services rendered.

With tools like these, customers can serve themselves, which 67 percent prefer over speaking directly with a customer service representative. That said, direct communication tools such as instant messaging are still valuable, especially if they connect a customer with their personal technician or central dispatch.

These features not only meet the high standards of connected customers. They also simplify field service operations and reduce the likelihood of miscommunication between the provider and the customer.

 

Internet of things:

The internet of things is perhaps the most powerful innovation transforming business-to-consumer interaction today. At the moment, more than 11 billion IoT assets are active worldwide. By 2020, that figure is expected to jump to around 20.4 billion, a good number of which will likely be part of connected field-service operations.

In the field-service industry, asset-based deployments are common. Sensors embedded in equipment or appliances leverage internet connectivity to notify owners or even field-service providers when maintenance may be required, accelerating the repair process. Technician facing IoT workflows are also common and use geolocation to track service teams and route them to customers in need.

 

 

Smart home technology:

Even though web-enabled smart home technologies have received a lot of buzz in recent years, relatively few homeowners have adopted such solutions: In 2017, only 10 percent of families across the had any connected home solutions.

But smart home adoption isn’t unlikely to remain this low for long. Consumers are beginning to understand how much time and money smart home tech can save.

Field-service companies in the utility sector are catching on to the building momentum behind these innovative hardware and software solutions. Smart thermostats, for example, give customers greater visibility into—and control over—their electricity and gas usage. They also give technicians a better way to leverage data in order to provide personalised service and communicate effectively with the customer and the manufacturer.

 

Augmented reality:

Reality, augmented by real-time data, delivers benefits to connected customers by giving their technicians all the resources they need to perform perfect maintenance.

Field-service companies of all sizes are leveraging these tools to revolutionise on-site operations. Many are equipping technicians with augmented reality headsets that allow them to view updated product operating instructions or best practices while performing maintenance or repairs. Others are using these tools in training exercises so new technicians can ramp up quickly.

 

Summary: Embracing Innovation:

Field-service providers without these technologies may still be tempted to hold off on adoption. Perhaps they find these solutions too expensive or too complicated to deploy at the moment. It’s up to the decision-makers at these companies to decide what’s viable and what isn’t.

But these leaders should not underestimate the power of creating a bold new strategy for technology. It can lay the groundwork for excellent service effective operations in the age of the connected customer. As technology moves forward, so do consumers.

Field-service enterprises would be wise to recognize this reality and put into place up-to-date hardware and software that meets the needs of those driving the modern marketplace.

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Samir Gulati, is Chief Marketing Officer, ServicePower 

 

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Jan Van Veen, Managing Director, moreMomentum, continues his series of articles looking at how service organisations can drive revenue from their services by harnessing the IoT...

Solve bigger customer problems

In the previous issue of Field Service News, I wrote an introduction on the topic “How to Monetise Services and IoT”, covering the dilemma of many business leaders in manufacturing.

In this article, I will elaborate on the first of the three critical steps which often make the difference between success and failure:

• SOLVE BIGGER CUSTOMER PROBLEMS
• Articulate the value
• Build internal momentum for monetisation

Common mistakes in the industry

One of the common mistakes is focusing on the smaller problems and making only small incremental improvements to services or solutions.

 

"One of the common mistakes is focusing on the smaller problems and making only small incremental improvements to services or solutions..."

 

These are typically the standard next step improvements most competitors bring to the market as well. Although these are also necessary improvements – adding features to your solutions - to sustain your market position, they are unlikely to bring about significant growth or opportunities required to monetise. For example, think of new features that car manufacturers introduce to their new models or weekly computer software updates that occur without paying more.

Another common mistake is focusing too much on only the availability and use of the equipment. In most situations, the extra value is having a broader impact of the value creation process for our clients. In most industries, the purchase, financing, and maintenance of equipment is a small portion of the overall budget.

 

Truck manufacturers as an example

As an example, while the sale of trucks was shrinking dramatically, leading truck manufacturers like MAN, DAF and Scania discovered that discounting the trucks did not have that much of an impact. One of the biggest challenges for truck operators was reducing fuel consumption. The leading truck manufacturers took this challenge beyond aero-dynamics and engine efficiency, and developed data-driven services to reduce fuel consumption by improving the way truck drivers drove the trucks.

 

Discovering the bigger customer problems

The ideal practice is to:

• Solve the bigger problems in a significantly better or more efficient way for clients, or
• Solve any new significant problems for our clients

Before developing new services and solutions, it is crucial to have a deeper understanding of the challenges and problems that your clients face. The following activities will prevent any bias from long-standing experience and business norms:

• Reframe addressable customer needs with your team and colleagues who are involved. The aim is to have a broader view and scope on customer needs. Explicitly ban objections against the idea of servicing those needs.
• Focus on actual “jobs-to-do” for your clients and areas where they are struggling or could improve. For example, improving uptime may not be that relevant for clients with a low utilisation rate. Whether you carry out professional customer research or not, it is always good if various colleagues have frequent open conversations with different stakeholders about views on the industry, trends, challenges etc. Sharing the following simple diagram during such conversations is helpful for you and your clients to keep the dialogue open.
• Explore how your clients are solving problems and what suppliers are helping them.
• Also, explore the needs and challenges of the customers of your customers. This will give more insight into your customer’s needs.
• Explore what needs you could/should be addressed now and in the future. With these insights, you can extend and enhance your vision, strategies and roadmap for innovating your services and generating new revenue streams.

 

The Benefit

Manufacturers that solve the bigger problems can better articulate the value for customers and staff, have higher momentum for change and monetisation, generate new revenue streams and differentiate themselves more from the competition.

 

"Manufacturers that solve the bigger problems can better articulate the value for customers and staff, have higher momentum for change and monetisation..."

 

]They perform better and have more resources to keep innovating their business, enabling growth in a sometimes disruptive world.

Monetisation of services and IoT – Impulse Session

If you want to accelerate the monetisation of your (new) services and IoT, join our upcoming Impulse Sessions on “How to Monetise Service and IoT”. These are full-day interactive meetings with like-minded peers during which we will exchange our experiences, insights, and challenges.

Book your seat @ http://fs-ne.ws/1pMC30lpssC

Essence

Great offerings and solutions won’t sell themselves!

It is various colleagues together that drive the value perception and sell the solutions, because of their eagerness and passion to perform, learn, develop and make new things happen, as well as avoid unnecessary obstacles that cause internal conflicts of interest and reduce confidence.

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Jan Van Veen, is Managing Director, moreMomentum, 

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