ARCHIVE FOR THE ‘iot-2’ CATEGORY

Mark Glover, Deputy Editor, Field Service News continues the latest series of The Field Service Podcast as he sits down with simPRO's Richard Pratley. 

Field Service News Deputy Editor, Mark Glover, sits down with Richard Pratley, Managing Director, UK simPRO and discuss how the challenge of an ageing workforce is being echoed around the world for field service companies and how technology, in particular, IoT, is able to help resolve the problem by increasing service management efficiency. 

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The Field Service Podcast returns for series three with a brand new host Mark Glover who speaks to Oneserve's CEO Chris Proctor. 

in this edition of the podcast fieldservicenews.com Deputy Editor, Mark Glover talks to the ever insightful and engaging Chris Proctor, CEO with Oneserve where they discuss why robots won't be taking over field service operations (just yet) and how OK should no longer be good enough for field service companies that want to excel.

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Growth and revenue opportunities emerge from the advent of new business models, mergers & acquisition activity, finds Frost & Sullivan...Rebounding from a two-year slump, the non-destructive test (NDT) inspection services market is undergoing an overall transformation. The convergence of various technologies such as Big Data, predictive analytics, digital twin, cloud computing, and smart factories is enhancing growth opportunities in the market, giving rise to several new business models. Vendors are making concerted efforts to convert Big Data to smart data and shift the market from the traditional time-people business model to more proactive performance-based business models.

"Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based NDT capabilities are altering market structures and driving the transformation of traditional business models,” said Prem Shanmugam, Senior Consultant for Measurement & Instrumentation at Frost & Sullivan. "Automation companies are increasingly repositioning themselves as service providers, while sensorization and predictive analytics have enabled vendors to develop innovative business models."

Frost & Sullivan’s recent analysis, Global Non-destructive Testing Inspection Services Market, Forecast to 2022, identifies key growth opportunities while detailing the challenges and threats. The forecast period is from 2018 to 2022, with 2017 being the base year. It covers the technology segments of ultrasonic, radiography, electromagnetic, visual inspection, and penetrant test.

 

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For further information on this analysis, please visit: http://frost.ly/30g 

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"This evolving market ecosystem will encourage numerous mergers and acquisitions as NDT inspection service companies look to broaden their capabilities in areas such as online monitoring, robotics, and predictive analytics," noted Shanmugam. "The convergence of dimensional metrology with NDT applications will help create a competitive advantage for NDT vendors by allowing them to expand beyond their core capabilities. For instance, technology synergies will enable vendors to use 3D portable laser scanners to scan pipeline corrosion."

Another significant benefit of applying technologies such as connectivity, cloud, and advanced analytics is that it mitigates the challenge of a shrinking pool of experienced and qualified NDT technicians. There are additional revenue opportunities to be gained by leveraging cutting-edge technologies, such as:

• AI-powered industrial robots in inspection and material handling.
• Intelligent algorithms for processing huge amounts of data in real time.
• Drones to inspect components and repair damaged components in the wind energy sector. The results will be automatically analyzed using fuzzy logic and neural networks.
• Mechanical follow-up tools to ensure adherence to the structure of the actual part or new advanced technologies such as CT 3D X-rays.
• The combined synergies of NDT inspection services with online monitoring solutions similar to condition monitoring and other ICT and advanced analytics.

Global Non-destructive Testing Inspection Services Market, Forecast to 2022 is part of Frost & Sullivan’s global Test & Measurement Growth Partnership Service program.

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Jan Van Veen continues his latest exclusive Field Service News series on how companies can monetise their services and data by exploring how companies can remove the obstacles that are stopping them build momentum with their clients...

 

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Catch up with the previous articles in this series How to Monetise Services and IoT and How To Monetise Services And IoT: Better Articulate Value now! 

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Central question

Many manufacturers experience pressure on growth, revenue and margins.

Their products and services are being commoditised. Competition from lower cost alternatives are arising. On the other hand, there are huge opportunities with new technologies, value propositions and business models.

One of the important trends is that value proposition and offerings become more data-driven and more service-oriented. However, many manufacturers are product-driven businesses which do not fully appreciate the value that service has for their customers and own business.

So, one of the central questions is: How to Monetise Services and Data in order to Grow in a Disruptive World? The capability to monetising service and IoT is mission critical for sustainable performance and existence of manufacturing.

In a series of articles, we cover 4 critical steps that make the difference between success and failure in monetising Services and Data:

1. Solve bigger customer problems, which is about creating significantly more value for customers. 
2. Articulate the value
3. Build momentum with clients to adopt
4. Build internal momentum for monetisation

 

Common mistakes

Too often we see that with (new) services, the new solutions and features we launch are not always that easy to start using for our clients. If the obstacles to adopt are too big and not solved, less clients will use it or will delay using it significantly, and in the meantime will not see the real value, in turn creating more obstacles and resistance, resulting in limited commercial success.

If you encounter such signals, it may not always be easy to get a clear picture whether;

1. Your clients simply do not have the problem that your solution is trying to solve
2. Your solution is not adequately fixing the problem compared to other solutions
3. There are serious constraints in applying your solution, even if it is a good solution

So, caution is advised in these situations not to jump to wrong conclusions.

For the sake of this article, let us assume 1) and 2).

The obstacles in applying your solution can be categorised as follows:

 

Lack of money

The new solution you are offering appears to be too expensive for your client.

It is seen as too big an investment and/or recurring cost in relation to the value they perceive will be received.

It could be that the issue is more related to the perception of the value, how well that has been articulated (see previous article on ‘Better Articulate the Value’) or that you are not talking to the right decision makers in your client’s organisation.

 

Lack of skills

Using the new solutions are too complex and difficult for your client, as they are complex to use and require a lot of training to acquire the necessary skills.

 

Lack of access

Often, the new solutions can only be used and generate value in certain circumstances.

Commonly overlooked is that applying the new solutions and receiving value from it, often requires:

• A significant change in the way of working by staff, which triggers too much resistance
• A significant overhaul of the processes and information flow
• A change in the structure of the organisation and roles, with some staff even losing their role/ job

 

Lack of time

For many new solutions, it takes time and effort to make sure they are adequately used and embedded in the organisation. If the pressure from daily business and other projects is high, it easily happens that adopting the new solutions is put on the back burner and falls off the radar.

 

Risk

In essence, there could be two main sources of perceived risk:

• The risk that the solution does not work as expected and hence does not bring value
• The more social risk of sticking out your neck for change which might not be accepted by stakeholders
• Too often we focus on the technical part of our new solution or features, and do not give other client needs and obstacles enough consideration,  when:
• Gaining customer insight into their bigger problems
• Developing a remarkable solution to solve these bigger customer problems
• How and with whom we discuss the client problems, and promote and sell our solutions

An interesting example is a major metal wholesaler that is looking into adding extra value to industrial clients by not only offering standard trade sizes, but other services too.

They also offer services like cutting, drilling, bending and even picking packages for direct delivery into different locations in the manufacturing  for their clients. This really solves a lot of challenges for low-volume high-mix manufacturers.

However, using these services means that equipment and people doing the pre-manufacturing work becomes redundant or they have to change their role. It also means inventory goes down, which changes the (perception of the) stability and contingency in the production line, depending on an external party.

The result was that initially most clients did not buy the new offerings, regardless of the well-articulated (financial) benefits and business cases.

At some point, stakeholders started doubting the potential of the added value services and whether to abandon the initiative or not.

 

Some practical solutions

Manufacturers that are quite successful in launching and growing customer adoption of the new solutions and features, have the following good practices:

1. The have a broader view on the bigger customer problems and challenges beyond the functional requirements of equipment. They better understand the operational and change challenges and therefore have a more integral view on what it takes to improve on these problems and challenges. Important obstacles are included in the design instead of as an afterthought.

2. They develop a more concrete and remarkable solution to solve the bigger customer problems. Where needed, the obstacles (in using the new solutions) are already designed into the solution.

For example:

a. They focus more on simplifying the solution, making it easier to use with less training and implementation effort for their clients.

b. Their solution is more than a technical solution and includes support in implementing and maintaining a new way of working.

 c. They offer an ascending engagement model in which customers step-by-step can implement and use portions of the overall solution. This way they can mitigate risk, reduce the change challenge and allow their organisation to become familiar with the new way of thinking and working. Simplify the solution and ease of use.

 

3. They involve the right stakeholders in the client’s organisation – who have a stake in the problem being solved, in the decision-making phase and in the implementation phase.

Further to the metal wholesaler example above, the next steps of the added services portfolio were to:

• Organise open workshops for clients, discussing trends and changes in the sector, and some best practices and success stories.
• Workshops with the client’s key stakeholders to get a full picture of the journey of maturing their manufacturing operation, supply chain, plant layout, equipment, competencies and people. And then use the information to develop a road-map on how to step-by-step develop. It also helped to get stakeholders on the same page and engaged.
• Provide project management and change management practices and resources.
• Organise pilot tests, get used to new ways of working and building trust.
• Offering ongoing performance management dashboards to get full visibility and transparency of performance, progress and issues. This helped preventing blame for every incident, and also helped to feed a continuous improvement programme.

 

The Benefit

Manufacturers that are better in building momentum with their clients to adapt to their new solutions, see that their customers fluidly adopt new solutions and have a fairly high pace of scaling up.

Hence, these manufacturers generate more new revenue streams with higher margins and differentiate more from their competition.

 

Give monetisation of Services and Data an Impulse

If you want to accelerate the monetisation of your (new) Services and Data, join our upcoming Impulse Sessions on “How to Monetise Service and Data”.

These are full day interactive meetings with like-minded peers during which we will exchange experiences, insights and challenges.

Book your seat @ http://fs-ne.ws/5gyg30mWzze

 

Essence

Our value is not only in the developing and offering of great solutions to our customers’ big problems, it is about how our clients use and benefit from our solutions.

 

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 Jan Van Veen is founder of MoreMomentum 

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Ericsson has been selected by Swisscom, the largest telecommunications service provider in Switzerland, to enhance the consumer experience for its subscribers through deployment and integration of the Ericsson Expert Analytics solution into its existing big data ecosystem.

Ericsson’s solution will deliver data analysis and actionable insights for the service provider’s 5.3 million 4G mobile broadband subscribers using video and other OTT applications on the nationwide mobile network.

Daniel Staub, Swisscom, says: “Delivering a superior experience to our customers is at the very centre of Swisscom’s strategy, and Ericsson Expert Analytics will help us to pursue this vision even further by providing us with end-to-end visibility of our services across our 4G mobile broadband network. With this solution, we will now be able to monitor and proactively optimize our service level performance, as well as take action on any issues we see."

Arun Bansal, President and Head of Ericsson Europe and Latin America, says: “Satisfied customers are loyal customers. Not only will Ericsson Expert Analytics enhance the customer experience and improve network quality for Swisscom, but it also paves the way for smoother entry to 5G, IoT and cloud services with the solution’s advanced capabilities. We will continue to provide Swisscom with the most advanced network technologies and support as they move rapidly toward commercial availability of the next generation of connectivity.”

Swisscom is a pioneer for 5G services with Ericsson as its strategic partner. The two companies have already achieved a number of significant milestones in making 5G a commercial reality, highlighted recently by Europe’s first end-to-end, multivendor 5G Non-Standalone (NSA) data call on 3.5 GHz band. Swisscom was also the first announced customer for Ericsson’s strengthened end-to-end mobile transport solutions.

 

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With field service becoming increasingly dependent on mobile computing and the IIoT the advent of 5G could be a significant boost to productivity in many ways so it was interesting to note that earlier this month Intel and Huawei announced that they have successfully completed 2.6GHz 5G NR Interoperability and Development Testing (IoDT) based on the 3GPP Release 15 global standard September version.

The IoDT test is the world's first 2.6GHz 5G interoperability test under SA network and is a key milestone towards accelerating the maturity of the 2.6GHz 5G NR ecosystem With Intel’s 5G Mobile Trial Platform (MTP) and Huawei's latest 5G NR (New Radio) base station supporting the 2.6GHz with 160MHz bandwidth, the two companies jointly completed the IoDT and successfully enabled the first call under SA network.

The successful completion of this IoDT test not only marks the end-to-end successful interoperability of 5G in the 2.6G band but also lays a foundation for large-scale commercial launch. It will promote the development and maturity of the 5G end-to-end industry in the 2.6G band.

In the future, Intel and Huawei will continue to carry out more test and commercial verification and promote the rapid maturity of the ecosystem, laying a solid foundation for the future 5G commercialization.

 

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Manuel Grenacher, CEO, Coresystems, reflects back on some of the big predictions he made earlier this year and reflects on the progress made in interweaving the Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence and Augmented Reality into the fabric of field service delivery across the last 12 months...

 

The days are getting shorter and colder, which means the holidays are approaching and 2019 is just around the corner (believe it or not!). So now is the perfect time to take a look back at 2018 and take stock of the advancements the field service industry made this year.

Back in March, we highlighted three trends we predicted would have major impacts on the field service sector in 2018. We noted that while 2017 introduced innovative new technology-based trends with the likes of artificial intelligence (AI) and augmented reality (AR), 2018 would bring real-world applications that put those buzzwords into practice.

So let’s review the progress of each of those three trends this year – after all, predictions don’t mean much if you don’t evaluate how accurate they were, right…?

 

The IoT Drives Proactive Device Maintenance, Service and Repair

Since the Internet of Things (IoT) became an integral part of almost every business’ technology mix midway through this decade, field service innovators have been finding ways to use the increased connectivity of the IoT to gain a competitive advantage. We predicted that in 2018, further innovation would allow field service technicians to utilize the IoT and automation in today’s devices – with the goal of providing service in real-time to meet (and exceed) customer expectations.

As is often the case in the field service industry, supply chain and manufacturing organizations were at the front of the line when it came to utilizing IoT-enabled and supported field service. Toward the end of this interview between SupplyChainBrain and various supply chain executives, the benefits of the predictive maintenance that the IoT enables become clear. Regarding sensor-equipped motors in warehouses, automation solutions provider Knapp noted:

“A motor might transmit information about vibration or heat, for example. It could indicate it needs potential maintenance services, and that's important because that would be predictive maintenance as opposed to breakdown maintenance, which is much more costly and can severely impact service levels.”

We’re seeing this focus on IoT-enabled predictive maintenance across the board with our manufacturing customers, so we can confirm that it definitely became a major focus in 2018 – and will continue to do so in 2019.

 

Artificial Intelligence Simplifies and Automates Service Appointments

Although artificial intelligence (AI) is in danger of becoming a somewhat empty buzzword in many industries, it’s here to stay – indeed, Gartner forecasts that 85 percent of customer interactions will be managed by AI by the year 2020.

The field service industry is applying AI in very meaningful ways as we speak, and it’s the concept of predictive maintenance that is driving the adoption of AI. For example, a recent study of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the supply chain sector found that most OEMs are gathering data from sensor-equipped products in the field—a key requirement for predictive maintenance. In addition, more than half of OEMs plan to make AI and machine learning a major investment, while 90 percent intend to invest in predictive analytics within the next 12 months.

Beyond predictive maintenance (but related to it), AI can streamline the field service technician dispatching process – which crucially means customers can get their equipment serviced faster. Influential software authority Capterra highlighted how design consultancy Philosophie, using AI, developed a field service program that handed 90-95 percent of the technician dispatching duties to an AI system – which enabled the field service team to dedicate its human talent to the more difficult field service jobs.

AI most definitely made its stamp on the field service industry in 2018, and the innovation is expected to continue next year and beyond.

 

Augmented Reality Provides Unprecedented Visibility into Worksites

Back in March, we noted that the increased connectivity that the IoT brings will continue to propel the application of augmented reality (AR) in the field service sector. In 2018, we saw AR applied by companies aiming to improve their first-time fix rate on service calls, as well as other vital field service functions.

ZDNet detailed several highly-recognizable brands using AR for service calls, including BP's U.S. Lower 48 onshore oil and natural gas business, which has been equipping field service technicians with AR platforms to assist with repairs, and Caterpillar, which recently tested an AR solution for the technicians who service a line of its onsite portable generators. Caterpillar provides field personnel with an internally-developed iPad app that interfaces with IoT sensors on the generator to provide real-time diagnostics and repair protocols.

While AR is in its infancy relative to the IoT and AI, we’ve seen our own customers' leverage AR to make better use of their field service resources – including servicing their customers’ equipment remotely through AR glasses. We’re very likely to see the usage of AR expand in the field service industry in 2019.

It certainly appears that the trends we highlighted earlier this year continued to gain significant traction in the field service industry in 2018, and we fully expect IoT, AI and AR technologies to continue to drive a wide range of innovative projects and initiatives in 2019. And once the calendar turns to 2019, look out for our predictions on the developments to look forward to next year!

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Customer needs require scalable, flexible cybersecurity solutions finds Frost & Sullivan...

High penetration of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) technology in critical infrastructure and the manufacturing sector has resulted in a growing number of potential cyber-attack surfaces.

According to a recent analysis from Frost & Sullivan, cyber-attacks within the energy and utilities industries alone cost an average of $13.2 million per year. These rising incidences of cyber-attacks, coupled with evolving compliance regulations by governments, and increased awareness among mature and less mature markets have accelerated the adoption of cybersecurity approaches. However, there is still a high level of ambiguity in addressing industrial cybersecurity, with existing cybersecurity services struggling to provide comprehensive visibility across both IT and OT networks.

[quote float="left"]The industrial cybersecurity services market is at the high growth stage of its lifecycle, with rising awareness among end users, increased industrial control systems (ICS)-based attacks, and the rising need for cybersecurity skills[/quote]"The industrial cybersecurity services market is at the high growth stage of its lifecycle, with rising awareness among end users, increased industrial control systems (ICS)-based attacks, and the rising need for cybersecurity skills,” said Riti Newa, Industrials Research Analyst. “Many end users have labor-intensive security practices and lack strong cybersecurity policies. Service providers can help automate cybersecurity services and provide a more holistic approach by offering joint solutions that provide a consolidated view of the IT and OT environment.”

Frost & Sullivan’s recent analysis, Global Industrial Cybersecurity Services Market, Forecast to 2022, explores market adoption rates, requirements, and trends across the market. It also covers emerging service models and their usages, as well as monetization strategies for those models.

For further information on this analysis, please visit: http://frost.ly/2yn

Companies that are eager to grow within the industrial cybersecurity market can find opportunities through:

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• Providing integrated platforms that can deploy a range of services to enhance the security posture of end users while incorporating the best security practices.
• Using automated management services and advanced analytics to develop a comprehensive service portfolio that can be adapted for all types of end users.
• Offering flexible pricing models, such as Cybersecurity-as-a-Service (CSaaS), and lifetime services to increase accessibility across industries at a lower cost.

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"Despite the growing frequency of cyber-attacks, industries still have very low cyber resilience, struggling to ensure cybersecurity in the OT environment," said Newa. "With complexity and sophistication of the attacks, service providers will need to focus on advanced services that can address the threat landscape and automate cybersecurity."

Global Industrial Cybersecurity Services Market, Forecast to 2022 is the latest addition to Frost & Sullivan’s Industrials research and analyses available through the Frost & Sullivan Leadership Council, which helps organizations identify a continuous flow of growth opportunities to succeed in an unpredictable future.

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In this third excerpt from an exclusive fieldservicenews.com presentation Kris Oldland, Editor-in-Chief, Field Service News is joined by John Hunt, Managing Director, EMEA, Astea to discuss the key findings of a research project Astea undertook with WBR.

 

Here, they turn their attention to the findings that were uncovered as the research focussed in on the adoption of IIoT amongst manufacturers as the two discuss just how widespread the adoption of connected field service is in today's business eco-system.

 

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