The Industrial Internet of Things: A boon for small and medium-sized manufacturers- Part 1

Mary Bunzel of Intel Corporation

Nothing new, but certainly still worthy of emphasis: smaller manufacturers represent an essential and dynamic component of the U.S. manufacturing industry.  In 2015, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, about 98.5% (247,961) of the U.S. manufacturing firms had fewer than 500 employees (187,862 of those, or over 75% of the total, had fewer than 20!), and represented over 44% of the total manufacturing employment. In the same year, 96.4% of manufacturing exporters were small – and medium-sized companies that contributed 20.3% of the sector’s $798 billion (€675.33 billion) in exports.

Smaller manufacturers matter a great deal for the industrial sector

While, in general, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) constitute a vital force in the economy in terms of job creation, innovation and role in exporting, smaller manufacturers in particular also are an indispensable link in the supply chain of larger manufacturing companies, say Mary Bunzel and Alain Louchez.

A 2015 eye opening report from the executive office of the president and the U.S. Department of Commerce on Supply Chain Innovation: Strengthening America’s small manufacturers is quite explicit in this regard (pp. 3-4): “dense networks of small- and medium-sized manufacturers increasingly power the engine of America’s supply chains.

For much of the 20th century, firms were likely to design and build their own products using internally produced parts and proprietary technologies developed by their own employees. In recent decades, such vertical integration has become less common, with many firms focusing instead on a few core competencies and outsourcing other stages of production to suppliers, sometimes thousands of suppliers.”

As a result, whatever happens regarding small- and medium-sized manufacturers (SMMs) matters a great deal for the health of the manufacturing sector, especially when it comes to the adoption of advanced technologies such as “Industrial Internet of Things” (IIoT) technologies.

The U.S. Smart Manufacturing Leadership Act

Many terms like “Industry 4.0” “digital manufacturing” and “digital transformation” are used around the world along with IIoT to refer to the insertion of automation and interconnection technologies in manufacturing. The related Bills introduced in March and July 2017 in the U.S. Congress (S.768 and H.R.3240: Smart Manufacturing Leadership Act) propose a useful definition for the purpose of this article:

“The term “smart manufacturing” means advanced technologies in information, automation, monitoring, computation, sensing, modeling, and networking that—  A) digitally— (i) simulate manufacturing production lines; (ii) operate computer-controlled manufacturing equipment; (iii) monitor and communicate production line status; and(iv) manage and optimise energy productivity and cost throughout production;

Alain Louchez of Georgia Tech

(B) model, simulate, and optimise the energy efficiency of a factory building; (C) monitor and optimise building energy performance; (D) model, simulate, and optimise the design of energy efficient and sustainable products, including the use of digital prototyping and additive manufacturing to enhance product design; (E) connect manufactured products in networks to monitor and optimise the performance of the networks, including automated network operations; and (F) digitally connect the supply chain network.”

Recent reports such as MPI’s 2017 Internet of Things study on the production of smart devices and the implementation of embedded intelligence within plants, processes, and products of manufacturers around the world, and the PwC/Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity and Innovation (MAPI) survey on monetizing the Industrial Internet of Things note the acceleration of adoption of IoT technologies among manufacturers.

However, it is also fair to acknowledge that IIoT adoption is uneven among enterprises and the concern exists of a growing divide between the large “haves” and the not-so-large “have-nots”. Echoing this concern, one of the goals of the “Smart Manufacturing Leadership Act” is to provide SMMs with the same opportunity as their larger competitors in the adoption of smart manufacturing technologies and practices.

The authors of this blog are Mary Bunzel, director, Manufacturing and Industrial, Industrial Sales & Marketing Group, Intel Corporation and Alain Louchez, managing director of the Georgia Tech Centre for the Development and Application of Internet of Things Technologies (CDAIT).

The views expressed in this article are solely the authors’ own and do not necessarily represent those of Intel Corporation, the Georgia Institute of Technology (“Georgia Tech”), the Georgia Tech CDAIT members, the University System of (U.S. State of) Georgia or the (U.S.) State of Georgia.

Comment on this article below or via Twitter: @IoTNow_OR @jcIoTnow

RECENT ARTICLES

Surrey leads new £8 million FORT centre for advancing secure networks

Posted on: March 18, 2024

The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) announced that Surrey’s 5G/6G Innovation Centre will lead a new £8 million Centre for Doctoral Training in Future Open Secure Networks (FORT). 

Read more

Protecting assets with LTE, NTN & 5G LPWA

Posted on: March 15, 2024

In this compelling piece, part of the Key Industry Insights Series, Analyst Robin Duke-Woolley of Beecham Research and Kevin Guan of Fibocom, explain how LTE Cat 4/1/1bis/M, NTN and 5G LPWA are working to change the game for protecting goods and supply chains with total, global coverage asset tracking for reduced losses and improved operations

Read more
FEATURED IoT STORIES

What is IoT? A Beginner’s Guide

Posted on: April 5, 2023

What is IoT? IoT, or the Internet of Things, refers to the connection of everyday objects, or “things,” to the internet, allowing them to collect, transmit, and share data. This interconnected network of devices transforms previously “dumb” objects, such as toasters or security cameras, into smart devices that can interact with each other and their

Read more

The IoT Adoption Boom – Everything You Need to Know

Posted on: September 28, 2022

In an age when we seem to go through technology boom after technology boom, it’s hard to imagine one sticking out. However, IoT adoption, or the Internet of Things adoption, is leading the charge to dominate the next decade’s discussion around business IT. Below, we’ll discuss the current boom, what’s driving it, where it’s going,

Read more

9 IoT applications that will change everything

Posted on: September 1, 2021

Whether you are a future-minded CEO, tech-driven CEO or IT leader, you’ve come across the term IoT before. It’s often used alongside superlatives regarding how it will revolutionize the way you work, play, and live. But is it just another buzzword, or is it the as-promised technological holy grail? The truth is that Internet of

Read more

Which IoT Platform 2021? IoT Now Enterprise Buyers’ Guide

Posted on: August 30, 2021

There are several different parts in a complete IoT solution, all of which must work together to get the result needed, write IoT Now Enterprise Buyers’ Guide – Which IoT Platform 2021? authors Robin Duke-Woolley, the CEO and Bill Ingle, a senior analyst, at Beecham Research. Figure 1 shows these parts and, although not all

Read more

CAT-M1 vs NB-IoT – examining the real differences

Posted on: June 21, 2021

As industry players look to provide the next generation of IoT connectivity, two different standards have emerged under release 13 of 3GPP – CAT-M1 and NB-IoT.

Read more

IoT and home automation: What does the future hold?

Posted on: June 10, 2020

Once a dream, home automation using iot is slowly but steadily becoming a part of daily lives around the world. In fact, it is believed that the global market for smart home automation will reach $40 billion by 2020.

Read more

5 challenges still facing the Internet of Things

Posted on: June 3, 2020

The Internet of Things (IoT) has quickly become a huge part of how people live, communicate and do business. All around the world, web-enabled devices are turning our world into a more switched-on place to live.

Read more