4 Myths of IoT and How to Overcome Them

This week, our blog features guest contributor, Samantha Agee, vice president of business development at NuOz. NuOz is a leading provider of Wire-Free Remote Access for operational technologies for large retailers. NuOz is one of Telaid’s best-of-breed partners.

Retailers deploy a host of technologies to manage and optimize their stores, distribution centers, and offices. IoT technologies have revolutionized operations technologies (ops tech), bringing data, efficiency, and automation to systems like HVAC, refrigeration, lighting, and dozens more. There is a great deal of excitement surrounding the prospect of achieving greater energy efficiency, cost savings, sustainability, and streamlined operations with the help of IoT sensors that do everything from alerting managers when refrigeration systems fall above a specified threshold temperature to ensuring lights are shut off in stores overnight.

While the benefits of IoT are clear, the mounting volume and complexity of ops tech systems can result in a messy kluge of systems that never reach their full potential. Consider these four common myths surrounding IoT.

Myth #1 - IT departments must say “yes” to adding new IoT systems to the network 

Not only can IT say no, but in many cases, it is their obligation. IoT devices connected to the network are an attractive network entry-point for hackers. As cybersecurity risks mount, IT departments are often unwilling to haphazardly add IoT devices to their networks.

Myth #2 – IoT is “set it and forget it”

While IoT technologies are designed to automate and simplify the management of systems, like all smart technologies, they deliver tremendous volumes of data. For operations and facilities managers to get the most out of IoT, training and access are essential. Systems may become burdensome if businesses fail to manage them. For example, what if no one knows how to override the light management system that turns the lights off from 11:00 PM to 7:00 AM on a day when associates stay overnight to do inventory?

Myth #3 – IoT Ops Tech = automatic efficiency and sustainability

While smart ops tech is designed to help companies achieve efficiency and sustainability, they do so through the contribution of data, which must be normalized, analyzed, and leveraged for decision-making. Orchestration of data collected from different IoT devices is an essential step to yielding greater efficiency and sustainability.

Myth #4 – A single vendor is a path to achieve goals

IoT device adoption is growing at an astounding 30% per year and is expected to continue growing at that rate for the foreseeable future. This means more capabilities for your business. But it also means that you must connect many unrelated vendors, devices, and users. Moving to a single vendor for all your OT systems sounds like a way to solve the complexity. But does it make sense to give your HVAC provider control over your forklifts and water use sensors?

So where do we go from here?

NuOz provides an integrated, secure, accessible and scalable network for all your ops tech IoT solutions. We sit between IT and OT, creating a wire-free operations technology network that is separate from your internal network that houses critical business activities and systems.

NuOz lets you:

• Access all your building controls remotely with no wires!
• Achieve security compliance with your corporate security policy
• Orchestrate and harmonize data from multiple ops tech vendors into one dashboard

As you explore the power of IoT for business benefits like cost savings, efficiency, and business insights, let NuOz help you create secure, harmonized access to your ops tech. With Telaid’s help with deployment, we can get hundreds of sites nationwide set up in a matter of weeks. Don’t fall victim to the common myths surrounding IoT management. Visit nuoz.com to learn more.