Industry leaders manufacturing and related industries have a big ask in front of them as 2025 approaches – to improve productivity and operational efficiency while minimizing operational costs.
In such a scenario, it’s no surprise that industry leaders are more ready than ever before to invest in IoT-based remote monitoring systems to enhance efficiency and reduce costs with predictive maintenance. The number of IoT devices is expected to reach 75.44 billion by the beginning of 2025! Out of the businesses with IoT adoption, over 50% of them have already expanded their budgets for IoT projects in 2024. This trend is expected to continue well into the end of the decade.
So, if you’re considering pitching an IoT- based machine monitoring solution, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we’ll give you an overview of
- Key features you can’t miss
- Benefits of implementing IoT remote machine monitoring
- Best practices for a successful deployment
- Interconnectivity and environmental impact you can expect
Let’s get started.
Top Features of IoT Industrial Machine Monitoring
Ideally, the right IoT machine monitoring system is customized for your business needs. However, here are some top features you should definitely consider.
Remote Monitoring and Real-time Data Collection
Remote monitoring is disrupting the status quo in industries reliant on heavy or complex machinery. Real-time data collection through sensors is the pulsing heartbeat of industrial machine monitoring. Sensors gather data on a variety of parameters like temperature, vibration, pressure, humidity, and more to provide real-time insights into machine performance and availability. This lets companies make data-backed decisions at the right time.
Predictive Maintenance
With the vast amounts of real-time and historical data collected by the sensors, machine learning algorithms scan the data for “signatures” to proactive identify trends and predict equipment downtime and failures before they happen. Predictive maintenance helps businesses reduce equipment downtime, improve productivity, reduce operational and maintenance costs, and enhance worker safety. In fact, 95% of companies who adopt predictive maintenance solutions saw an increase in their ROI.
Centralized Dashboard with Alerts
The key to remote machine monitoring is the ability to view and monitor machine data from anywhere in the world. A customizable, centralized IoT dashboard gives all stakeholders a live view into machine performance, wherever they are located. In addition, live alerts can notify the right technicians at the right time to take proactive action and prevent machine downtime.
Benefits of Migrating to IoT Machine Monitoring Systems: Beyond ROI
There’s a reason business leaders are migrating to IoT machine monitoring solutions that go beyond an increase in ROI. Let’s take a quick look at them.
Increased Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) and Operational Efficiency
IoT remote monitoring has been proven to increase overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) between 10-25% . Overall, this leads to less downtimes and increased efficiency and productivity.
Cost Savings
With increased operational efficiency, businesses typically also see a lot of cost savings in the long run. By managing their equipment lifecycle with live data, it prevents wear and tear and ensures optimal utilization of each asset. A McKinsey report highlighted how companies see average cost savings of 30% with the deployment of predictive maintenance and remote machine monitoring systems.
Reduced Manual Labor and Enhanced Worker Safety
With IoT remote monitoring, you reduce the chances of human error. Skilled technicians can monitor machines remotely and take proactive action when alerted of a potential equipment failure. Daily reports and live alerts can enhance transparency and compliance with minimum safety standards and procedures.
Best Practices for Implementing IoT Machine Monitoring Systems
When implementing an IoT machine monitoring system, here are some gold-standard best practices to help you get the most out your IoT investments.
Choosing the right IoT partner
Finding the right IoT solutions provider is one big predictor of the success of your IoT project. According to recent studies, 49% of successful IoT projects relied on a mix of in-house and external resources. Compare this with 57% of unsuccessful IoT projects who relied only on in-house talent. A successful collaboration can greatly improve your chances of seeing increased ROI for your investment. Ask your prospective IoT provider questions to ensure you’re on the same page, like:
- How can their solutions help you reduce operational costs and increase revenue?
- What is the timeline for the deployment and testing of the IoT solution?
- Do they have expertise and case studies in your particular industrial niche?
- What data do you need from our end to collaborate successfully on this project?
Ensure all Stakeholders Agree on Expected Outcomes and Timelines
First, ensure that all stakeholders at all levels of your organization are aligned on your expected outcomes. For instance, while your tech team might focus more on technical KPIs and outcomes, your finance team would need to see results in terms of cost savings and ROI. Internal coherence and alignment are crucial before embarking on such an investment-heavy enterprise as an IoT remote monitoring solution.
Prioritize Scalability and Security from the Start
IoT projects often take over two years to start giving returns on your investment. So, it is imperative that you take scalability into account right from the get-go. Ensure that all layers of your architecture are built with scalability in mind. This is crucial as the vast volumes of data can significantly overload your system in the future, especially when you add more sensors or start another branch. Ask your IoT services provider about their security features and practices and how they would deal with a security breach.
Interconnectivity of Machines for a Smart Factory and It’s Environmental Impact
Interconnectivity of a vast network of machines in the smart factory ecosystem is one of the most exciting developments of Industry 4.0. The seamless communication and connectivity between physical machines and the digital brains (software) behind them is crucial to your continued success. So, sort out interoperability issues at the outset to prevent issues as you scale up.
Finally, IoT-based machine monitoring systems are also a welcome step forward in efficient energy management and minimizing wastage of resources. It helps leading organizations save costs, while also contributing to sustainability goals of the future.
Help Us Help You
At Bridgera, we offer fully customized, white-label IoT solutions for remote monitoring and predictive maintenance. Our back-end team can deliver your Proof-of-Concept in just two weeks. Our IoT platform is also scalable and cloud and device-agnostic – that means less interoperability issues for you in the future.
Get in touch with one of IoT experts for a free 15-minute consultation to see how we can help your company scale new heights.
About Bridgera: Bridgera effortlessly combines innovation and expertise to deliver cutting-edge solutions using connected intelligence. We engineer experiences that go beyond expectations, equipping our clients with the tools they need to excel in an increasingly interconnected world. Since our establishment in 2015, Bridgera, headquartered in Raleigh, NC, has specialized in crafting and managing tailored SaaS solutions for web, mobile, and IoT applications across North America.
About Author: Krishna Varma is a writer and researcher, who enjoys writing about technology, IoT, and lifestyle. When she isn’t writing and reading, you’ll find her relaxing with a quiet cup of tea over the weekends.