To fast-track a successful IoT manufacturing project, Douglas Bellin, Senior Manager of Global Private Sector Industries at Cisco, recommends defining a clear end state, breaking it into incremental steps, and building security into the architecture from the start rather than treating it as a separate layer.
IoT can be overwhelming, largely because organizations don’t know how or where to start. When talking about digitizing manufacturing operations, it sounds like a huge project that needs to be done all at once. However, with IoT this is rarely the case. Organizations can determine what will add value to your business, and then take baby steps that start qualifying savings, capturing ROI and help fulfill a broader vision for a digital future.
Where Do You Start an IoT Manufacturing Project?
The starting point for an IoT manufacturing project, according to Cisco’s Douglas Bellin, is defining an end state: what the organization’s digital operation should ultimately look like. From that vision, manufacturers can identify multiple use cases and implementation steps, then take incremental actions that qualify savings, capture ROI, and move toward a broader digital future without attempting everything at once.
How Do You Build an IoT Architecture Step by Step?
Building an IoT architecture in manufacturing follows a defined sequence. First, machines must be connected securely, which often requires an add-on device to convert analog signals to digital signals so data can move onto a network. Only after that basic connection is established can network connectivity, remote access, and capabilities such as predictive maintenance be layered on top.
Why Is Security Different in IoT Manufacturing?
Security in IoT manufacturing is fundamentally different from traditional approaches because it adds measurable business value rather than slowing operations. According to Cisco’s Douglas Bellin, IoT allows security to recognize and authorize new components on the factory floor without a separate software layer, aggregating security and management functions. This speeds up processes rather than creating the bottlenecks associated with older methods such as deep packet inspection.
With IoT, security is no longer that choke point slowing down operations. In fact, IoT allows security to add business value. Take, for example, a manufacturer who is changing out some components on the factory floor. What security can allow this manufacturer to do is recognize what components are being added and authorize them without having to manage or maintain a separate software layer — aggregating the security and management layers. This benefit becomes clear to the business and actually speeds up process, not slow it down.
Ultimately, this requires a mental change on the part of the business. Before, changes were made in silos to address specific problems — see a problem, buy something to fix it. A new problem pops up six months later, so you buy something else to fix it. This is all changing with IoT. Smart IoT deployments don’t solve single problems, but enable a business to take a more holistic view of their operations.
What Are the Key Steps to IoT Project Success?
Douglas Bellin, Senior Manager of Global Private Sector Industries at Cisco, identifies three pieces of advice for manufacturers considering an IoT deployment. These steps address the most common reasons IoT projects stall: lack of direction, working in isolation, and waiting for a perfect solution before moving forward into operations.
- Know where you are headed. This vision won’t be perfect or unchanging, but needs to provide a direction of where you want to go. Create a business-specific vision for your own IoT story.
- Don’t go it alone. Your manufacturing organization isn’t alone in facing these problems. Best practices, validated architectures and information is broadly available. Be an active participant in the broader community, and learn from other organizations’ successes (and failures).
- Start somewhere — don’t wait for ‘perfect.’ I know striving for perfect, risk-free solutions is human nature, but it can also hold you back needlessly. Get out of pilot and concept mode and get into operations. Move forward. Good luck!
The article was written by Douglas Bellin, Senior Manager of Global Private Sector Industries at Cisco, and originally was published here.
