IoT ERP Integration: A Roadmap To Smart Business!

1.Maintaining the Legacy:

Often companies are unwilling to adapt to new technologies as they get comfortable working with legacy equipment. If you are working with older established solutions, it can become more challenging and all the more reason to not implement IoT. Legacy systems are well-suited to manage structured data and unfortunately, most IoT/business interactions generate unstructured and ambiguous data.

2. Cyberattacks and Brute Force Attacks:

As per the survey conducted by Business Wire, almost half of the US firms using IoT devices have faced security breaches. As IoT infrastructure is an amalgamation of sensors, gateways, hardware, and application software, it makes the intact system vulnerable to security breaches and the probability of gaining access to vast amounts of data through cyberattacks and brute force attacks is astronomical.

3. State of "Gold Rush":

There are again many reasons behind the state of fear and insecurity in IoT. Some of it is related to the “gold rush” state of industries where every vendor is just hastily seeking to connect and implement the next innovative gadget or technology respectively before the competitors do. In those circumstances, functionality becomes the priority and security takes a back seat. There are reports indicating that countless IoT devices that power everyday technology like closed-circuit cameras, thermostats, drug infusion pumps, and smart home devices like monitors, and smart fridges were hijacked by the malware and used against the servers.

4. Connectivity:

One of the biggest challenges of the future of IoT is connectivity which will defy the present structure of current communication models and the underlying technologies. In the current scenario, we rely on the centralized server/client paradigm to authorize, authenticate and link different nodes in a network which is sufficient for existing IoT ecosystems where hundreds and thousands of devices are involved. But what happens when the network starts to grow to join billions of devices and maybe more than that? The centralized brokered systems will turn into a bottleneck. Entire system can be doomed if the server becomes unavailable and a bottleneck situation occurs. Therefore, the future of IoT very much has to depend on decentralizing IoT networks.

Solutions like Fog Computing models where smart devices such as IoT hubs take charge of time-critical operations and Cloud servers take responsibility for data gathering and analytical responsibilities.

5. Transparency Issues:

There are companies (data brokers) that sell data gathered from various sources. Data is the currency of IoT and still, regulatory standards are missing for the data markets. There is a lack of transparency about who gets access to what data and how those crucial data is used to manufacture products and sold to advertisers and third parties. Thus, there is an implied need for clear guidelines on the retention, use and disclosure, and security of data including metadata.

Tips to Ensure a Successful IoT ERP Integration:

We already have discussed the benefits that an integrated IoT-ERP solution brings, as well as the challenges surrounding the integration. Now, considering you already have an ERP system in place, what steps you can take to gain advantage of an IoT product? Let us take a look at the steps you need to accomplish from a “business stand-point”, to set up a positive ERP-IoT integrated solution:

1. Realizing that being “digital” does not mean you need to replace your ERP system. Rather critical business objectives must be identified where an IoT solution can add value to and intensifies your business. The business objective could be to scrutinize thoroughly the temperature of shipments, implement theft protection for extravagant and overpriced medicines, or keep track of assets like in a construction company where you have to deal with expensive equipment.
2. Test before you buy. You must run a “proof-of-concept (POC)” with several test IoT devices before adopting one.
   1. Define your criteria for “success” and timeline for your POC
   2. Specify which mode of transport is key to your business (truck, railways, air, ocean, or multi-modal)
   3. Determine if this test will be conducted “locally” or “globally”
3. Check whether the introduction of IoT devices creates any teething issues with your shipping and logistics teams during the POC.  How will it work in your warehouse and how to attach the device to your shipping containers?
4. Make sure you get management buy-in on the basis of the results of the POC. Ask yourself if there are any new services you can provide to your end consumer to add value or increase revenues. For instance, high-end automobiles can be traced from the manufacturing site to the customers- which is a value-added service.
5. Inspection of Regulatory Compliances. When you think that you are just good to go, the last thing you must conform to is the regulatory requirements of your industry. Make sure they are placed. For example, FDA compliance may necessitate that every material lot needs to be temperature tracked and summary data documented in the form of an audit report.

Closing Comment: Is the integration really worth it?

In next few years, connected devices will be found everywhere -in smart factories, smart cars, smart retail stores, smart hospitals, smart cities and buildings and many other applications that are yet to be discovered. Each industry will find new ways and techniques to use the intelligence imparted by IoT, such as improving manufacturing processes, customer experiences, and energy efficiency, just to state a few examples. The ability to analyze data from every link of the manufacturing value chain helps companies establish better control over manufacturing processes to keep production up and running and reduce costs.