Six Hurdles: Why IoT Projects fail

The number of businesses aiming to leverage IoT solutions is high but so is the failure rate. Network giant Cisco estimates that 74 percent of IoT projects fail and the probable cause is a failure to understand the top obstacles and challenges that often derail IoT deployments.

The explosion in the use of connected devices has created a rising need for organisations to harness data from them, which, in turn, is driving businesses to ramp up their IoT digitisation efforts. Market and consumer data specialist Statista reckons there are approximately 21.5 billion interconnected devices in the world and many businesses – 94 percent, according to IOT Signals, a report from the Hypothesis Group and Microsoft – see this growth as an opportunity to analyse data and generate insights that reduce operational costs, enable better decision-making and drive innovation.

The challenges may seem overwhelming, but there are many options available.

_{Bryan Witkowski, Head of Strategic Planning and co-founder of MachineQ}

Here are some of the most common hurdles blocking the track to successful adoption of IoT projects. Increased complexity – There can be many challenges around interoperability between networks, gateways and devices. A multi-vendor environment can include compatibility issues between different vendors’ products and systems, especially when some use proprietary technology that is not based on industry standards. For example, differences in authentication and identification methods may cause access issues and the use of different protocols can limit the ability of devices and systems to ’talk to each other’ and share information. There are also challenges related to complexity of deployment, especially where there is no access to IT support and the installation is typically done by skilled workers who are not technically savvy. An example of this would be plumbers doing a water meter installation.

Limitations to Scale – As IoT networks grow, some of the challenges above become even more pronounced because of additional devices and systems. As a result, the solutions created in one context may not work well in another, which could delay or stop an enterprise IoT project.

What are They Doing? The single largest use case in terms of number of Internet of Things (IoT) connected devices is consumer internet and media devices, accounting for a third of all devices worldwide in 2030. The other two largest use cases are smart grid (e.g. smart meters) and connected vehicles.

Talent Shortages – Similar to the current IT talent shortage, there is a lack of available IoT experts to fill needed positions. This can affect a range of industries, such as food services and hospitality, that are looking to embrace IoT. According to research from Inmarsat, 46 percent of organisations stated that skills shortages are the most significant barrier to their deployments. A lack of qualified, skilled talent can affect the ability to roll out new deployments or have the proper quality controls in place to take IoT from the proof-of-concept (POC) phase to full production.

Security Vulnerabilities – While IoT devices are great at doing what they are designed and built for, they typically have limited computing resources, which means they often lack built-in security features – or they are connected to the internal IT infrastructure, which poses additional risks to security. The resultant expansion of the attack surface and opportunities for cybercriminals often stems from the fact that many organisations don’t see IoT devices as a high-security threat, so they are not as diligent with passwords or encryption. In addition, IoT devices often don’t receive security patches as quickly as other mainstream devices, such as laptops and smartphones. All of this can lead to more IoT-related cyberattacks, as in the case of a supplier of IoT cameras that discovered a software vulnerability which exposed a range of industrial devices to potential cyberattack.

Limited reach – Many industries that want to use IoT solutions face the challenges of remote sites located in farreaching geographies and areas that are hard to reach. For example, an oil rig in the middle of the ocean or a pipeline that stretches for hundreds of miles across the countryside can make it difficult to get consistent, reliable connectivity to support the transfer of data from numerous sensors out to the cloud or to end-applications.

Where IoT Breaks Down: A third of companies are still implementing their current solution; 27 percent say the technological demands are prohibitive; and another 27 percent feel the security risk simply isn’t worth it.

Power Consumption – Using hundreds or thousands of sensors also creates a concern that can impact cost – battery life. It’s important to explore how long a battery will last in an IoT device because the time and cost of replacement might be just as expensive as the original deployment. As a result, this can have a significant impact on the total cost of ownership (TCO) of the project – sometimes sufficient to affect overall cost-feasibility. This TCO issue can leave an organisation stuck in the POC phase, unable to move on to production.

Low Power Consumption: One of the key com-petitive advantages of LoRaWan technology is the energy efficiency of the equipment.

While these challenges may seem overwhelming, there are many options available for enterprises. Technologies such as low-power, wide-area networks (LPWANs) can provide the simplicity, scale, reach, security and power needed to take many IoT projects from concept (POC) to reality (full production deployment).

Vendors Share the Same Environment

The LoRaWAN industry standards, for example, mean that different vendors’ products can offer compatibility to allow them to easily exist in the same environment. Finally, the automated nature of these solutions allows organisations to free up employees’ time to focus on activities that positively impact sales and customer service. By having a better awareness and understanding of these key challenges, enterprises can confidently take the important first step towards solving them and making large-scale IoT deployments a reality.

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