By 2020, the number of items connected to the internet is expected to cross the 50 billion mark. And by 2025, the global worth of IoT tech is projected at $6.2 trillion. These two numbers alone underline the kind of excitement there is around IoT (Internet of Things) which, the market pundits already believe, will have the greatest impact on the industrial economy. So, if you thought Industry 3.0 was kind of a big deal that welcomed automation in the mainstream, you would go head-over-heels with Industry 4.0 that promises opportunities in abundance. Yes, we are going to discuss about automation and data exchange.
The Basics
To begin with, in its most basic form, Internet of Things refers to the idea of everyday physical items being interconnected to each other and the internet. Common examples include television, lights and air-conditions. When they are powered by the internet, you can control them remotely using, say, an app on your Smartphone.
Today, this basic concept is stretched beyond the traditional definition across niches to achieve bigger goals. Companies around the world are employing this technology to pool more data, enhance their efficiency and minimize their cost among other purposes. While it has long been anticipated that IoT will redefine the manufacturing industry, it is only recently that it is coming to shape. Odoo IoT Box is a giant leap in that direction.
Welcome Odoo IoT Box
Odoo v12 has been released recently. The event was jam-packed. But what stood out and remained longer in memory was Odoo IoT Box. Here’s the launch video:
EMBED VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bYo5-fBLzE
Targeted at the manufacturing industry, the device is billed to have ‘endless possibilities’. The broad idea is to have your industrial hardware connected to the Odoo ERP to take automated actions and to record them directly in a centric database. However, with extensive and optimum deployment, Odoo IoT Box can certainly enable a lot more facilities to eventually advance your operational efficiency and profitability. It touts a range of benefits over other similar products, like effective data management on cloud, seamless network administration, and work order automation. In addition, one of its biggest USPs is easy connection and setup process. It can easily be integrated with your existing business flows.
The Many Benefits…
Up and close, Odoo IoT Box has many advanced features, including Quality Control that can help you gain time and eliminate encoding mistakes. But at large, with its optimum usage, you can do a lot more for your business in diverse ends, right from customer service and inventory management to forecasting and business intelligence.
One of its immediate benefits would be in making forecasts. Even when based on proven strategies, your existing forecasting process will have certain loopholes. Internet of Things can help fix this almost perfectly by transmitting real-time data from different point-of-sales inventory levels directly to the manufacturing plant. With this critical data, the producer can make immediate, informed decisions – be it whether to continue manufacturing or put a hold until the current stocks drain – to unlock higher profitability.
Of course, this real-time business intelligence will cascade to have many other benefits like easy monitoring, higher productivity, and actionable immediate-term goals.
Another impacting change IoT’s integration in the ERP solution would be in the customer service end. Earlier, manufacturers’ obligation would end once the product is shipped. This made customer retention a rather challenging task with the customer journey map relying heavily on concepts and ideas rather than hard data. Internet of Things can solve this to a large extent.
The Real-World Application
Say, if the final product is connected to the Internet, manufacturers can easily generate and transmit real-time performance data of the product, automatically triggering the call for maintenance and repair, if and when needed. They can always be in know about the wear-tear of the sold product that can not only help them with their retention strategy but can also provide with intensive data to make improvements in their next line of manufactured products. Example Odoo with IOT and Beacon based Mobile App .
In addition, the end-consumers can also, in many cases, avail remote support and repair work, which can further enhance their experience and satisfaction.
Top Smartphone and Computer brands already employ IoT concept in this context. Upon consumers’ consent, they track their devices and accrue real-time data to make further improvements in their products and provide better maintenance value to the existing users.
Again, these are rather broad applications of the Internet of Things in the ERP ecosystem. Odoo 12 is powerful. But guess how incredible Odoo v15 would be in pillaring and progressing the idea of IoT?! So, as we move forward and the industrial sector strides to embrace this tech more freely, the whole industry could see a massive change with much-improved efficiency, productivity, and cost-effectiveness. As the maker of Odoo IoT Box said during the launch, “the possibilities are endless”.