Smart cities and smart objects: what is the “IoT” and what does it mean for business

Smart cities, the Internet of Things (IoT) and smart objects: what do they actually mean? They’re all different approaches to identifying a new technological reality wherein any type of object can be connected and enabled to share and exchange data. When things are given the power of speech we start to lay the groundwork to inaugurate a horizon of new services that can improve the quality of our lives and our work. These techniques result in everything becoming smarter, more convenient, and more useful.

The real change taking place in our cities is that they’re becoming more intelligent in a gradual and inexorable process of world smartification.  Computational intelligence has spilled over from the computer and can now be incorporated in anything to create smart objects. We need to understand the implications of making objects smart to get an idea of the new horizons of a business engendered by disruptive innovation capable of creating a new value and market network.  The future of smart cities depends on organisations that are able to intuit the potential linked to new criteria of integration and development of digital technologies, exploiting the Internet of Things to build business.

In effect, the principle underpinning smart cities and the IoT is that of a digital transformation grafted onto a new generation of connectivity that has been enabled by a technological evolution whereby:

• everything that can be digitalized will be digitalized
• everything that can be wirelessly connected will be wirelessly connected
• everything that can be made smaller will be made smaller

The creation of smart cities is based on the use of unequivocal identification (Auto-ID) implemented by means of radically evolved sensor technology and the Internet which, in addition to functioning as a connectivity platform, supports the implementation of integrated services that can be exploited in multi-channel mode by static and mobile devices. This is the approach that makes the IoT a winning horizon to improve all types of businesses on multiple organisational levels.  In this context, it should be stressed that the key to smart cities is tracking and traceability of information that ensures the maximum circularity, speed, precision, efficiency and quality. How? Using sensors, scanners and new, highly integrated smart software that can be exploited on-site or in the cloud, using SaaS formulas.

Smart city, Internet of Things and smart object

A key aspect to understand is that rather than simply purchasing a technological solution off the shelf in package form, exploiting the Internet of Things calls for the deployment of highly advanced design skills. In the smart city, offices, warehouses, stores and all types of businesses, regardless of their size or activity sector, must be able to use digital technologies ever more intensively and ever more skilfully.

Making the objects we work with everyday smarter helps to make processes more efficient, eliminating wastage and errors, and streamlining operations.

Guaranteeing the functionality of services needed in the context of a smarter world calls for the analysis not merely of requirements, processes and objectives, but also of the environments in which the technologies are to be employed. This ensures high quality results so the initial outlay can be recouped extremely rapidly.

The task calls for the services of expert system integrators, capable of performing detailed field tests and checks to assess the feasibility of the solutions and the most suitable configurations, choosing the most appropriate hardware time by time and then developing the software required to allow integration with the organisation’s ERP system. That’s precisely the job of Tenenga’s experts. And they’ve been doing it for many years, fully informed of all the most functional and efficient Auto-ID technologies, programming languages and development models.

The following practical examples provide a clearer idea of the horizons of smart objects and their impact on the world of business:

Smart Logistic

Did you know goods can talk? They’ll tell you their whole story: what they are, where they’re from, where you put them and when they’re scheduled for shipment. Using RFID tags in each step allows you to keep track of the value added by the technology, making each phase of your work faster and more efficient: from goods reception to acceptance, storage, stock taking, picking, handling, fitting/kitting and shipping.

What you can do with the IoT:

• identify your products unequivocally
• manage all information: from storage so shipment
• optimise your warehouse
• streamline order management and stock taking
• monitor each stock movement
• develop new integrated services

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Smart Food

From Smart Agrifood to Smart Manufacturing, bringing the Internet of Things into the food supply chain. From farm to fork: teach your products to speak using Rfid tags. You can track and trace all types of information, moment by moment. This means faster deliveries and customers who always know exactly what they’re eating and drinking… and you’ll be informed of their level of satisfaction straight away.

What you can do with the IoT:

• identify and certify your products unequivocally
• manage all information: from farm to fork
• monitor each movement of each product
• optimise your warehouse and make it more efficient
• streamline order management, inventories and deliveries
• develop new services, enhancing customer satisfaction

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Smart Fashion

Bring the Internet of Things into your supply chain! Teach your products to talk: they’ll let you know what’s going on, from the factory to the point of sale. How? Put an RFID tag on the label: you’ll see the difference straight away.  Thanks to the IoT, each of your products will become connected capable of sharing and exchanging data, showing you what it is, where it is, and why it’s there, in real time. This means your customers will always find what they’re looking for… and you’ll be informed of their level of satisfaction straight away.

What you can do with the IoT:

• identify and certify your products unequivocally
• manage all information: from raw material to finished product
• monitor each movement of each product
• optimise your warehouse and make it more efficient
• streamline order management, inventories and deliveries
• develop new services, enhancing customer satisfaction from the back-end to the front-end

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Smart catering & banqueting

Did you know your supplies can talk? They can tell you what they are, where you put them and, more importantly, where they ended up after a party or event! Thanks to the IoT you can connect anything and give it the ability to share and exchange data. From the table linen to the lights, tables, and chairs, you can give a unique identity to just about anything. You’ll be able to keep tabs on everything in your business, in real time. You’ll never lose anything again. You’ll get faster. Your work will get easier. You’ll work better.

What you can do with the IoT:

• identify any object unequivocally
• manage all information: from preparation to collection
• optimise your services, eliminating wastage
• streamline order management, inventories and deliveries
• monitor and locate every single product
• boost customer satisfaction