Industrial IoT 2017 Survey Insights: Key Trends & Business Impact – Part 2

Ayush Jain CEO, Mindbowser

From Part I, you might have already seen the primary trends set to shape Industrial IoT in 2017. This continuation deepens that perspective, highlighting additional drivers and impact areas.

6. Business areas that are benefiting the most from IIoT –

Operations, engineering, logistics, facility management, and people monitoring & training emerged as the top domains reaping the most value from IIoT deployments.

Key areas:

• Operations & Engineering – IoT boosts operational efficiency, productivity, and scalability. It extends engineering capabilities with cutting‑edge automation, a primary motivation for the industry, says Ayush Jain, CEO of Mindbowser.
• Logistics – Once hesitant, logistics is now embracing IoT. DHL’s recent press release showcases smart glasses as the new standard in supply‑chain operations, while RTLS, inventory management, traffic, and fleet management solutions gain traction.
• Facility Management – Environmental sensors, space optimisation, indoor navigation, energy monitoring, security, and safety are now powered by advanced wireless sensors, enabling facilities to reach new efficiency heights.
• People Monitoring & Training – Card beacons provide real‑time staff location analytics, revealing movement patterns and dwell times. Augmented and virtual reality create immersive training experiences, enhancing concept understanding.

7. Most popular Industrial IoT technologies –

While the IIoT toolbox is diverse, wireless sensors dominate the landscape, with 64% of respondents reporting their use. They are followed by M2M technologies, machine learning, cloud computing, and BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy).

8. Industries that are benefiting the most from IIoT solutions –

While IoT spans many sectors, the survey identified the top five industries that stand to gain the most:

• Manufacturing
• Automotive
• Oil & Gas
• Petrochemical
• Logistics

9. Current focus of Industrial IoT service providers –

Interviews with IIoT service providers revealed dominant strategic priorities:

• 80% are focused on expanding market share.
• 74% are developing new services built around smart connected products.
• 67% are investing in high‑quality industry networks that can evolve into long‑term business assets.

Summary

The Need: Companies that swiftly adopt the necessary transformation today will become tomorrow’s market leaders, and Industrial IoT sits at the heart of that shift.

The Catalyst: Smart sensors, robotics & automation, AR/VR, big‑data analytics, and supportive government policies are accelerating IIoT adoption.

The Restraint: Budget constraints, privacy concerns, legacy system incompatibility, and technology illiteracy are anticipated barriers to growth.

Thank you to all the IoT enthusiasts who contributed to the survey.

The author of this blog is Ayush Jain, CEO at Mindbowser.

About the author

Ayush has spent years designing and consulting on solutions across multiple industries. With a knack for turning complex problems into simple, scalable solutions, he stays ahead of emerging technology trends while bringing a marketing perspective to his work.