Has your business or organization moved its telephony to thecloud? If so, you’re ready to make the leap to Internet of Things (IoT). It’sactually not a tremendous leap, and if you’re in the cloud already, you’rehalfway there.  

The IoT is a network of “things” (physical objects) – everythingfrom items in your household or office to fleets of vehicles and industrialtools – connected to each other via unique identifiers (sensors and/or software)that connect and exchange data with other devices and systems via the Internet.As of 2020 there were approximately 10 billion “things” connected worldwide,and analysts believe we will see more than double this amount by 2025. And thecurrent and expected number of IoT data points is staggering: any laptop, sensor,smartphone or wearable device can connect to the IoT and share data, includinga chip implanted in a cat or dog, sensors in automobiles that monitor enginefunction and maintenance issues...even heartrate monitors. We are alreadyseeing IoT in what are now known as “smart homes” – houses and apartments withelectronics and security accessible via any wi-fi-enabled device.  

There are myriad real-world IoT applications, including consumer,enterprise, manufacturing and industrial (IIoT), and many of these applicationsare already contributing to increased efficiency and economies of scale in manyverticals, including agriculture, airlines, automotive, defense, energy, healthcare,hospitality, logistics and telecommunications – even theme parks, where IoT cantrack visitor activity. Just about any business can benefit from IoT, as itbrings process automation, analysis and insight, fleet and asset management, laborreduction and performance monitoring to any enterprise; for many organizationsit’s become a key milestone on the path to complete digital transformation. IoTcontinues to gain traction in manufacturing, transportation and utilities,where sensors and other IoT devices help manage fleets and other assets. But whatdoes it do, exactly?

·        Onfarms, IoT sensors collect data pertaining to humidity, rainfall, soil content,temperature and other factors, and this data contributes to the improvement andrefinement of operations.

·        Withbuildings and infrastructure, sensors monitor changes to or within structures,alerting engineers to changes or potential structural failures.

·        Forany sort of fleet, IoT can track every vehicle, providing data as to exactlywhere any vehicle is at any time.

·        Someof the general benefits of IoT include reduced costs, better time management,workflow changes that improve employees’ quality of life and paperlessworkflow.

Alongside smart homes and enterprise adoption of IoT, manyorganizations are developing smart offices – these everywhere enterprises are a response to rising costs andto the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Smart offices, with phone systemsenabled by Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), have enabled dispersed/hybridor “work from anywhere” environments.

VoIP systems integrate easily with IoT. For any company, thephone system is still an operational foundation, and management and employeesneed access to calls and voicemails and to individual extensions, whetherthey’re in the office or away from it, and a VoIP phone system makes thispossible by moving all of an organization’s telephony into the cloud. And, onceoffice devices are IoT enabled, dispersed teams still have access to theoffice, everything from the copier to the coffee maker, from the front door tothe overhead lights…phones, SMS, voicemails and everything else.

The combination of IoT and VoIP also addresses numeroussecurity concerns by securing communications channels, such as SMS and voice,and improving onsite security. IoT video devices and access systems can becontrolled remotely, and they can be configured as IP endpoints for a live feedfrom any device; you can also create alerts, sent to remote devices, in theevent of an onsite emergency. This kind of automation is available throughoutyour organization, thanks to the interactivity between IoT-enabled devices andVoIP applications.

Vodia’s cloud phone system enables easy IoT integration andthe automation of your company’s devices and software, both onsite and remotely,and it’s been deployed at just about every type of company and organization,from municipalities to hotels to medical offices (we are HIPAA certified).  We’d love to tell you all about how we’re theperfect cloud phone system for any company or organization looking to leveragethe immeasurable potential of IoT. For more information, please reach out tous, sales@vodia.com.

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