retail Archives - Âé¶¹Ô­´´ India News Center News & Information About Âé¶¹Ô­´´ Mon, 14 Aug 2023 18:13:38 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 IoT in Retail: Connecting Buyers and Retailers with the Future /india/2021/11/connecting-buyers-and-retailers/ Fri, 12 Nov 2021 11:13:10 +0000 /india/?p=3078 The Internet of Things (IoT) has firmly entrenched itself in the retail sector. From Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags and sensors to beacons and cloud,...

The post IoT in Retail: Connecting Buyers and Retailers with the Future appeared first on Âé¶¹Ô­´´ India News Center.

]]>
The Internet of Things (IoT) has firmly entrenched itself in the retail sector. From Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags and sensors to beacons and cloud, connected devices are busy helping retailers personalize and enhance shopping experiences for today’s connected customers. Through robust and continuous data exchange,ÌýIoT retail software creates a real-time network of information sharing between different components of the retail value chain. It has also led to the seamless omnichannel shopping experience that all consumers have come to expect.

As consumers step outdoors, omnichannel will continue to hold sway. Nearly 70 percent of consumers are expected to research both in-store and online before making a buying decision, says the latest McKinsey . What is of particular interest from this survey on U.S. consumers is the expectation that both e-commerce and brick-and-mortar business will continue to grow. Hence, implementing IoT retail software becomes increasingly important for traditional retailers as they are compelled to change their business model for in-store operations.

Consider this: large retail chains such as Macy’s, American Apparel and Marks and Spencer have adopted RFID tags in their stores, while John Lewis and Tesco have launched apps that allow a customer to make payments from anywhere in the store, and not necessarily at the checkout counter. Avery Dennison uses IoT sensors to track up to 10 billion items at a time; Kroger is deploying such sensors to track and monitor cargo containers. Walmart has introduced robotics for better customer service. The list is long and ever-growing!

Reimagining the customer experience

Consumer expectations and buying habits have changed, and they are here to stay, as is reflected in a recent Accenture . For retailers, this means an excellent opportunity to leverage technologies such as IoT to become more customer-centric. It also provides unprecedented opportunities to harness data from these connected devices to reinvent customer experience while growing their business in an informed way. So how does IoT enable this? This is possible due to

  • Minimum human intervention
  • Greater automation
  • Remote monitoring of business operations
  • Better integration of different departments
  • Developing relations with businesses as well as people

IoT systems and devices, such as RFID tags, help improve store operations and augment sales. Breaking it down further, IoT can help retailers:

  • Streamline their supply chain
  • Enhance customer experience
  • Relook inventory and instore system

Doubling down on elevating customer experience and customer service

One of the key learnings of the pandemic is for retailers to move away from the store and product-centric sales metrics and focus on shifting customer behavior. This will help design customer-centric strategies ranging from marketing to in-store experience. With IoT-powered retail POS software, retailers can analyze data to recreate the buyer’s persona, based on demographics and purchase history. Creating a personalized customer journey can drive the consumption of goods and services. Some use cases include:

  1. Harnessing data to create personalized customer interactions could include time spent by a customer at a kiosk and whether they made comparisons between brands. This can help design the marketing campaigns, as well as assist in analyzing the success or failure of existing campaigns. Quite helpful actually, if you consider that 40% of consumers will continue to switch brands and that this number is even higher for the younger and high-income consumers, as found by .
  2. Recommending optimized product usage, based on consumer preferences. When retailers adopt such practices, it will enable them to make strategic decisions about stock placement and replenishment, based on customer interaction with products displayed on the store shelves.
  3. Reducing wait times by optimizing last-mile delivery. Increasingly, IoT is being used for more complex purposes, such as ‘last mile’ solutions like self-driving cars and drones for delivery trips between retail stores and consumer homes. For example, Ericsson, Einride, and Telia have teamed up to create at a logistics firm’s plant in Sweden using 5G-powered IoT. Even Ford and Amazon are conducting deliveries with self-driving cars and drones.

Better customer experience is also being delivered through protocols such as the IoT Gateway. The  comprises software components that directly interact with devices. Together, they bridge the communication gap between devices, sensors, equipment, systems, and the cloud. For retailers, this allows them a never-before opportunity to know their customer better while analyzing important but often ignored data points (Think: the amount of time customer spends in the wait line to the walking route within a shopping mall to reach the brand’s outlet).

Besides delivering a better shopping experience to consumers at home, IoT-enabled retail software has also enabled smart and unstaffed retail stores where the human element is absent. Instead, all services are performed through connected technology. For the customer, this novel in-store experience only requires a smartphone.

Since the opening of the first such store in Sweden in 2016, many unstaffed retail shops have come up. Big companies such as AlibabaÌý²¹²Ô»åÌýAmazon have already launched such stores. Alibaba, in partnership with Ford, even has a . The unmanned facility lets customers virtually ‘browse’ the cars stored in a vending machine, via their smartphones. Customers can then make their purchase and have the vehicle delivered at ground level.

Singapore-based telecommunication company Singtel’s unmanned retail store, named , has taken the telecommunications scene in Singapore by storm. Powered by facial recognition technology, Unboxed allows customers to consult with a roving live bot. The bot can provide personalized recommendations, phone tryouts, and mobile plan registrations at video-assisted self-serve kiosks. It also enabled the customers to collect purchases on the spot, and browse and buy accessories such as headphones, phone cases, power banks, and handsets.

Unboxed also allows customers to pay bills, top up prepaid cards and Dash wallets, and get SIM card replacements without the physical presence of company personnel. Using 5G internet, the hyper-connected store offers an unmatched consumer experience. Apart from a reliable network to support a hassle-free shopping experience, the IoT technology used in the store makes transactions easy and convenient.

Smarter inventory management for strategic decisions

One of the most popular applications of IoT-based retail software is smarter inventory management, where sensors and devices help retailers streamline inventory and be more strategic in replenishing stocks. IoT technology in both inventory and warehouse can increase visibility into production, inventory management and supply chain.

Take the case of a retailer who is seeking to enhance customer experience by ensuring products browsed online are available in the store, or that customers get access to the right product (of a particular make, model, price, size, etc.) in the right quantity at the right time. For this to happen, there needs to be a tight integration of inventory and supply chain. Solutions such as Smart Shelf Technology help streamline inventory by using real-time data analysis to provide notifications about when to restock items and providing alerts about faults and errors in the system. There are dual benefits of such alignment:

  • Matching fast-moving supply with the requisite demand
  • Keeping up with omnichannel retail strategies such as the ‘’ (BOPS). BOPS requires a highly efficient inventory management system, as well as a time-critical delivery and notification system.

– Warehouses and other storage spaces can also be managed efficiently with the help of IoT tools like warehouse management systems. IoT allows managing high-volume warehouse operations through applications such as on-premise and cloud deployment, completely integrated quality, production, track-and-trace procedures, and direct control of warehouse automation equipment. By integrating complex supply chain logistics with warehouse and distribution processes, IoT-based technology allows for the management of inventories remotely and in real time. These systems provide the users with features such as:

  • Advanced shipment notification
  • Maintenance, replenishment, slotting and rearrangement of inventory
  • Transportation wave management
  • Packing control and process monitoring

End-to-end supply chain visibility to counter disruptions

One of the most noticeable side effects of the global health crisis was supply chain disruption, which did not spare the retail sector either. And latest news reports state  will get worse before it gets better. Retailers with global supply chains are likely to fare a lot worse, but here’s where technologies such as IoT kick in. By its very nature, IoT enables end-to-end visibility throughout the entire supply chain from source at origin to delivery at destination through real-time monitoring and tracking. Let’s look at how IoT in the supply chain plays out:

  1. Predictive maintenance– Through , data from sensors such as pressure and temperature sensors can be used to pre-empt any problems with a cargo. This helps to:
  • Get a real-time, 360-degree view into the supply chain
  • Target and eliminate potential bottlenecks
  • Mitigate other risks with on-premise and cloud logistics management systems.2. Transportation planning-Provides real-time visibility into transportation resources so that customer demands can be met at minimal cost. This is done through:
  • Tracking and monitoring transportation resources
  • Forecasting supply and demand using advanced computation models
  • Improving transportation resource planning by stimulating scenarios to correct and prevent imbalances
  • Optimizing empty resource movement by finding the optimal locations and dates for the pick-up and return of transportation resources
  • Creating event-triggered alerts to provide timely warnings

3. Yard Management systems-These help the retailers run more efficient and profitable supply chain logistics with a range of visualization and reporting tools. With this software, retailers can:

  • Efficiently plan orders and appointments, integrate and automate resource use and incoming and outgoing transport.
  • Speed up yard execution and processing, helping faster deliveries of products and services along with improved service and enhanced visibility and control.
  • Identify, avoid, and solve potential issues through comprehensive graphical monitoring.
  • Through accelerated gate-in and gate-out processes, efficient use of assets and areas, and increased productivity of existing equipment, the program enables retailers to achieve a significant reduction in processing time. Reduction in staffing needs also allows for faster execution of activities and increasing yard throughput.

CONCLUSION

Without a doubt, the use cases and applications for IoT-powered retail software will only continue to grow, and the possibilities are limitless. While the trend of unmanned retail stores is yet to catch on, achieving a completely human intervention-free retail world does not seem so far-fetched now. Fully-automated supermarkets are now visible in different parts of the world, with RFID tags, intelligent kiosks, virtual tables, AR applications and many more examples of in-store technologies. Other IoT features, such as predictive engines and SSD algorithms, can also help in enhancing the efficiency of such automated retail systems.

The adoption of ‘smart’ technologies is leading to happier consumers, as ease of use brought about by IoT-based devices  perceived usefulness and perceived enjoyment of the product. This also positively affects shopping intention.

As the retail sector gets more crowded, data-centric retailers are undoubtedly poised for success. Yet, the inherent technological challenges need to be tackled with the help of an experienced partner. Âé¶¹Ô­´´ helps businesses maintain efficient and cost-effective systems for businesses. With solutions focused on ,ÌýÌý²¹²Ô»åÌý, among many others, Âé¶¹Ô­´´ helps retailers leverage the power of IoT-enabled retail software and position themselves firmly on the cutting-edge of this trend.

The post IoT in Retail: Connecting Buyers and Retailers with the Future appeared first on Âé¶¹Ô­´´ India News Center.

]]>
From Hype to Human 4.0, the changing world that is IoT Services /india/2021/11/changing-world-with-iot-services/ Tue, 02 Nov 2021 14:53:55 +0000 /india/?p=3046 IoT services are influencing every aspect of life in the digital age. Read on to know more about how IoT is turning the future into our reality.

The post From Hype to Human 4.0, the changing world that is IoT Services appeared first on Âé¶¹Ô­´´ India News Center.

]]>
The Internet of Things (IoT) has moved beyond Gartner’s  from being a mere buzzword to delivering anticipated benefits for enterprises, people and society. Going by the level of sophistication and adoption of IoT applications,  estimates that there will be more than 21 billion IoT devices worldwide by 2025, a two-fold increase compared to what we have now. Smart navigation, intelligent virtual assistants, high-tech appliances, cutting-edge security systems, and the list is endless. This ubiquitous computing that IoT has turned into a reality is visible around you from the time you wake up to logging out for the day.

More_than_21_billion

 

What is the future of IoT Services? 

The growth of IoT technology stems from a constant need to reduce human involvement with machines. From metals to the medical industry, from warehouses to homes, the tools and gadgets around us are being enabled to better understand how they are being used. This also allows enterprises to move to a predictive instead of a reactive mode, saving costs and increasing operational efficiency, among other benefits. Consider this: In a  conducted at Port of Qingdao in China, it was found that up to 70 percent of labor costs can be saved with an IoT-enabled 5G automation upgrade compared to a traditional harbor. They found that IoT-enabled smart harbors with automated ship-to-shore (STS) cranes operated from a control center could lift containers over a 5G connection.

These are just a few examples of the advancements that IoT has made across different domains. IoT services enable greater automation, better user experience, seamless adaptability of devices, and reduced human interference in the overall workflow.

Here are some interesting use cases around IoT:

  • Healthcare and IoT

The pandemic has accelerated the adoption of IoT Services. With Artificial Intelligence (AI) learning and monitoring and the development of Healthcare IoT (H-IoT) systems, opportunities for improved personalized healthcare with lower costs and eventually, better facilities for all have been made possible. , the value of the healthcare IoT sector is expected to touch nearly $177 billion by 2026. Emerging IoT-based applications like non-invasive body-worn and implanted devices, actuators, intra-body networks of implants, and biomedical therapies in new healthcare applications can save and significantly improve the quality of life.  is also being conducted on device and network co-design solutions. These are expected to integrate medical procedures with even more complex cyber capabilities using intra-body and extra-body communication systems based on IoT.

177_billion

Coupled with IoT, these innovations have become useful not just for diagnostics and surgery, but also in data analysis for personalized human health monitoring, including intra-organ functions and ailments, biomedical therapy, remote surgery, and biometric authentication. Besides these, IoT has found use in post-operative care as well through practicing defined protocols. All this is being done through methods such as

  • Fluidic diagnostic monitoring- This is a continuous and real-time monitoring of the characteristics and levels of various fluids in the body using IoT. Alerts are provided for any abnormalities in the fluid levels immediately, ensuring immediate treatment.
  • Non-invasive sensors- These IoT-enabled sensors continuously monitor a patient’s condition remotely and in real-time. Non-invasive sensors include pulse oximeters, transcutaneous electrodes for Po2 and Pco2, and transcutaneous bilirubin monitors.
  • Wearables (electronic health sensors) – Several wearable devices, such as smartwatches paired with smartphones, can allow for personalized monitoring of a person’s condition. These IoT-powered devices can monitor heartbeat, body temperature, blood pressure, blood sugar levels, and oxygen levels in the body.
  • Implanted health sensors- Using IoT data, these sensors enable in-situ monitoring of the physiological conditions of a patient. IoT has proven especially useful for such devices. This is because the sensed measurements, including drug volumes and actuating directives, need to be communicated to an external monitoring station and body devices embedded elsewhere. For example, it could be on the body’s surface or even as implants in other parts of the body. One of them or a combination of these IoT-based methods has revolutionized healthcare.  personalized, reliable, and secure solutions can detect health risks from diseases. Some conditions for which IoT technologies are being used include cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, oncological issues, kidney diseases, and Parkinson’s disease.

Improving_Healthcare_with_IoT

Eldercare has for long been an understudied and logistically difficult field of medicine. This is because of the requirements for continuous human intervention. But with the IoT, caring for the elderly can now be managed better. IoT-based tools like  (AAL) and intelligent devices can remove the need for continuous human presence with the elders. Telemedicine and smart wearables devices have also made better care available for them. These also use AI to track daily routines, monitor health parameters and notify healthcare authorities should problems arise.

  • Future of the workplace and IoT

Restrictions are easing now as the pandemic abates, but the hybrid working norm means companies will continue to use technologies and professional automation tools to get work done remotely. These include video conferencing tools, advanced analytics, data monitoring, work processes, and schedules. All these will help to create a collective intelligence that increases efficiency. Even traditional manufacturing companies that require a physical presence will use IoT data to monitor factory floor processes remotely.

IoT connectivity also addresses  across various industries, enabling innovative services for consumers and enterprises. Time-critical needs include processes requiring the delivery of data and information within specified time duration and certain specific reliability levels.

Maintaining office spaces, warehouses, and other resources can also be done with the help of IoT tools like

  • Advanced shipment notification
  • Maintenance, replenishment, slotting, and rearrangement of inventory
  • Transportation wave management
  • Packing control
  • Process monitoring

IoT allows managing high-volume warehouse operations through applications such as on-premise and cloud deployment, fully integrated quality, production, and track-and-trace processes and direct control of warehouse automation equipment. By integrating complex supply chain logistics with warehouse and distribution processes, IoT Services allows for remote management of workplaces.

Towards_Smart_ Warehousing_ Management_

Working from home has also been made easier with the home  solutions like sensors, microcontrollers, and LAN or wireless communications. They help stay in touch with the workplace while making homes more enjoyable to live in.

Home automation systems based on IoT can also be used to command or control devices. Wireless technologies, predictive engines, and Natural Language Processing (NLP) have made it possible to control the home environment from a smartphone, allowing an unhindered work from home experience. These applications can monitor doors, home appliances, and bed movements, making homes more secure and responsive.

  • Retail and IoT

The retail sector has also seen widespread adoption of IoT Services. Since the opening of the first IoT-enabled store in Sweden in 2016, many unstaffed retail shops have mushroomed. E-Commerce giants such as AlibabaÌý²¹²Ô»åÌýAmazon have launched interesting initiatives with IoT at the center of delivering new customer experiences. The new formats of retail stores are fully automated supermarkets and are also based on IoT applications. These include the use of Radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags and remote monitoring systems. Other IoT features, such as predictive engine, recognition, and Single-Shot Detector (SSD) algorithm, enhance the efficiency of automated retail systems. This has greatly increased the customer flow and transaction volume. One of the ways these will help retail outlets is by enabling decisions concerning stock placement and replenishment based on customer interaction with products displayed on the store shelves. The trend is catching on, and it’s just a matter of time before we see a completely human intervention-free retail world!

Besides all this, IoT can help the retail sector by providing additional capabilities in data auto-capture, visibility, intelligence, and information sharing. Besides enabling better customer servicing and greater integration of retail supply chains, other ways that IoT enhances the retail sector include-

  • Monitoring supply chain networks
  • Helping to maintain records of stocks and inventories
  • Tracking shipments
  • Pre-empting adverse conditions
  • Managing yard logistics and warehouses

The pandemic has highlighted the intrinsic risks in modern supply chains, and for businesses, it makes maintaining efficient and cost-effective systems even more critical. In such a world, IoT data and IoT services can help businesses through improved supply chain efficiency implemented by using better managerial decision-making processes. These include multi-objective optimization of supply chain networks, partner selection in green supply chain problems, multi-product supply chain networks, and the problem-solving approach to closed-loop supply chains.

These can enhance supply chain performance in every dimension, including cost, quality, delivery, or flexibility. IoT can help the retail sector improve and maintain strong financial, social, and environmental sustainability.

  • Cybersecurity and IoT

With the growth of IoT, there is an increasing threat of cyberattacks. Consequently, cybersecurity has become one of the most important areas of the Internet of Things. The IoT security market is  at a compound annual growth rate of 33.7% by 2023.

IoT cybersecurity serves to reduce cybersecurity risk for organizations and users through the protection of connected assets and data privacy. A robust IoT data security portfolio extensively uses advanced cryptography techniques to protect users from Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks and other vulnerabilities. It also pre-empts any threats and takes measures to eliminate them before things get out of hand. The IoT aspects such as machine learning and physical unclonable functions also allow for preventing, detecting and reporting threats related to different domains of the IoT systems. These help in identifying authentic devices and preventing tampering and the insertion of cloned devices in the IoT environment. IoT is now also being used to  in smart cities, and IoT cybersecurity has an important part to play.

As IoT utilization increases, other technologies and innovations that could keep up with it like 5G, blockchain, and AI have only now started to emerge. Using various machine learning algorithms, the enormous amounts of data that  and convert into relevant information can enhance efficiency and reduce costs. IoT data on various operational aspects are highly useful for organizations. Other fields such as agriculture and construction can also benefit from the tools available with IoT. And there’s no denying that IoT is fast becoming one of the most essential technologies for humankind. As we enter the new normal, IoT will playing an even more prominent role in every part of our lives.

Humans will have a pivotal role in the next phase of IoT services, where Industry 4.0 (Industrial Internet of Things) and Human 4.0 converge. Smart manufacturing is leading the way. As connected manufacturing optimizes itself automatically, it becomes increasingly economical to build and customize products while enhancing system efficiencies without human intervention.  are enabling pioneers to walk this path and set the agenda for the next frontier, where ‘humans’ and ‘machines’ speak the same language.

The post From Hype to Human 4.0, the changing world that is IoT Services appeared first on Âé¶¹Ô­´´ India News Center.

]]>