In Part 1 of our Insight Vector series, Momenta’s Jim Fletcher shared how his experience at IBM shaped his perspective around technological shifts, the convergence of operational and information technologies, and the value of transforming business models. The rapid industry shift in networking to Internet Protocol-based technology in the 1990s offers parallels to today’s industrial IoT, with the traditional industry poised for dramatic changes ahead.
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Jim Fletcher |
With extensive experience in executive management and technical leadership, Jim has held positions in areas of networking, IT systems management, and pervasive computing. He has a wealth of knowledge in IoT solution development including device connectivity, data collection, cognitive analytics, digital twin, and machine learning. He was most recently Distinguished Engineer and CTO for IBM’s Watson IoT Platform and is an IBM master inventor holding over 60 patents.
Q&A
At IBM I did about 20 years of networking. In the 1990s, I saw how quickly IBM lost dominance in enterprise networking when SNA declined, and Cisco executed well around a total replacement of a plethora of networking protocols, with IP (Internet Protocol). In IoT there's a similar scenario with legacy protocols and industry environments that are ripe for change. The challenge is how to get companies to change and look at their business differently – physical things don’t have 30-year lifecycles any longer – they now can have a 30 second lifecycle – as new functionality and adaptive modes of operation can be instantaneously applied.
I left networking to join the Pervasive Computing team in IBM, a team that drove IoT before anyone had heard of IoT. Unfortunately, neither the networks or devices were up to the capabilities needed for success, so after a few years IBM exited that business. For many years following I did Systems Management, taking an acquisition and growing it into a very successful business for IBM. We leveraged that acquisition to integrate facilities and IT, via Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM), which is a blending of IT (Racks) and OT (Facilities) but there is still organizational separation between the different data center domains.
I was a thought leader on the team that drove IBM into the IoT business, and one of the original members of the IoT development organization for IoT, under Harriet Green. 6-7 years ago I put together a Technology Study for IoT as a recommended idea, the senior leadership held back initially then came back a year later and then IBM went for it.
Where do you see the unique value in IoT?
I see the value of IoT in driving a modernization of the business model and operations of industrials. A lot of the domain skills reside in the heads of older workers. The work ethic, knowledge, and drive of people that run these businesses is a dying breed. You need to move from a mindset of occasional maintenance to condition based to a mindset of totally preventing failure.
We are also entering an era where technology changes faster than the base in which it is installed. Industrial systems like SCADA will have more value if we can evolve them with newer protocols. Security with IoT is another issue where we don’t have traditional data center boundaries for physical security, so we need new models for assuring identity, location, etc. IIoT is where we should see massive efficiency gains, as we move to an intelligent connected learning environment.
Can you compare the Industrial IoT opportunity with prior technology adoption waves?
The big change in networking to IP-based technology offers a strong parallel to industrial IoT. Industrial firms are in many ways are least incented to change. The going rates for equipment, rates for service etc. were high because their domain expertise was complex and high value. When you instrument equipment and collect data, you have more insights and context. You should be able to continually learn and adapt.
Industrial equipment is now evolving to have a strong software/electronic “brain” allowing them to dynamically improve their capabilities. The ability to understand real-time operational data can be used to better adapt machine operations to the age of the machine, further reducing potential outages and perhaps extending the life of the asset.
Supply chain was also a paradigm shift. In the supply chain, we went from paper to fax to electronic processes. Why not the same concept for IoT components and subcomponents where we know everything about the bolts that go in the engine that goes into the car or aircraft engine? Why can’t we track the information to see the whole process?
What are key considerations for companies looking to digitize their businesses?
You need to look at the whole business model. Can companies move from selling to leasing engines? Manufacturing has occupied a narrow niche in the whole product life cycle – the question becomes can a company change its model to capture more revenue across the complete lifecycle of the product rather than lose in a small niche? Aircraft engines are is going that way – no one owns engines anymore, and heavy equipment is moving to pay peruse. The whole concept of optimization is critical.
If companies don’t invest the right way, they have the challenge of sacrificing the existing business AND losing the new opportunities to competitors. You can be like Kodak or make the transition and adapt so you are viable in the new world. It’s difficult for companies to want to change because it will impact the bottom line in the short to medium term.
To learn more about how IoT can unlock value within your industry, contact us at Momenta.