As smart sensors are incorporated into everyday objects, surfaces, packaging materials and more, it becomes apparent that we are moving closer to a universally connected physical realm – the concept of which is known as the Internet of Things (IoT).
More specifically, a network that connects and enables all machines to communicate within a supply chain is being referred to as the Industrial Internet.
This interconnected physical realm in which devices and surfaces communicate to automate and assist efficient processes is one that affects the transportation logistics industry on a massive level. For the most forward-thinkers leaders in the transportation logistics industry, the opportunities that will present themselves with the Industrial Internet are game-changing.
Transportation logistics costs are estimated to be $6 trillion per year, or approximately 10% of global GDP, and commercial transportation systems account for $300 billion of this total.
It is estimated that Industrial Internet applications can reduce commercial transportation asset and operations management costs by 10 percent, yielding $5.6 billion per year in savings worldwide.
The Industrial Internet is a term coined by General Electric to describe, “the integration of complex physical machinery with networked sensors and software. The industrial Internet draws together fields such as machine learning, big data, the IoT, and machine-to-machine communication to ingest data from machines, analyze it (often in real-time), and use it to adjust operations.”
For those in the transportation logistics industry, staying on top of these new technological developments will be mission critical to success as clients around the become accustomed to, and begin demanding, full access and insight into supply chain logistics that can only be provided by the use of embedded sensors in machinery.
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