IoT is supposed to make our world a better – and cleaner – place. With Nest thermostats, for example, we can go carbon-free in 8 weeks. We can also reduce our carbon print by using wireless parking solutions. But these IoT products were specifically designed with the “going green” technology in mind. What about inexpensive consumer-oriented connected devices? Won’t the Internet of Things simply drown us in gadgets one day? The general concept behind the Internet of Things green technology
Gartner claims[1] there will be 6.4 billion (30% up from last year) connected devices by the end of 2016 – and it would be extremely foolish of us to think the honorable research firm is talking about smart wristbands and refrigerators only. During the 2011 CTIA Wireless conference in Orlando Hans Vestberg (CEO at Ericsson) made a few IoT forecasts – and they seemed quite unrealistic back then. Vestberg, for example, stated in 5 years 60% of consumer electronics would have some Internet connectivity in them. He went on to say a well-organized grid of sensors and connected gadgets would help us humans significantly reduce the environmental impact. Judging by what we’ve told you about Smart Cities, IoT’s wildest dreams are slowly (but steadily!) coming to life. Even now, with no universally approved security standards and thousands of failed attempts to bring IoT parts together, the new technology allows people to do a lot of cool things for the environment. Water management Here’s an astonishing fact for you: over the next 20 years the US government will spend almost $ 4 billion on rebuilding and upgrading the existing water infrastructure. Water bills will skyrocket again – and that seems pretty logical. After all, only 1% of the planet’s fresh water is available to end users, and some regions continuously suffer from drought. IoT vendors do acknowledge the problem – and come up with extraordinary solutions. About 15% of Californian households now employ smart water meters – IoT gadgets that track water consumption and send the generated data to an app for further analysis. The US government has even developed the Green Button standard for smart meter data access, enabling customers to download the data generated by the gadgets from utility companies’ websites. Customers can use the data to calculate potential savings via a mobile app or keep accurate records of water consumption for another provider (if they’re unhappy with the current service). Similar program has been implemented[2] by the UK officials – to mixed public acceptance and…increased water efficiency. The Southern Water company operates in Kent, Hampshire, Sussex and the Isle of Man; its clients manage to reduce water bills by £ 168 per year – and save 5.3 million liters of fresh water every day. Although the smart meter rollout was set to a bumpy start, the eco-friendly water management technologies offer clear benefits to governments and end consumers. Energy Consumption IBM claims there will be 1.57 billion utility-managed smart devices and over 2.5 million connected lights by 2020. Last year, China spent $ 20 billion on smart grid solutions. The UK government smart meter initiative will cost £ 11 billion (and that’s one of the reasons sceptics say the project should be scrapped ASAP). Why do governments and businessmen invest in IoT energy management solutions in the first place? According to Gerd Kortuem (professor of ubiquitous computing at the Open University), the Internet of Things enables[3] governments, businesses and consumers to monitor grids’ performance in real time, detect where they lose energy & determine where savings are possible. Current, a new $ 1 billion business announced by General Electric in 2015, unveils the Internet of Things potential to improve energy management. The tech stack for the new project includes the General Electric Predix platform for the industrial internet, solar and energy storage solutions and LED lighting. The general idea behind the project is “LED lighting as a service”. Instead of simply selling energy-efficient lights, General Electric allows its customers to analyze energy consumption, generate energy through solar panels & store it using onsite batteries. Quite a few companies – including Hilton Worldwide, Hospital Corporation of America and Intel – already use Current and save up to 20% on energy. By 2020, the business is expected to make $ 5 billion in revenues. Waste Management By 2025, the world’s population will produce 2.2 billion tons of waste every year (almost 100% up from 2014). Thus, the global spending on waste management will surpass $ 375 billion – but it’s not about money after all. Unless the international community comes up with comprehensive programs to reuse & recycle as much waste as possible (before burning or burying it), we’ll be choking on CO2 sooner than you think. The Internet of Things waste management technologies change the way we collect and dispose garbage. Enevo, a promising Finnish enterprise founded in 2010, developed wireless sensors to help waste companies measure fill-level in waste containers and optimize garbage collection routes. The Enevo sensors reportedly reduce waste collection costs by 50%. The company currently operates in 35 countries. Similar solution was developed by Urbiotica, a tech company that installed sensors in waste containers in several Spanish, French, Macedonian and Brazilian cities. According to Tania Jose, Urbiotica’s communication manager, bin level monitors will help Barcelona save $ 4 billion on waste management in just 10 years. There’s also the Bigbelly waste management system adopted by several US cities including Philadelphia. The system consists of autonomous trash stations (solar-powered containers enhanced with smart sensors) orchestrated via the CLEAN Management Console. The smart containers automatically compress waste, shrinking collection frequency by 70-80% on average. The Bigbelly cans cost Philadelphia $ 2 million – and that’s quite a lot. However, the city’s been annually saving up to $ 1 million on waste management ever since, so the game was worth the candle. IoT’s dark side The Internet of Things is meant to make our world a better place – and we’ve given you quite a few examples to back up the statement with facts. Smart sensors can surely detect pollution. And yes, Nest thermostats indeed help you go carbon-free. But it takes a lot of energy to manufacture and dispose all those gadgets. Our company has published several articles about the Internet of Things security and interoperability challenges. These problems are caused by several factors, including the lack of expertise (IoT is largely startup-driven) and, subsequently, funding (for the same reason). Smart gadget manufacturers often use cheap processors and devote insignificant time to software testing; otherwise most smart gadgets would be totally unaffordable. Gary Cook, Greenpeace IT analyst, says[4] it’s basically impossible for consumers “to get a sense of the lifetime environmental impact of any given connected product”, because there are not enough standards & organizations to get the information from. If you consider building an IoT gadget or enabling some “dumb” object with an embedded system, you should consult an experienced vendor & analyze the environmental impact your project is going to make. And yes, software & hardware quality must be your top priority. [1]http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/3165317 [2] http://www.techweekeurope.co.uk/e-innovation/green-it/uk-smart-meters-rollout-stopped-188967 [3] http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2015/mar/16/internet-of-things-energy-costs [4] http://www.wired.com/2014/06/green-iot/
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