An international truck manufacturer created a new revenue stream by outfitting trucks with sensors for predictive maintenance. The system automatically schedules repairs when needed and orders the required parts for the repair. More than 100,000 trucks have been outfitted with devices that transmit more than 10,000 data points a day for each truck.
RESULT
This is a mature example of using sensor data. Sensors in the trucks, combined with predictive models, detect when a mechanical failure is likely to occur. When this happens, the system schedules a maintenance appointment for the truck based on the truck’s route and optimized for scheduled delivery times. Further, the system orders and ships the appropriate parts to the identified service center, and then notifies technicians about what needs to be fixed. The result is an interconnected web of sensors and operational systems that communicate to save time and money across the operation.
In each of these cases, bringing the Internet of Things and industrial-grade analytics together yielded significant and persistent business enhancements.