Over the last few decades, technology has advanced to boost data management for better governance, optimum utilisation of resources and improve lives with positivity. As a result, significant progress has been made in all industries. The Internet of Things (IoT) – networked gadgets talking with the internet – arose from this tremendous expansion and advancement. This decade, the number of globally connected devices is likely to skyrocket. This presents a fantastic opportunity to use IoT technology to aid in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Even the World Economic Forum emphasised how most current IoT projects may help achieve the SDGs.
Smart home and smart city applications have sparked a lot of attention and progress. AgTech is another sector that is delivering smart solutions. Agriculture provides us with food and implementing solutions in this area aids in monitoring crops, livestock, pollinators, and water and energy consumption. Solutions in this area help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for Poverty, Hunger, Climate Action, Life on Land, and Life Below Water. Collaborations will be a crucial enabler in the future, where B2B and NGO-to-B2B and other types of partnerships may complement one other and fill gaps to provide an innovative solution. Where people do not have access to clean water or proper sanitation, innovation in clean water and sanitation reduces disease and mortality rates.
However, businesses are now playing a critical role in attaining environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals that benefit everyone, including the stakeholders. IoT may be used by businesses of all types to monitor and mitigate their products and processes that pose hazards.
Let us discuss the methods for businesses to leverage sustainable development of IoT:
Conservation and smart technologies:
Water is essential for human survival, but according to the World Wildlife Fund, more than 3 billion people lack access to or find freshwater limited worldwide, particularly in some of the poorest countries. The IoT technology can be a crucial driver of better water usage, particularly filtration and conservation initiatives. For city water managers to measure, evaluate, and optimise water use at scale, IoT sensors can give data in near real-time. Innovative pricing systems will also help prevent wasteful water usage in the future.
Organisations should focus on creating apps like ‘TechNirmal’ that aids social workers and water activists in tracking water conservation programs via effective data collection and monitoring. The data from outlying places is compiled in real-time or near-real-time at the central monitoring system. The Welthungerhilfe affiliated NGOs – Tarun Bharat Sangh, Parmarth Samaj Sevi Sanstha, Jal Jan Jodo Abhiyan, and Prayog Samaj Sevi Sanstha are using the TechNirmal app as a social accountability tool, allowing local communities to follow the invasion of water bodies in real-time. the app is CSR initiative of Aeris Communications, India and developed by Manacle Technologies.
Another pain area related to water is its irresponsible use by industries. AquaGen – a Smart Real-time water flow and level monitoring system by fluxgen addresses this concern. This system strategizes the water usage pattern and produces insightful reports on the water consumption pattern. AquaGen also ensures that the non-revenue water loss is reduced, thus helping calculation of the total water usage in the industry.
Smart offices require intelligent infrastructure:
Organisations use the Internet of Things (IoT) devices to create an “intelligent ecosystem” that uses connectivity to control, monitor, manage, and optimise the workplace. Improved productivity and worker safety, more efficient corporate operations, more comfortable working conditions, and, most notably, climate change energy savings are all advantages of a smart office.
Employee safety became paramount during the pandemic, especially for the essential service providers. Solutions like Personnel Tracking helps organisations become smart and increase workforce productivity. The solution helps track sales force and remote teams deployed on the field, to ensure that they use their time productively. In addition, it also offers many convenient tools and workflows to let them handle their routine tasks and reporting activities, right from the field. The solution is a cost-effective and straightforward and includes cutting-edge capabilities like SoS calls and SMS, Geo-fencing, and Geo-tracking, ensuring the safety of employees, maintenance staff, guards, salespeople, and even family members who are constantly on the move.
IoT devices continue to play a crucial role in office infrastructure security, and more firms are investing and innovating. Post pandemic, the shift to work from home and learn from home gave rise to many health and psychological issues with working professionals and students. Working professionals constantly complained of the noisy surround sound coming from colleague’s homes during conference calls. Many complained about the stress it caused which led to inability to concentrate and be productive in client meetings. Regular use of headphones/earphones led to headaches and ENT issues, especially among young children.
Innovative communication and noise cancellation solutions for online meetings which work with any collaboration platform became tech tools of choice for working professionals, enterprises, teachers and students, alike. One such trending tool is claerityai. This is a software-based solution which does not require additional hardware to produce crystal clear voices during remote meetings. It uses artificial intelligence technology to not only remove more than 2000 types of unwanted noises in the background but also enhances speech of the speaker during the conference calls. Such technologies are helping organisations make their workforce more productive.
Conclusion
Within the next few years, connected devices are expected to be the key drivers of change. With the increased demand for this technology from both the public and private sectors for better energy distribution, precise business forecasting, the fruits of Green IT, and a solution to many of the region’s environmental concerns, overall productivity gains are predicted to skyrocket. Of course, new technologies like Artificial Intelligence will emerge to make IoT more intuitive and user friendly. Still, manufacturers will have to work harder to secure their connected devices as the risk to data grows. Despite these trends and predictions, the future looks bright and promising, and it is well worth anticipating.
