How the Internet of Things will Improve Risk Mitigation

One of the advantages of the Internet of Things (IoT) is its versatility in improving business processes. Take risk mitigation for example. In the manufacturing industry, there are a lot of things that could impact business if they are interrupted. Risk mitigation is meant to improve what happens when those interruptions occur. Now, IoT can help mitigate the impact of those interruptions.

IoT and Risk Mitigation

Imagine a world where a technician would receive a text message on his phone when a machine breaks down. The text would include information about the machine such as the exact time, what was happening when the machine stopped working, what the machine detected is the problem, and where it is located.  At the same time a manager also receives a text telling him the same information and that a technician has been dispatched to take care of the problem. Imagine that machine is also critical to product development or construction. Business and sales cannot resume until it is operational again.

In this world, the manager, the technician, and any workers assigned to the machine don’t have to waste valuable time communicating what happened. This allows the problem to be diagnosed and corrected in a much more efficient manner. This world, by the way, is the world of IoT.

Integrated Risk Mitigation

Risk mitigation in this new world is now integrated risk mitigation and is much more efficient than without the IoT. The key to this is that every system, process, and data gathered about those processes is connected. Something that happens on one end of the system can inform and change what happens at the other end, if needed. In this way, the Internet of Things can improve many aspects of risk mitigation including:

  • Logging all jobs a machine runs, and making that data available in a centralized hub.
  • Predicting when a machine will need servicing.
  • Reducing time until a technician can service a machine.
  • Reducing the time it takes to diagnose the issue.
  • Coordinating communication between many different machines and processes.