Ericsson, Sigma breathe new life into cellular IoT

A new enterprise partnership between Ericsson and Sigma Connectivity has been formed to speed up and simplify the building of cellular IoT devices for enterprises.

Called Ardesco, the initiative is focused on accelerating the design to the manufacturing process. Currently that it can up to a year to develop a cellular IoT device from scratch with an investment cost of around $2m. The expense of the process has proved too much for many SME’s, who have decided against building enabled devices from the pre-development stage to market introduction.

Ardesco assists by adding the most basic features that most enterprises would need to develop for a cellular IoT device. This takes away 50-70% of the product development and can be used as a reference when creating the final product. The process will help accelerate product development, lead to a shorter time to market, and reduce development costs.  

The enterprise also provides businesses with the tools they need to develop their CIoT devices and get them to the marketplace in a reduced timeframe.

Mobilaris Industrial Solutions has also recently collaborated with Ardesco (October 20th) to promote the development of the cellular IoT industry. Enterprises working with Ardesco can receive the help they needed to customise, build, and industrialise the product they want to innovate.

Speaking about the initiative, Andreas Ericsson, CEO of Mobilaris Industrial Solutions, said, “We are excited to bring IoT industrial workforce safety to the market, a safety offer adapted to the opportunities of Industry 4.0. To collaborate with professional partners like Ericsson and Sigma Connectivity in developing unique workforce safety offerings will enable industries to take a big step towards the zero vision of workplace accidents", says Andreas Ericsson, CEO Mobilaris Industrial Solutions.”

However, while the new initiatives are helping to revitalise the cellular IoT market, other factors, like lack of investment, are holding back potential growth for the industry. 

A McKinsey study from April 2020 analysed at data on the latest business industry changes as COVID-19 altered the commerce landscape. An estimated 80% of companies are now in the process of a digital transition. But while information suggests cellular IoT devices are already instrumental in driving forward the global economic recovery, investment in IoT remains behind the curve compared to other areas of investment.

The report states, “Industrial IoT (IIoT), a major element of Industry 4.0, can help companies as they proceed on this journey. It has demonstrated its value on many occasions over the past few years, but some sceptics still doubt its worth and elected not to make bold investments in this area. What’s more, few business leaders view IIoT as a critical improvement lever in times of crisis, especially if their organisations have not previously explored it.”