It is no secret that digital transformation (DX) is not an option anymore; instead, it is a requirement for all industry verticals. The fourth industrial revolution is setting standards helping to accomplish the intelligent interconnectivity between the physical and the digital. The current status quo working through centralized models, i.e., the cloud, is unacceptable for implementing this new digital data management process.
The following text will provide insights into why decentralization can bring your digital transformation cost-effectiveness. In addition, decentralized technology also acts on better security and sustainability. If you are working on massive IoT projects like smart cities, critical national infrastructure, and smart factories, we strongly recommend you keep reading.
Twenty-odd years ago, when the cloud emerged into the mainstream to liberate companies from costly local servers by offering server centers to manage their data, it was very welcome and with good reason. Before the cloud, companies had to spend substantial budgets on physical servers, applications, an IT department, etc. When the cloud became available, all these costs were drastically reduced, as companies big and small could use the cloud to store, analyze, and secure their data.
From that point onward, corporations could reach their data without needing to be at the office—a flexibility opening up new options to plan workflows, giving more flexibility, speed, and cost-efficiency. Now you can access information at a meeting in Berlin while your headquarters are in New York. A considerable leap that provided executives the power to move more freely and know that their sexiest PowerPoint presentation was safely guarded in the cloud and could be accessed anytime, anywhere, and from any device.
True, there were moments when a slow internet connection could leave them with their pants down for a couple of minutes, but nothing they could not handle with a bit of chit-chat. It was worth the aggravation as the cloud's advantages were much higher than these minor drawbacks. Talk about the latest weekend game, weather, favorite golf course, or how Michael Jordan could fly. Once this small talk was over, it was most probable that the internet connection was back and your sexy PowerPoint up and running.
Now let's fast forward to the present. Today, the advantages of the cloud are still in use and continue to help big and small companies keep their data accessible worldwide and, in most cases, safely guarded behind robust and religiously updated firewalls. It is strong, but, as we initially presented, the fourth industrial revolution sets a substantially different scene. Digital transformation means the insertion of technology working on-premises, e.g., Internet of Things (IoT) devices. A paradigm shift where data is growing exponentially, much of it sensitive.
Today's scene indicates that data management must change, as the costs of moving the immense amount of data generated by massive IoT deployments to server centers could be done more cost-effectively. Concerning latency and cybersecurity, things turn even more greyish as latency, outages, and cyberattacks whirling about in critical infrastructure, healthcare, and factories is a recipe for disaster. Let us look at some statistics:
These figures date back to 2008, when data generation was not as high as today, so imagine how latency and outages can hurt your revenue today. Your income is on the line, and your corporation's reputation, as T-Mobile's downtime failed over 23k 911 calls. Your business must consider these possibilities when introducing DX into the workflow.
Industries are deploying technology with the potential to lower costs, secure the workforce, and open new revenue opportunities. To succeed in Industry 4.0, the capacity to manage data cost-effectively is paramount; decentralization plays a vital role here.
Now that we have taken a brief tour of the cloud's evolution and data growth. Let's look at the possibilities to overcome the issues presented. A moment in humankind's history where the potential to better living standards, reach sustainable goals, and provide industries and markets with new horizons is a reality.
There are several obstacles to tackle before we hit the bull's eye and start reaping the fruits we are planting now. IoT, artificial intelligence (AI), digital twins, machine learning (ML), embedded systems, etc., are all part of this amazing transformation we are living in today. Baby steps can lead to a world where citizens can appreciate predictive maintenance results within their cities. Industry leaders achieve autonomous automation for supply chain management and smart factories, and the healthcare industry takes giant leaps in innovative ways of addressing illnesses.
It is an exciting moment, a boiling caldron that could overheat and spill out all the nutrients and vitamins from the stew. Therefore, now is the time to lower the heat and let technology simmer, giving it adequate time to release all the flavors and reach its optimum body temperature. If data is the nutrients and vitamins of Industry 4.0, decentralization is the perfect heat for data to become digestible information.
As we have established, data is generated at a source; it needs to stay at that source to make the most out of it. Decentralization can achieve this by offering innovative technology like the blockchain to secure and distribute data throughout the nodes connected on-premises. Raw data does not need to be moved to the cloud via the web; it can stay where it is created to store, analyze, and refine, deploying this revolutionary approach. We reach data to information refinement at the source.
What does this mean? Imagine you are managing the data generated by traffic. If it were done through centralized server centers, all the data generated would have to, in some way or another, end up in the server centers that can be thousands of kilometers away. This strategy opens up potential latency, bandwidth bottlenecks, and costs of moving insanely high amounts of data back and forth without even mentioning the vulnerabilities that come with one point of attack, where cyber terrorists can access a whole system by hacking one address.
On the other hand, managing data through a decentralized system where data is distributed between the nodes and a blockchain keeps the data safe at the source and mitigates the problems centralization causes immensely. A use case that can be applied to all industry verticals, from healthcare to port logistics, giving AI, digital twins, and IoT an efficient infrastructure where data-to-information refinement is achievable. These opportunities are endless; what has to change is the mindset of top-tier executives to open up to new ways of embracing digital transformation.
Another vital aspect decentralization brings to the decision tables is its sustainability. As we are all aware, there is a big stir concerning the sustainability of server centers. One of the main problems these server centers have is cooling, and a solution would be setting them in remote cold places, e.g., northern Scandinavia. But as we already know, latency is the big obstacle for this fix. Actioning decentralized networks spreads the heat throughout the whole premises. Therefore, heating is not concentrated in one single place.
Adding to the sustainability pledge, using optimized programming languages also reduces the carbon footprint the IT industry is currently spreading. This situation continues to grow, but less wasteful programming languages are being used today. Having a bulk carrier do a 180-degree turn is difficult, but it is possible with the correct information and technology. In the same way, multinational corporations can use decentralized tech to turn the tide into the new opportunities digital transformation waves in
I hope this has opened your eyes and you understand that DX must move away from the cloud and live at the edge. A place where low-latency and real-time data processing can become a reality, opening the doors to new revenue opportunities and closing the doors to the constant burden cyberattacks and data breaches cause.
There are many options for you to look into and choose from. We present our vision and mission to help accelerate your digital transformation through the Internet of Everything (IoE). IoE is the next step in the constantly evolving Industry 4.0, a place many have described as the intelligent connectivity between people, processes, things, and data.
Internet of Everything Corporation is setting the stepping stones for the Internet of Everything to become a reality with the Eden systems. We offer a private online Edge Cluster via Eden developed around a sustainable computing core. Take advantage of the opportunity to partner with us. We are onboarding new partners to be part of the coming paradigm shift where decentralization will take center stage at the edge.
Apply to our Planet Partner Program by clicking the following link,
https://partners.ioecorp.com/apply-partner.
