Page 76 - Inbound Logistics | April 2017 | Digital Issue

It’s IoT Time

exploring the use of sensors to amass
data from many other customer-fac-
ing devices, such as beverage coolers,
vending machines, and power tools. For
example, the company is working with
a large consumer packaged goods firm
to capture data from coolers and shelves
in retail stores to track consumption.
One goal of this effort is to improve
inventory management. “We provided
real-time replenishment by identifying
when inventory falls below a certain
threshold,” Wallis says. That means
stores never run out of the products
consumers want most.
Data from sensors in the stores also
lets the company track the tempera-
ture in coolers, to make sure product
stays in optimal condition. The data
SAP Connected Goods takes existing customer-facing products, such as vending may also reveal how location within a
machines, and connects them with business processes and backend systems to store affects product sales. Do custom-
allow for efficient monitoring and control of a large number of such devices.
ers snatch up more cold sodas kept in a
Poetic currently sells coffee by subscrip- appliances equipped with smart sensors cooler near the front of the store than
tion, sending new shipments at regular will provide even better data. in the back?
intervals. “But we’re working with them “You can drill down into Mr. Smith’s In addition, sensors on doors can
to track actual consumption and move coffee machine at 240 Acacia Avenue indicate how long a cooler stays open
to a consumption-based replenishment and see exactly what he has been doing,” and, therefore, how quickly custom-
model,” says Neil Hampshire, chief Hampshire adds. Aggregating the data ers are finding the products they want.
information officer at ModusLink. from thousands of customers, you could, “If people have to search too long, they
Under that model, a smart coffee- for example, find out if people who might not return,” Wallis says.
maker—one designed for the home, or drink coffee before 9 a.m. respond dif- Another SAP customer, a fragrance
for a business setting such as a company ferently to marketing campaigns than company, wants better insight into how
break room—monitors how much coffee those who drink it between 9 and 11:30. its food manufacturer customers use
the customer uses and then, when sup- its product. For example, the company
plies run low, automatically orders more. An Eye on Consumption wants to change a product’s expiration
Opportunities for automated replen- Coffee is also a hot topic for the IoT date dynamically, based on the storage
ishment go far beyond coffee. “If you researchers working on “Connected temperature at the customer’s site.
abstract that into the business-to-busi- Goods” solutions at software company “They also want to monitor con-
ness world, any consumable items SAP. One customer, a producer of sumption rates, so they can get back
that can be tracked and measured industrial coffee machines, is working to their customers and say, ‘You’re get-
in a device could be replenished,” with SAP to equip those appliances with ting low; we need to replenish,’” Wallis
Hampshire says. For example, a smart sensors to track consumption of differ- says. Sensors in containers that carry
printing press might reorder its own ink. ent products. the fragrance chemicals will collect
Beyond helping to streamline replen- This work has yielded some valu- data to help the manufacturer achieve
ishment—and giving more brand able insights, says Elvira Wallis, senior both goals.
owners a way to sell directly to cus- vice president, IoT Smart Connected Clearly, the range of “things” that can
tomers—a platform such as Poetic Business at SAP in Palo Alto, Calif. supply data to an IoT application is vast.
can generate a great deal of busi- “The company didn’t realize that in Like many observers, Wallis cautions that
ness intelligence. certain geographies, people consume capturing the data is only the start of the
“Five or 10 years ago, for large con- primarily black coffee.” process. The real key is extracting useful
sumer products companies, the Holy This information has helped the insights from these masses of detail.
Grail was increased point-of-sale data, company better hone its marketing “It’s all about managing, monitoring,
gaining visibility into what retail- strategy, promoting milk-based drinks and capturing value from these smart
ers were selling to consumers, and only in regions where those are actually devices, then making sense out of the
using that to enhance replenish- popular, she adds. data,” she says. “Then the business can
ment,” Hampshire says. But consumer Along with coffee makers, SAP is make intelligent decisions.” n

74 Inbound Logistics • April 2017