Why massive IoT is a force for good as well as profit.

When a new technology arrives, we want to be first to market and we are increasingly achieving this. For example, we have recently announced a module for Amazon Sidewalk in addition to nonterrestrial network modules. We’re not doing crazy experiments or jumping into murky waters that we don’t understand but, inside the realm of our core competencies, we are permanently innovating and I think customers expect that of an industry leader.”

Iot For Good

That innovation is driving new use cases that are transforming society across an ever-expanding number of deployments from healthcare to smart cities and from environmental sustainability to addressing the digital divide. To maintain this momentum, enterprises need access to modules, chipsets and antennas and ideally, these should be easy to integrate, have unconstrained supply and be backed by a portfolio of services such as original design manufacturing (ODM), certification, testing and support.

“We facilitate companies, no matter what solutions they are seeking, to connect their devices with the latest, state of the art technology,” says Muhrer. “That could be anything from low data rate, highly power efficient connections in narrowband IoT, such as those for smart meters or agriculture devices, to 5G customer premise equipment that enables fixed wireless access with extremely high data rates.”

The low-end scenario could involve enabling connected sensors in crop fields to optimize usage of fertiliser and ensure maximized yields while the highend 5G use cases might bring wireless broadband connectivity to users, often for the first time, or enable advanced medical applications.

“In Industrial IoT, the classical model of harnessing IoT to enable smart measurements is leading to environmental improvements because, when companies know their emissions or their energy consumption, they can work to reduce their consumption or their impact,” says Muhrer. “Smart sensors can reveal where leaks occur in water pipes and enable providers to rectify their infrastructure with enhanced accuracy.”

In addition, Muhrer cites deployments of smart home technologies to control the humidity level of homes and to minimize their power consumption which are reducing environmental impacts. He also details applications involving optimization of waste bins emptying services. “They only send the trucks to empty bins that need emptying,” he says. “It cuts costs for the authorities so they can spend the tax money on better investments such as schools, kindergartens and public healthcare.”

Muhrer believes Quectel has substantial value to add, not only as a provider of technology but also as an enabler, helping customers realize their projects. “We guide customers with our service support from the design stage until the customers’ devices are certified,” he says. “We try and help their journey along as we want our customers to have a pleasant experience both in the technology and the support that we give them. Once their devices are in the field, we also support them with any issues that arise.”

For some of the use cases outlined, there are substantial cost constraints and, as massive IoT gains scale, these costs are magnified. For IoT to continue to be a force for good, efficiency must be enhanced. The challenge is to use the high volumes to drive down the cost of components and create cost-effective solutions at sustainable cost.

“We run a very lean organization and it’s no secret, because we are publicly listed, that we run on narrow profit margins” says Muhrer. “While at our low OPEX per revenue this is digestible, our competitors’ margins with much higher cost structures tend to be at least double, often even higher. We can provide cost effective products and innovate those in mass volume for the customer. The volume of solutions we sell lessens the technology cost per unit and that drives our capability to deliver highly efficient but lower cost products that are dedicated to use cases and deployment scenarios.”

In Muhrer’s view, small regional vendors can’t meet the needs of massive IoT because they lack the resources to develop variants to support the myriad vertical use cases of IoT in every market on the globe. High-volume makers of IoT modules and antennas have not only the scale but also the experience and insights from deployments in many different vertical sectors and geographies to bring to their development, which fuels innovation and cost efficiency.

“IoT is a hyperscale, global ecosystem and its needs can only be met by hyperscale, global vendors that can maximize IoT’s potential for profit – and for good,” concludes Muhrer. “If you’re deploying in the UK, Australia, Japan, Korea, Latin America and the US, for example, you need solutions that are tailored for each market. Being able to offer that demands vast R&D resources so market variants can be created that meet both the vertical sector and geographic demands customers face.”