IoTA CAN set to transform Canadian IoT ideas into innovative solutions

Across the world, a number of alliances, consortiums and groups have formed to further the advancement of Internet of Things (IoT), but no such group currently exists in Canada to drive thought leadership and accelerate the adoption of IoT – until now. The Internet of Things Alliance for Canada (IoTA CAN) has formed to accelerate the creation and rapid adoption of IoT innovation by building a new, vibrant and competitive wireless ecosystem. IoTA CAN’s mission is to sustainably drive benefits for Canadians by enhancing awareness, providing education and expertise while operating as a single point-of-presence for IoT resources and connections within Canadian and global markets.

Empowered by Wavefront, with a Federal mandate as Canada’s Centre for Excellence for Commercialization and Research (NCE) in wireless and mobile innovation, IoTA CAN is best positioned to realize the potential for Canadians by providing optimal resources for education, funding, networking and innovation. IoTA CAN is an open membership organization formed to drive the development, adoption and use of interconnected machines and devices in Canada using the IoTA CAN Solutions Framework.

Modelled after Wavefront’s mandate and structure, IoTA CAN is the creation of a thought leadership body comprised of representatives from select industry leaders.

“We speed the pathway of companies implementing Machine to Machine (M2M) and IoT using the IoTA CAN Solutions Framework that combines coopetition between Alliance members to create enterprise solutions,” says William (Bill) Archer, VP Enterprise Solutions, Wavefront. “If we’re all working together to maximize our joint strengths instead of simply discarding the things we cannot accomplish alone, the opportunities grow quickly. Separately, we’re incomplete. United, we form something powerful and uniquely Canadian.”

Supply creation is facilitated by accessing resources

The organization uses a dual pronged approach to achieve this goal through supply and demand creation. Supply creation is facilitated by accessing resources through a common point while demand is created by providing a central resource and reference library for best-in-class IoT solutions.

Enterprises looking to create Supply-side solutions in the IoT marketplace can concentrate on their own unique solution to a particular problem instead of having to re-create every layer by themselves. On the Demand side, businesses looking for solutions to meet their needs can search for IoT innovations built upon the best of Canadian expertise and technology without wasting precious resources wondering where to search.

Unlocking IoT’s Potential for the Digital Canadian Business

IoT technology enables organizations to quickly unlock their full potential – an opportunity not lost on member companies.  In its simplest form “IoT” is a sensor collecting information and transmitting it to a place where it can be analyzed and acted upon without human interaction. IoTA CAN members have the ability to mitigate risk for product sourcing and project implementation because they are already working together in such areas as:

• Smart Cities and Smart Buildings – Improved operational issues from waste management, parking, energy conservation, connected learning and healthcare.
• Employee productivity – Improved labour efficiency and mobility through the use of Wearable Technology.
• Supply chain logistics and efficiency – Fine tune processes that reduce supply chain waste via the use of asset tracking.
• Predictive analytics – Glean actionable intelligence based on historical data through the benefits of ‘big data’ and cloud-based analytics.
• Organizational efficiencies – Cost of goods reduction from improved business execution through better real-time access to critical key performance indicators.
• Faster time-to-market innovation – Improved research, development and engineering due to a common goal of increasing productivity for all Canadian enterprises.
• Customer Experience – Improved customer lifetime value through connected marketing and education via immediate feedback gleaned from retail solutions and dedicated application software on portable devices.

Being a member of IoTA CAN offers Canadian companies access to the most relevant and best IoT information, workshops, conferences and focus group sessions to achieve these growth opportunities. In addition, it’s possible to participate in market development and research through select committees and become a member of a unified voice to government agencies in Canada.

“Our Canadian Maple Leaf logo is built up of the many key components that an IoT solution requires,” says Archer. “It also represents the founding partners of the IoTA CAN coming together building a foundation for innovation.  No one single vendor has the complete solution and we must all work together wherever possible.  Any Canadian company or company based in Canada that wants or needs to have a voice in setting the direction for the evolution, adoption and growth of IoT in Canada can and should join the Alliance.”