The internet of things (IoT) has been gaining sharp momentum in the post-Covid scenario, says Yash Mehta, an IoT and Big Data Science specialist. Almost every business vertical such as manufacturing, transportation, utilities, healthcare and consumer electronics has started implementing IoT in its business processes. This has put IoT product development firms in a position to deliver highly efficient and reliable products.
While IoT services can be outsourced from various development firms, it is essential to make sure that the outsourcing firm has all the necessary qualifications to deliver high-quality products. This process of finding the right product development company is quite tedious, especially when it comes to selecting the right IoT hardware development firms.
An IoT hardware development firm must be capable of carrying out end-to-end IoT hardware development processes. Such as prototyping, manufacturing design, firmware development, quality assurance, etc… This article is intended to point out some of the challenges faced by IoT companies when finding the right IoT hardware development partner.
Challenge 1: On-demand hiring of skilled IoT vendors within given time & budget
As there is no shortage of vendors from different disciplines, narrowing down the most suitable applicant is a hard task. The problem with IoT is the diverse types of vendors involved in the process. Unlike other technologies, IoT is dependent upon a mix of mechanical, software and firmware. Not to miss, finding the right procurement partners, manufacturing partners and digital technology partners is a complex task that no one talks about.
IoT development commences in strict time & budget deadlines. It is a landscape of multiple different development projects that should contrive towards common product functionality. Therefore, selecting a vendor that is within budget holds subject matter expertise and available on-demand is no less than a dream for many enterprises.
While you plan to hire your outsourcing partners, consider the above factors. Implement a customised strategy to find the right partner. Make optimal use of social media, browse through bidding platforms, publish requests for proposals (RFPs) and use manual internet researching.
Challenge 2: Lack of mediums to find hardware vendors
Despite a number of platforms providing resource hiring and project bidding, hardware continues to be an overlooked discipline. First of all, most consulting services don’t risk the complexity of hardware component development services such as PCB designing, procurement, prototyping, etc.
Secondly, those who do provide these services hardly have any experience working for IoT devices. Now since IoT is 50% hardware development, the most important vertical shouldn’t be left just like that. After all, those who get this right have already outperformed most peers in the business. The digital marketplace is leading North American from the front across sectors such as Healthcare, Industrial IoT (IIoT), Automobile and others.
How to select the right IoT hardware development partner?
Always start your vendor-hunting project for hardware requirements. It is the most challenging and costliest part of the project. Look out for platforms that provide hardware sourcing. Explore solutions that provide a rich database of professionals in the mechanical (hardware plus electrical) domain. Make use of their forms functionality that acknowledges vendor results based on the search queries. Interestingly, you can opt for an automation tool to produce interactive RFPs that communicate your business requirement with finesse.
As mentioned earlier, selecting the right IoT hardware development firm can be a difficult task. But once companies find the right firm, they can get services from experts across various fields like engineering, front-end development, R&D and data and network security. This will result in being highly cost-effective while ensuring successful outcomes.
The author is Yash Mehta, an IoT and Big Data Science specialist.
Comment on this article below or via Twitter: @IoTNow_OR @jcIoTnow
Leave a Reply