How a fluid-technology company created a SaaS IoT solution without a technology team
Discover how one fluid-technology company created a world-class SaaS solution with just two consultants.
Many industries are undergoing digital transformation today. With advanced technologies such as IoT, AI, and cloud, many traditional businesses are finding new business models and competitive advantages by leveraging them. Many of these businesses are creating subscription-based services that lead to recurring revenue, better customer satisfaction, better customer retention, and better understanding of customer behaviors.
One of the biggest challenges for traditional businesses is that implementing digital transformation technologies requires strong technical skills. Furthermore, digital technologies cannot be implemented once. They need to be constantly monitored and improved. Finding the right team, internally or externally, to implement digital transformation technologies is a major challenge.
Here we described how a fluid technology company implemented a successful SaaS solution with very little technology resources. This company’s key product is a chemical cleaning agent used in car wash operations. The company would like to create a remote monitoring solution to monitor wash quality and inventory. The company’s goal is to charge a SaaS subscription revenue to car wash shops for improved operations and for alerting chemical replenishment.
The fluid technology company has a deep understanding of car wash chemicals. However, it does not have any operational technology (OT), Internet of Things (IoT), or information technology (IT) expertise. OT refers to the technology required to program an automation controller to control car wash operations. IoT refers to the technology required to acquire sensor data, analyze sensor data, and send data to the cloud securely. IT refers to the technology required to implement a cloud application software for the car wash shop owners to view dashboards and receive alerts.
The fluid technology company first hired a software integration company and found that since the software integration company didn’t have any OT or IoT experience, they were not able to implement the solution successfully. The fluid technology company then enlisted a system integrator, who worked for a major industrial automation device manufacturer, to build the OT and IoT part of the solution. The integrator built the solution in Node-RED, which is a low-code programming software, and then imported the solution into Prescient Designer so that the solution can be scaled to hundreds of sites. The advantages of building solutions in Node-RED and Prescient Designer is that this is an agile process, which enables quick implementation and future upgrades, ensuring that the solution will never be out of date.
The fluid technology company also hired a software developer consultant to build the cloud application software. The cloud application software allows customers to log in to view dashboards, receive alerts, and order chemicals. All the data is stored in a cloud database.
Ultimately, the fluid technology company created a world-class SaaS solution using just two consultants. This solution now monitors over one hundred physical parameters including chemical properties, fluid levels, dispensing rates, wash types, water quality and pressure, as well as indoor and outdoor temperature. This innovative solution enables automation and optimization of chemistry, controls, and supply chain, and it gives operators a single-pane view of key parameters and performance metrics from the cloud.
Prescient Devices was closely involved in the entire solution development process. Prescient Devices supported the system integrator to implement the OT/IoT solution, and its software integration partner can support the IT/cloud application. Now Prescient Devices is supporting the fluid technology company to build AI-based predictive maintenance capability into its smart car wash solution and to extend the solution into other application areas.
If you are a traditional business looking to create digital transformation solutions that involve OT, IoT, AI, and IT, Prescient Devices provides a one-stop shop to build and support your complete solution. Contact us for a free consultation.