‘The Future is IoT’ – Farnell publishes exclusive new research


Farnell, an Avnet Company and global distributor of electronic components, products and solutions, has published a new report analysing Internet of Things (IoT) trends, based on three years of survey data and research reports. ‘The Future is IoT – Analysing Industry Trends’ report is available as a free eBook and audiobook, offering design engineers valuable insights and analysis on the future of the IoT.

In the report, Farnell looks at how IoT is applied today and analyses the industries where the IoT is having the greatest impact. The IoT market is one of the strongest growing markets today. IoT technology is actively used in many critical industries including Industry 4.0, home automation, Artificial Intelligence (AI), smart cities, energy management, automotive and transportation, healthcare, medical and wearable devices. The report also uncovers the changes to the IoT sector which have been brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The report combines three years of data from Farnell’s annual IoT survey with other market research to provide some of the most up-to-date, holistic and in-depth analysis of IoT available. This study includes the views of more than 5,000 industry stakeholders from over 60 countries worldwide, and examines the IoT process from three perspectives: the creator (who), the motivations (why) and the solutions (what).

Key trends emerging from the report include:

  • Security is the biggest concern and a very high priority for engineers designing IoT solutions.
  • Industrial automation is an increasing trend for new IoT applications with Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communication and remote monitoring projected to grow fastest.
  • Single Board Computers (SBC) are the most preferred platform to implement IoT technology into end products.
  • Wireless solutions are now driving IoT connectivity ahead of wired equivalents as new technologies emerge and offer low-power and long-range secured solutions.

Ankur Tomar, Global Solutions Marketing Manager of Farnell, says: “With three years of IoT survey data, we are now able to see the IoT landscape with much greater clarity. For example, cloud and system security remains a key aspect for IoT design, yet the percentage of engineers highlighting it as their primary concern has more than halved since 2018. The solutions developed by cloud and technology providers are quickly plugging these gaps, particularly in cybersecurity, leaving engineers more room to focus on other aspects of their design such as communication reliability and ecosystem.”

Farnell is committed to supporting customers in their IoT journey and offers a growing portfolio of IoT products, solutions and free online resources to assist developers designing IoT applications and implementing AI. Products to support industrial automation and control are available from leading manufacturers such as Raspberry Pi and Arduino, as well as Schneider Electric, Molex and Omega.

Farnell’s IoT Hub features a range of free useful resources, including white papers, application notes and videos, along with access to the latest products to support the design of IoT projects.

The exclusive report, ‘The Future is IoT – Analysing Industry Trends’, is available for download as an eBook and audiobook from Farnell.


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