Cyber Threats
Exposing computers or intelligent devices to the Internet invites cyberattack. Each addressable device is a security concern, and Cisco estimates that there may be 50 Billion devices connected to the Internet by 2020. Even more frightening is trying to remember all those credentials!
As a facilities manager, you should understand that the IoT will demand new skill sets in this area, and those skills will likely come from internal IT resources and/or your service partners. It is interesting that poor physical security hits number ten on the list.
How will you protect yourself? Traditional enterprise systems create perimeter protection, with firewalls and security policies to exclude non-trusted people from entering a network zone. Like a physical building, once inside an intruder may be free to roam. Strategically, IoT security will isolate network segments (like creating secure “rooms” within the building), protecting the most sensitive data in the most secure zones with a gateway which blocks inbound connections. Data required for monitoring within these zones will be pushed out from within the zone, using credentials only known inside the zone. All communication with external systems may be initiated from within the secure zone, with the connection occurring with an “endpoint” that is also isolated from the public. Like a facility with card access utilizing area restrictions by function or position in the organization, so the IoT will create these virtual rooms, with controlled access as determined by FM and the It departments.
Knowledge Transfer
Knowledge transfer is one of the largest issues in facilities management today. Buildings are complex systems, often maintained by a multidisciplinary team of service providers and in house operators, with service records delivered via fragmented business processes. Often critical knowledge is maintained in the heads of senior building operators, or the engineering team that designed the system. Over time, knowledge is lost.
End-to-end service processes, a single data repository, and collaborative services delivery are an answer to the knowledge transfer problem. Integral to the IoT for buildings will be building “Avatars”, which are virtual representations of the physical building, allowing an authorized user to navigate through the building to access and update building information. The Avatar needs to be available to all stakeholders in the building, with access to data based on the stakeholder’s role. The Avatar creates a collaboration point for stakeholders, to allow the sharing of knowledge, and visibility to business processes, as needed.
Collaboration
Collaborative services delivery enables Business to Business (B-2B) processes. Today, when a service provider rolls a truck in response to a maintenance issue, the field technician is often blind to the issue or the service history of equipment involved. They may not even know where the equipment is located. Creating this visibility, and providing a business process which allows the field technician to access this information before reaching the site, creates efficiencies in the service process. Recording the work activity performed in real-time, and making that information instantly available to the customer and the service provider’s own back office, eliminates further administrative workload, and creates accurate service records for each piece of equipment.
Having better data available, including equipment specific service records, allows facilities managers supported by building experts, to make better repair/ replace decisions.
