Digital experiments need a lightbulb moment

Andy Penfold, Director of Offering Management at ADLINK, the author of the whitepaper, stated: “The path taken by inventors such as Thomas Edison demonstrates how innovation often results not from one bright idea but from the exploration of many different options. The key to Edison’s success with invention was experimentation and how important it is to experiment at a relatively small scale before moving to deployment. He had no wish to rush to market with a design that could not be manufactured cost-effectively or would not work to scale.”

The numerous ways in which early experimentation can inform the development of IoT implementations is clearly outlined. The benefits of starting small scale is that the team can think big and learn fast without a large outlay. However, integrating disparate IoT devices, software and services can be a challenge. Penfold proposes that a readymade platform, offered as a subscription, can provide all the relevant elements required for a variety of projects and experiments that are run simultaneously in a manner that minimises risk for the user.

Penfold concluded: “This divide-and-conquer strategy that uses early experimentation to let implementers gain knowledge as quickly as possible provides a way to cut out the many obstacles to success.”