The IoT Industry Council of South Africa (IoTIC) has been formally constituted as a new industry representative body, holding its first annual general meeting on the 15th of March in Johannesburg.
The council brings together leading South African and global technology integrators, innovators and thinkers at the cutting edge of the evolution of the Internet of Things (IoT) in this country. It will act as a collective voice for the IoT industry in South Africa, representing companies that provide devices, network connectivity, application software and systems integration services in this exciting new technology space.
Founding members of the IoT Industry Council of South Africa are Internet Solutions, Nerospec IOT, Real Telematics Systems (RTS), Sqwidnet, Activate Group, Comsol Networks, CST Electronics, Dimension Data, Eseye, Macrocomm, Microsoft, MTN, SoftwareAG and Vodacom.
With the formal establishment of this IoT Industry Council, the founding members are pleased to now invite any organisation that is interested in accelerating South Africa’s adoption of IoT and the Fourth Industrial Revolution to join. Members can apply for membership as Full Members (commercial industry players), Observer Members (government organisations, NGOs, research organisations), or Individual Members (analysts, academics, entrepreneurs) through the website, www.iotcouncil.org.za.
IoT technology brings new capabilities to improve efficiencies, reduce waste, allocate resources better – providing for real-time visibility into the real world environment, at a fraction of the cost of older technologies.
“The IoT Industry Council is dedicated to helping business and public sector organisations gain insight into the capabilities that IoT technology brings,” says Roger Hislop, executive head for IoT at Internet Solutions, and the newly-elected chair of the council for this coming year. “These are fundamental if we are to bring about a ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’ in our country, to grow our economy, create new jobs, and compete with our BRICS peers.
“We can help those wanting to dive into this new world of IOT to develop their IoT strategy. We can connect them with relevant IoT consulting, product and services providers. We can grow confidence through best practices and a formal Code of Conduct. We see ourselves as an organisation serving the public good, promoting exciting new technologies that translate into highly effective solutions to make South Africa a better place for all.”
IoT is a transformational technology that can ensure South African businesses, manufacturers, and agriculture producers can be globally and regionally competitive.
“Growing our own IoT technology industry opens up an incredible range of opportunities for big and small businesses alike to take great technology to the world,” says Hislop. “There are so many South African companies doing extraordinary things already – this sector can solve day-to-day operational problems for those adopting it, and create an incredible opportunity for technology export to rest of the world.”
Through the IoT Industry Council, members will connect with their industry peers, find new collaborations with partners that can deliver value to South African businesses and local government.
Other benefits of joining include:
* Match-making of buyers and sellers;
* Sharing technical and business resources in best-practice implementation, security, resilience, privacy and governance; and
* Resolving differences, addressing challenges and developing programmes that drive the industry forward.