INTERNET OF THINGS Benefits of Passive Optical LAN and IoT
“Total amount of connected devices will reach 20 billion by 2020.” Gartner report
total amount of connected devices will reach 20 billion by 2020. In just a short amount of time, the number of connected gadgets and products will be three times greater than the current population. This staggering statistic is made possible due to the IoT expanding to keep pace with the acceleration in technology. So what is the explanation behind such extraordinary growth? Well, the creation of embedded sensors and the increasing sophistication of analytics mean that every gadget can now, if wired properly, provide feedback.
There are several reasons to invest in technology infrastructure and the IoT. The reasons include the ever-increasing dependency upon technology for doing our jobs; access to information and market demands. The network backbone to support this, Passive optical LAN, delivers significant benefits and features as it relates to IoT, such as scalability through simplicity and the use of fiber optic cables. In the increasingly competitive, environmentally conscious market, everyone from the end user, to the brokers, project managers, architects, engineers, IT consultants and general contractors are looking for a differentiator that saves money while increasing efficiency. Passive Optical LAN is a proven technology that exceeds traditional active Ethernet performance, it provides added security, and uses significantly less energy. It can also eliminate the need for IT rooms in your space, which can save up to 50% in both CAPEX and OPEX. More to the point, Passive Optical LAN is a major cost savings to the traditional copper Ethernet cabling/switching systems. This technology is the first major revelation in the cabling infrastructure world in more than a decade. The best approach is centered on the consolidation of all systems commonly found in today’s buildings, AV, security, data, building automation and phone systems over this Passive Optical LAN. This again, significantly reduces the amount of cabling and allows convergence onto a single infrastructure to maximize ROI. The outcome is to converge all network services, thereby eliminating the need for
multiple platforms and cabling infrastructure. Passive optical LANs can handle the growing impact of IoT because of its ability to serve 8,000-gigabit Ethernet endpoints across a 30-kilometer reach from one system. The growth and education around the Passive Optical LAN industry is an important piece of the IoT puzzle. Groups like APOLAN see the opportunity and are focused on formulating solutions on how best to market, install, educate, and support this integral technology.
Where Do We Go From Here? The IoT requires an evolution in our thinking about the local area network landscape. The staggering number of products and gadgets that companies are integrating into their daily workflow to do everything from increasing productivity to keeping customers happy is astonishing. To meet today and tomorrow’s demands, organisations must have a network backbone that can be future proof. It must be flexible, scalable, secure, and cost effective. This is an exciting time with almost endless possibilities. We don’t know exactly what the future holds. Which means it is important for us to keep pushing forward to better understand the impact and realisation that IoT will impact our daily lives significantly. More information: Association of Passive Optical LAN apolanglobal.org
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