How IoT can help you improve your service

Heating systems driven by IoT technology have simplified the installation process and led to smarter operation, says Neil Saunders, sales and marketing director at Vokèra by Riello.

Internet of Things (IoT) technology is revolutionising the way we heat our homes, giving us more control over boilers and other energy systems. This helps to create and maintain a comfortable temperature as well as improving the heating system’s efficiency. It’s crucial to reducing energy costs and limiting carbon emissions, as the government looks to fulfil its net-zero ambition.

The development of internetconnected technologies for heating systems has grown enormously and their influence on our working and home lives isn’t about to abate any time soon.

The number of IoT-connected devices across the world is projected to total 30.9 billion units by 2030*, a huge jump on the estimated 14 billion in 2021.

Simple interfaces, sophisticated function IoT technology enables boilers and heating systems to carry out more sophisticated tasks simply via apps and connected controls. Connected platforms require the input of just two connections in order to link a heating system to an app and enable users to modulate its output. This interface makes it easier for heating engineers to work on more intricate systems such as multi-zone, so that users can set different temperatures in different areas of the home. This type of flexibility is crucial for people to manage their heating during the cost-of-living crisis.

Plug and play

IoT technology will also be key to the development of remote preventative maintenance capability. Apps will enable multiple users to connect to a single account and can allow the installing engineer remote access to data held within a household’s heating app. It’s already happening in the commercial world and large public buildings such as hospitals, where smart sensors enable an exterior source to monitor energy usage and flag up faults as they occur.

As technology leads to more sophisticated, smarter heating operation that gives unprecedented control to the user, the increasingly simplified plug-and-play installation will give heating engineers more time and greater scope to broaden their services.

That scope could include remote post-installation monitoring of heating systems. Prevention is preferable to the cure and, in the case of boiler or heat pump repair, it’s often the difference between costly, inconvenient intervention and a simple, rapid fix. A type of personal monitoring service could be crucial to highlight heating components that are showing signs of wear and tear and threatening to disrupt the system’s function.

Heating systems that perform with long-running, optimal efficiency are good for the customer in terms of cost effectiveness and comfort, and as well as being better for the environment. Moreover, the general introduction of a service in which an engineer looks out for the long-term welfare of an individual household’s heating system will be ideal for building excellent customer-installer relations.

Smart evolution

With little sign that energy costs will fall any time soon, many are feeling the stress of having to make difficult financial decisions in order to make ends meet now and in the future. Knowing that a trusted partner is overseeing the effective operation of the home’s main heating appliance would be invaluable in terms of the peace of mind it would bring.

The Internet of Things can continue to simplify the processes that lead to simpler, more effective ways of controlling the home’s heating. Without it, a net-zero future that’s driven by more reliable, cost-effective, low-stress heating resources might well disappear into thin air. ■

*www.statista.com/ statistics/1183457/iot-connecteddevices-worldwide/

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