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Johannesburg - South African start-up IoT.nxt is aiming to further its global expansion into the US.
IoT.nxt CEO Nico Steyn and its chairperson, Wayne Fitzjohn, recently visited the US to introduce the IoT.nxt solution to possible partners.
Fitzjohn told Fin24 that the visit was a success and the Pretoria-based firm could soon partner with tech companies for Internet of Things (IoT) solutions.
IoT.nxt uses its secure field gateway device dubbed the "Raptor" which is interoperable with various input and output devices on the edge of networks.
A practical application of the tech could connect a company’s air conditioners, lifts, alarm systems and conveyor belts to the internet of things.
Subsequently, a company can then react faster when incidents occur and possibly save on costs.
Fitzjohn told Fin24 that the company was strategically planning its next move to deal with providing unique solutions to companies abroad.
“US companies are open to opportunities from the smallest of start-ups. It has become interesting to see how an African business could create global business solutions,” he told Fin24.
IoT.nxt opened its first fully-fledged international office in The Hague in the Netherlands at the end of August.
Edge computing
Due to lack of infrastructure locally, IoT was forced to create solutions tailored for South African telecommunications operators and other companies with edge computing.
As opposed to traditional cloud computing where data is transferred to a cloud source and then transferred to an end-unit after the data has been processed, edge computing is a method which involves processing data closer to its source - reducing bandwidth consumption and latency.
“IoT.nxt solutions involve data being processed closer to the source. In a large company where 700 million pings are sent to a cloud, we reduce it to 7 million pings of useful data. For example, in a company one would not need to constantly know the temperature of an air conditioner. It’s only if the temperature is too high or too low and will affect productivity that the end-user will need to be notified,” Fitzjohn explained.
“We have been able to provide solutions with third-world infrastructure technologies which make solutions far more robust and adapt better in more technologically advanced environments,” he added.
Fitzjohn said that the solutions enable companies to monitor units connected through IoT in real time.
“Gone are the days of companies waiting for reports that are six weeks old, information is only useful in real time,” he said.
IoT.nxt will participate at the IoT Tech Expo in the US in November and is likely to be the only South African and African company at the event.
