According to industry magazine/A1 Digital study: Skilled labor shortage and security concerns slow progress in IIoT

“The study shows that companies in the DACH region recognize the enormous potential of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), but are still struggling with its practical implementation,” says Lukas Wallentin, Director Internet of Things (IoT) at A1 Digital. "The shortage of skilled labor and security concerns are the biggest obstacles. As a European technology service provider, we are committed to helping companies overcome these challenges and realize the full potential of IIoT. We offer comprehensive solutions and expertise to support companies from developing a strategy to implementing and operating IIoT solutions.”

The study, conducted by CIO, CSO and COMPUTERWOCHE, is based on insights from leading IT decision-makers and highlights the key challenges and opportunities associated with implementing IIoT solutions. The central findings include:

• Differences between interest and implementation: Although 53 percent of surveyed companies report using IIoT solutions, only nine percent are in the broad rollout phase. The majority of companies are still in the strategy development, pilot project, or use case phase.
• IT dominates, OT expertise lacking: Responsibility for IIoT projects lies predominantly with IT departments (60 percent), while the expertise and knowledge of operational technology (OT) – the areas directly connected to production processes – are often insufficiently involved. Only 24 percent of companies see experts from production and manufacturing as responsible for IIoT strategy.
• Skilled labor shortage as the biggest hurdle: The lack of qualified personnel is cited by 41 percent of respondents as one of the biggest challenges in implementing IIoT projects. This affects both IT and OT specialists with the required knowledge in areas such as data analysis, network security, and automation.
• Security concerns slow progress: Concerns regarding data security and privacy are mentioned by 40 percent of companies as an impediment to IIoT implementation. Fear of cyber attacks and data loss leads to a certain reluctance in networking production facilities.
• Investments increase despite challenges: Despite the challenges mentioned, many companies plan to increase their investments in IIoT in the coming years. 50 percent of respondents indicated that their IIoT budgets will increase next year, with a focus on network technologies and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
• Efficiency improvement as main goal: The primary objectives when introducing IIoT applications are increasing production efficiency (57 percent) and improving product quality (41 percent). New business models, on the other hand, play a subordinate role.

The complete study can be downloaded HERE.