BREAKING DOWN OPERATIONAL EXPENSES FOR INDUSTRIAL IoT DEPLOYMENTS: Jasper, which provides a software platform for connecting and managing IoT devices and was recently acquired by Cisco, released a study this week breaking down operational expenses for industrial IoT deployments, and explaining how companies can save on those expenses.

The cost of operating IoT devices can vary widely for enterprises depending on a multitude of factors including the type of devices, the type of internet connection it uses, and where it is deployed. This makes it difficult for enterprises to estimate the full cost of deploying IoT devices and their ROI on IoT initiatives.

The study grouped operational expenses into three categories:

• Network communication: This is the cost of providing a data connection for the devices. Jasper estimated that this usually makes up one-third to one-half of the operational expenses for industrial IoT deployments.
• Administrative labor: This is the cost of managing and monitoring devices, and creating reports from their data. This makes up anywhere from 20-50% of the total operational costs of IoT initiatives, the study found. 
• Technical support: This is the cost of fixing technical problems and making repairs to devices in the field. Jasper estimated this makes up 10-33% of operational expense for industrial IoT deployments.

Companies can reduce these expenses with certain solutions and strategies. For example, if a company’s data usage for its IoT deployments fluctuates monthly, it can opt to pay its data subscription on a per megabyte basis instead of paying the same amount every month.

The study also found large disparities in costs for devices depending on whether they were connected to a software services platform. The study estimated that administrative costs per 100,000 connected devices dropped from $2 million per year to $800,000 per year if they’re connected to a platform. Jasper is one of the major providers of such platforms, so the finding is certainly helpful for its business. However, if platform providers can provide such steep cost reductions for their enterprise clients, then it could be a major boon for enterprise IoT adoption.