Feature Software & IoT FIA Guide to the UK Fire Safety Industry
The FIA’s Internet
of Things Forum
Back in August last year, the Fire Industry Association (FIA) launched a survey in
a determined bid to understand the Internet of Things and its current and
future impact on the UK’s fire safety industry. Adam Richardson evaluates the
responses of those Trade Association members who delivered their views
IN BROAD terms, the Internet of
Things (IoT) is a phrase used to
describe physical objects – or, indeed,
groups of such objects – embedded with
sensors, processing ability, software and
other technologies that connect and
then exchange data with other devices
and systems either over the Internet or,
alternatively, by way of other
communications networks.
Through time, the IoT has evolved
due to the convergence of multiple
technologies, including ubiquitous
computing, commodity sensors,
increasingly powerful embedded
systems and machine learning.
Independently and collectively, it’s
traditional fields of embedded systems,
wireless sensor networks, control
systems and automation that really
enable the IoT.
The survey we launched in August
last year was put together in order to
better understand the IoT and its place
in the UK’s fire industry. Specifically, we
sought to understand if FIA member
companies were working on an IoT
project. If so, how were/are they
working to implement it? What barriers
were they facing? How can we, as the
Trade Association, help them to
overcome these barriers? In essence, we
gave the industry the opportunity to
have its say on the matter and help to
shape the future roadmap for the UK’s
dedicated fire industry.
The report that followed the survey
highlights how the IoT can and will
impact us all, with estimates suggesting
that 87% of businesses might be working
with the IoT in the future. 100% of the
respondents to our survey suggested
that the IoT will play a vital role in the
future of the fire industry.
Despite these clear signs that the IoT
will have an instrumental role in the
future for many sectors within the
industry, there was no forum in which
individuals, companies and associations
within the fire industry could discuss
what is so obviously a hugely important
and growing issue. That being so, the
FIA introduced the IoT Forum to
engender a shared, productive and very
necessary dialogue around the IoT and
it’s role in the fire industry.
Clear definition
In order to move forward with the IoT
‘as one’, it’s first crucial to come to an
agreement on the best definition for it.
As previously stated, the IoT can be
described as the growing network of
physical objects (ie ‘things’) that are
embedded with types of sensors,
software and other technologies for the
purpose of connecting and exchanging
data with other devices and systems over
the Internet.
There are four titles of categories that
we plan to use in order to help us frame
the fluid topic that is the IoT (it’s worth
noting here that IoT services and the
providers of those services can sit within
a multitude of categories at the same
time). Those four titles are
‘Communication’ (ie how ‘things’ talk to
each other), ‘Security’ (ie how we keep
that communication private and secure),
‘Things’ (ie those devices and forms of
equipment that want to communicate)
and ‘Management’ (ie the soft services
monitoring aspect).
With over 70 FIA members already
signed up to and currently participating
68
in the IoT Forum, we’re starting to take
significant and tangible steps towards
our goals. At each stage, it’s crucial that
we look to work with others on this
important issue. In doing so, we can
bring together experts from across the
world, learn from them and ensure that
we’re not repeating work already
conducted on the IoT.
We’ve worked particularly hard to
reach out and collaborate with like-minded
organisations in the fire
industry and related sectors like security
through organisations including the
British Security Industry Association
(BSIA) and Euralarm. At present, we’re
also working hand-in-hand with the
British Standards Institution to ensure
that the fire industry is able to realise the
full potential of the IoT.
Further, we will continue to work
with our members, the industry and
organisations from different industries
to reduce and remove the barriers that
are hindering the adoption of the IoT
and its benefits in the fire industry. Next