Past, Present, and Future of Technology in Communication: How Did We Arrive at a Mobile-First Solution?

Communications technology has made incredible leaps and bounds during the last 150 years, with many more amazing possibilities on the horizon. Let’s take a look at how we got to where we are today, and what’s in store for tomorrow.

The Introduction of Technology in Communications

Before the invention of the telegraph and the telephone in the mid-1800s, all communication was technology-free. These first developments, which allowed communication to take place at a much faster speed than ever before, laid the groundwork for what we see today. Communication technology reached into radio and television broadcasts by 1920, with the discovery of fiber optics around the same time.

By 1936, the first programmable computer was invented, soon followed by the personal computer. Microprocessing speeds were ramping up. Over time, the size and cost of computers dropped while the capabilities increased at amazing speeds. The groundwork was being laid for our current landscape, with the first cell phone making its appearance in 1973.

 

Fifty Years of Massive Acceleration

During the last five decades, the acceleration of communications technology has moved at a breakneck pace. The first email communications began in 1971, used primarily within the government and later at colleges and universities. Cell phones grew in popularity in the 1980s, with the internet arriving in the 1990s.

By the end of the millennium, the internet and the web were part of everyday vocabulary, and companies around the world began scrambling to take advantage of the potential business opportunities that were obviously on the horizon.

 

This shows Ray Tomlinson - he sent the first email in 1971. The email began as an experiment to see if two computers could exchange a message. Tomlinson wanted to send messages to people, as opposed to mailboxes. He decided to modify and combine the proms that were already out there. The innovative email software he created was called “SNDMSG”.  Image Source.

Mobility Opens New Doors

 

By 2004, WiFi was becoming more popular with the first iPhone released in 2007. As technology created ways for individuals to take massive computing power away from their desktop computers, a new vista of possibilities opened at both a personal and commercial level. Although everyone is familiar with the explosion of social media channels that soon followed, the larger impact made during this period of time happened in the business arena.

For example, most large companies started moving away from legacy computer systems. Software systems such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) and computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS) took center stage, providing facilities with the tools to better manage their resources. However, even during this stage, most of the computing power resided at headquarters. Any tasks completed off-site, including complex maintenance work, had to often be manually recorded and then later entered into the centralized system.

Providers quickly saw the opportunity to bridge that gap with mobile-first solutions, which could take advantage of various handheld electronic devices while integrating with the centralized systems. The result is a powerful technology that allows management teams to have visibility into real-time data across critical aspects of their operations. Because of this new technology, businesses have increased efficiency, reduced costs, rising profits, and smarter decisions.

Future Opportunities on Technology and Communication

The pace of technological development shows no sign of slowing down. Continued automation, artificial intelligence, robotics, and more connectivity are only a few of the possibilities already underway. Two particular developments, however, will make a big difference in the area of maintenance management.

Internet of Things

The Internet of Things is essentially the ability to connect a wide variety of smart technologies to help improve the efficiency and monitoring of equipment or systems.

Some industries are heavily impacted by equipment downtime and asset failure. However, the cost of constant monitoring of all critical assets can be cost-prohibitive. Simple technological advancements such as sensors can allow these industries to constantly monitor critical assets at a small cost.

For example, operators in the mining industry are under a great deal of pressure to maximize productivity and minimize or eliminate downtime. Large, expensive trucks constantly haul out iron ore from a particular mine. Sensors can be installed on these assets to monitor and report on speed, temperature, vibration, and mileage. This data can be analyzed and predictive maintenance tasks can be scheduled before a truck breaks down. In addition, self-driving technology is being used in many of these applications, allowing only the equipment to travel into a mine shaft instead of humans. This not only reduces labor costs but protects people from life-threatening mining accidents.

Virtual and Augmented Reality

Virtual and augmented reality technology also carries incredible potential for the maintenance sector. Already widely used in aircraft maintenance, this technology can be incorporated in many different industries as well.

For example, maintenance technicians can be trained to work on expensive equipment using virtual reality tools instead of actual assets. This technology can be combined with other communications technology to help tap the expertise of technicians who may be able to guide a less experienced technician at a remote site through a repair or inspection.

Augmented reality can also provide information like safety specs and maintenance history for a particular asset, overlaid on the actual piece of equipment. This information allows critical information to be available at the fingertips of every maintenance technician beginning a new task, increasing efficiency and speed and reducing accidents and errors.

Conclusion

The connection between maintenance and technology is solid. The key to improving your maintenance operations now has everything to do with whether you can take advantage of the latest developments to reach world-class performance standards.

The journey from reactive maintenance through preventive maintenance to greater predictive maintenance has started. Technology will continue to play a major role in this transformation, providing higher-quality data, performing complex analysis, and delivering information to help tomorrow’s business executives to make even smarter business decisions.