What is MeshWorks Wireless’s internet of things (IoT) product and how does it benefit customers?
Marko Kyrölä: Seemoto is an advanced IoT solution. This easyto- install environmental-monitoring and data-collection system consists of smart wireless sensors, gateways, cloud storage and a web-based user interface. In principle, wireless sensors can be attached to anything – for example, a refrigerator – while temperature, location and other data is connected to the internet and its related services. Together with our partners, MeshWorks Wireless is providing Seemoto-branded systems and services to hundreds of companies that operate across five continents.
Our customers save time and effort with this highly reliable system, which employs devices that operate 24/7. Everything is automated, including the alert-handling mechanism, monitoring with sensors, data collecting, and transmitting to Seemoto’s various services and functions, such as data storage, maintenance and back-ups. Automation also makes the system very costefficient. We have customers that used to have ad hoc and sample-based temperature monitoring for shipments, where only a small percentage of these were checked. Their processes and related temperatures were assessed manually by using statistical methods; however, with Seemoto’s automation, these customers can now monitor every shipment with fewer costs and significantly more confidence than before. They have other benefits as well, including the alert function, having a validated system and being able to track individual shipments.
Customers can save a lot of time by using Seemoto’s alert function, which gives the user time to react in the event of a refrigerator breaking down or a truck door being open. We also advise our customers on detecting faulty cold storage devices before they stop working. The devices seldom break down instantly and, in most cases, abnormal behavior can be detected before there is total failure in part of the cold chain.
Who are MeshWorks’ customers?
As well as the pharmaceutical and perishable food supply chains, Seemoto is also widely used in healthcare applications and environments. Our main customers are pharmaceutical manufacturers, wholesalers, hospitals, laboratories, pharmacies and transportation companies. MeshWorks’ temperature- monitoring system is suitable for every stakeholder that operates throughout the supply chain, ranging from manufacturers to end users.
Seemoto is a flexible system that monitors temperature and humidity anywhere. Our customers trust us to check the temperature of everything from emergency blood reserves to transporting fancy cakes. Some of our customers even use special sensors to track the moisture level of concrete slabs.
With customers that are spread across five continents, who operate in more than ten countries, Seemoto has clearly proved to be a successful and truly global system.
What makes a great IoT system? We believe that robustness is one of the key requirements for IoT systems. Seemoto’s sensors have been designed with this and high reliability in mind. Our temperature sensors are fully waterproof and extremely reliable, and they can operate in ice and cold environments. The battery life for the sensors now exceeds five years and we are making further improvements to it.
So, our devices are small, wireless, robust, and are easy to install anywhere and on anything. The data that is collected from the system can be accessed by simply using an internet browser and a Seemoto account.
What is the best way to use Seemoto?
The main use for Seemoto is temperature monitoring and recording data in the perishable food and pharmaceutical cold chains. The system is modular, scalable and can easily provide other valuable information. Its use also extends to monitoring humidity and other parameters, as well as tracking vehicles, individual shipments and company assets.
With Seemoto, clients can monitor the temperature and humidity of warehouses, cold-storage environments, individual shipments and spaces where cargo is held. Pharmaceutical supply chain stakeholders can now do all of this with a singlevalidated system. Traditionally, temperature-monitoring systems that are installed into buildings and vehicles are separate, and are not suitable for monitoring shipments or their processes.
How easy is it to use?
Most customers install the devices by themselves by connecting the gateway to a power source, they then add click sensors to attached wall plates and take these to measurement points. Our customer support team checks the installation and system performance remotely, and then confirm if it is ready to use; this entire process normally takes less than half an hour.
With our user-friendly web service, the real-time data that has been collected by the system can be accessed on the customer’s computer, smartphone or tablet. The most common feedback we receive is, ‘This was really easy to install and the user interface is very intuitive. I was able to use it straight away.’
Seemoto’s versatile alert system notifies clients by email or SMS if something unexpected has happened. For example, if the temperature goes outside predefined limits during transportation, the driver will receive a text to check if the trailer door has been closed. Clients can monitor temperature at every stage of the transportation, as the service offers a wide range of graphical reports that visualise measurement data. The Seemoto gateway also uses a GPS location service to store routes.
We have an external JavaScript Object Notation interface, on which the customer can build their own applications that use collected data. In addition to this, the same interface can be used for data integration, including implementing temperature readings into a customer’s enterprise resource planning system.
What types of devices does the platform provide?
Seemoto’s devices are divided into sensors and gateways. Battery-operated sensors measure temperature and other parameters, such as humidity. For packages and boxes, we have a temperature logger with an on/off switch. MeshWorks has sensors for asset tracking and other models have an external probe for extreme environmental conditions. The system can easily be expanded with new sensors and monitoring parameters. The Seemoto gateway acts as a link between sensors and cloud services by using several gateway models for mobile network and Ethernet connections. For vehicle installation, MeshWorks offers special gateway models that are used for harsh environments. Another model has an LCD screen that shows the driver temperature values.
What steps has the company taken to ensure that it complies with regulations?
Seemoto fulfils many regulatory requirements: all of its sensors are factory calibrated, accurate and come with a two-year calibration certificate. Together with our partners, we also offer a sensor recalibration service to all customers. In Seemoto’s secure cloud service, all measurement data is stored for a minimum of five years.
Our service is a valid platform and we provide validation documentation to every single customer. MeshWorks also offers validation-related services to clients that are designed to meet all customer or country-specific installation, operational and process qualification-related requirements.
Seemoto is now in the process of obtaining validation from the Western European Legal Metrology Cooperation, a partnership between 39 EU countries in legal metrology.
