New integrated wireless platform offers customers an easy way to roll out M2M solutions across Europe and the U.S, nPhase said.

Announced on 15th February, Vodafone, Verizon Wireless and nPhase, a Verizon Wireless/Qualcomm Joint Venture, are forming a strategic alliance aimed at accelerating the adoption of global machine-to-machine (M2M) wireless deployments by simplifying the remote management and monitoring of devices spread across European and US networks.

Designed to deliver a simple and effective international management solution for the growing number of companies looking to use M2M wireless communications to enhance their customer service and create new service offerings in sectors including energy, healthcare, automotive telematics, consumer and commercial products, according to nPhase. A good example of M2M technology in action is the growing use of smart meters in the utility industry, enabling firms to efficiently collect meter data and provide two-way data transmissions and tailored offers for customers.

The nPhase M2M services platform, which integrates with the Vodafone M2M global service platform, will provide customers with a range of online management tools giving them a single view of their international M2M estate with additional management capabilities in the pipeline.

One company to already have tested the water is ABB Robotics. Fully comprehending the benefits of M2M, ABB Robotics saw an opportunity to dramatically reduce robot downtime and to provide service more cost-effectively, by eliminating on-site troubleshooting and coordinating spare part and field technician dispatch. Results were a 70% reduction in asset downtime; dramatic improvement in ABBs customers performance; increase in production capacity; and reduction in robot programming time.

Other noted advantages of M2M technology include: M2M technology is helping firms to deliver increasingly personalised services to customers while improving efficiencies. An example is the growing use of smart meters in the utility industry, enabling firms to efficiently collect meter data and provide two-way communication and tailored offers for customers. In addition to the role M2M can play in enabling smarter services, the technology can help large businesses to reduce their operations impact on the environment. A Vodafone report entitled Carbon Connections calculates that the greenhouse gas emissions savings from a range of M2M-enabled smart systems could be more than 90 million tonnes per year across 25 EU countries by the year 2020, according to nPhase.