M2M Community: Different industries working together for the realisation of M2M solutions
Dortmund/Düsseldorf, 17 February 2004
Machine to machine solutions (M2M) support companies with the integration of machines located in different places into the company network in order to enable remote access and remote control of goods. For the development of appropriate solutions, the close co-operation between network operators, infrastructure supplier, system integrators, value adding distributors, service providers and application developers is inevitable. The M2M community faciliates this co-operation and accelerates the joint realisation, development and commercialisation of M2M solutions.
The M2M Community is the answer to the increasingly wider range and higher diversification of tasks in M2M area. The industry-independent co-operation and the participation of companies specialised of different products has mainly one aim. This is to lower effort and faciliate utilisation on the customer side in order to generate added value. The M2M Community is open for all companies supporting this aim. New members are welcome at any time. Currently, the following companies are involved: DEGEN, E-Plus, Fraunhofer FOKUS, KOMSA, MATERNA, Nokia, SchlumbergerSema and T-Mobile.
Whether the janitor is informed about the sinking temperature of the central heating per SMS or a tool machine is reconfigurated via GSM, M2M communication is the solution for an endless number of similar problems. Dieter Vinke, M2M Product Manager at DEGEN explains: “DEGEN, as a distributor with value added services, is ready to accompany projects of solution providers, programmers and users, within the scope of the M2M Community. M2M communication focuses, like all mobile services, relevance and purpose for the customer.” Thorsten Dirks, Manager Innovation, Product Development, IT and Operations says: „This is not only about the solution itself but also about the practical realisation entailed. I am sure that the after sales service plays a big role in the complex issue M2M communication, too. All parties involved – wireless providers, the hardware supplier and the software supplier – are obliged to give the customers any support required, right from the beginning."
Dr. Stefan Arbanowski, M2M Co-ordinator at Fraunhofer FOKUS says: "Since September 2002, FOKUS has been operating the first public UMTS/3Gb test environment. Beside the examination of UMTS technologies, the integration von UMTS into other value added service architectures, such as M2M, are in the focus. The test environment infrastructure is made available for the testing of the partners´ own products, services and business models. This is to path potential service providers without an own M2M infrastructure the way into the market and to promote the work within the M2M Community through joint research and development projects."
Thomas Anders, project coordinator at KOMSA says: "Within the M2M commercialisation we see ourselves as a partner for software companies, able to offer, on their behalf, support for the customer, in a way that is flexible and independent of time and location. With this, the area support must be treated very sensitively. At least, the customers, i. e. a middle-seized company, invests into an M2M solution in order to make corporate processes more efficient, save resources and, through this, increase productivity. The sale of these systems by means of ecomonic arguments nees measurable success in form of a quick ROI and has to prove improvement for the customer."
Elke Sassmannshausen, Product Manager M2M Communication at MATERNA says: "MATERNA as a gateway service provider and system integrator guarantees customised optimisation of business processes in the area Machine to Machine communication through total project management. For significant cost advantages on side of the customer!"
"Nokia has expressively supported the establishment of an M2M Community. The ideal way for further market development is the co-operation of different companies with their respective core competencies in a complete integrated project, " says Peter Neiken, M2M Business Manager at Nokia. "Nokia's technical concept includes advantages for all parties involved, for the companies themselves, transferring the tasks in the area of wireless communication to communication specialists and concentrating on those applications that are specific for the industry as well as for the other participants in the M2M Community."
Gerhard Kreiling, Business Development Manager at OPTO 22, about their activities: "For many years we have been developing products for the decentral data collection and control and, on this way, bring machine data into the company network. For the user, the M2M Community as well as the Nokia M2M platform means a new level of flexibility. We are able to offer a solution for something that used to be considered as being something very complicated, including everything from the sensor, over the communication up to the company level. We use all our knowledge about the connectivity of machines and equipment for the M2M Community, thus enabling a seamless integration."
Peter Hofmann, M2M Business Manager at SchlumbergerSema: "M2M is not a completely new issue. We have already been dealing with it for many years, if under a different name. Our range comprises, amongst other things, the mobile management of park ticket machines or the remote maintenance of road safety facilities. New is that more movement came into the subject since the network operators issued special M2M tariff models, for example. Meanwhile, they have learnt to concentrate on the added valued for the customer and to manage the complexity of technology and communication for him/her. This is exactly what SchlumbergerSema does. This is the core of our business: We manage the IT in order to give our customers the chance to focus their business. Here, we profit of the M2M Community, in particular, as it prevents M2M from becoming a confused proliferation of expensive special solutions."
"T-Mobile expressively welcomes the initiative for the foundation of an open M2M community", says Dr. Frank Wermeyer, Head of Data Solutions in the segment management Business Customers at T-Mobile. "As market leader and first network operator who has introduced special M2M tariffs we support the aim to help the market to its growth prodicted. Already today, a consistently growing part of our customers realises the clear efficiency benefits through mobile machine communication. We understand the M2M Community as a good way to offer added value to all those interested in M2M by means of industry independent information”.
MATERNA GmbH Information & Communications
MATERNA is a leading software company in the field of information and communication technology. The company employs worldwide 1.115 staff members and its turnover was estimated to more than 145 million Euros for the year 2002. Beside the head office in Dortmund, the company has offices and subsidiaries located all over Germany as well as in France, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Great Britain, Czech republic, Hungary, Poland, Bangkok, USA and Hong Kong. In the Business Unit Information, MATERNA develops integrated IT solutions for process optimization involving companies and public administration. This includes the topic fields Portals, Information Management, Service and IT Infrastructure Management. The Business Unit Communications offers products and solutions from the business area Mobile Solutions and Unified Messaging. This includes in particular mobile value-added services on base of SMS, WAP and Mobile Java which are distributed under the brand name Anny Way. The Anny Way Academy is active on the market in terms of trainings and consulting services as found in practice. In the Business Unit Information, MATERNA develops integrated IT solutions for process optimization involving companies and public administration. This includes the topic fields Portals, Information Management, Service and IT Infrastructure Management.
For further details, please contact:
MATERNA Information & Communications
Antje Krämer
Vosskuhle 37, 44141 Dortmund, Germany
Phone +49 231 55 99 -531
Fax +49 231 55 99 -67 531
antje.kraemer@materna.de
www.materna.dewww.annyway.de
