The Industrial IoT Blog
IIoT Insights by Henry Costa
Tag: Edge Computing
Processing industrial data close to machines and sensors instead of sending everything to the cloud. It reduces latency, improves reliability, and supports real-time control and analytics.
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Top 10 OPC UA Servers to Watch in 2026
Read more: Top 10 OPC UA Servers to Watch in 2026Connecting machines is easy on paper. Doing it reliably, securely, and at scale in a real manufacturing environment is not. OPC UA servers sit at the center of that challenge. They are the layer that quietly determines whether your IIoT…
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Top 10 MQTT Brokers to Watch in 2026
Read more: Top 10 MQTT Brokers to Watch in 2026If you spend any time around Industrial IoT, MQTT shows up very quickly. It has become one of the foundational building blocks for IIoT architectures, especially when the goal is to move time-series data from machines to higher-level systems in…
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Top 10 IIoT Platforms to Watch in 2026
Read more: Top 10 IIoT Platforms to Watch in 2026If I could summarize the last two decades of my work in manufacturing, it would be this. I’ve watched factories move from isolated automation islands to increasingly connected, data-driven environments. Along the way, I’ve seen Industrial IoT platforms promise a…
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IIoT at Scale: Containerization, Docker, and Kubernetes Explained
Read more: IIoT at Scale: Containerization, Docker, and Kubernetes ExplainedI’ve spent the better part of two decades watching manufacturing tech evolve from isolated systems to today’s cloud-connected, agile factories. Lately, the biggest leap I’ve seen is how containerization (with Docker and Kubernetes) is making it easier to scale IIoT…
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Top 10 Data and Analytics Trends Transforming Manufacturing in 2025
Read more: Top 10 Data and Analytics Trends Transforming Manufacturing in 2025If you work in manufacturing, you’re probably tired of hearing how “data is the new oil.” I get it — but after years of connecting machines, data, and people, I can tell you: the right data and analytics tech really…
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How AI Is Driving IIoT Market Growth
Read more: How AI Is Driving IIoT Market GrowthAI and automation are pushing the boundaries of what’s possible, and they’re changing how we all work — from the plant floor to the boardroom. I’ve seen this play out over the past years, and I want to share what’s…
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The Five Questions Every IIoT Architect Must Answer
Read more: The Five Questions Every IIoT Architect Must AnswerEvery IIoT project I’ve worked on — from small pilot sites to global rollouts spanning 30+ manufacturing facilities — eventually comes down to the same five questions. I used to think architecture was about picking the right protocols or drawing…
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Large Language Model (LLM) Integration with IIoT for Real-Time Industrial Intelligence: What I’ve Really Seen
Read more: Large Language Model (LLM) Integration with IIoT for Real-Time Industrial Intelligence: What I’ve Really SeenLarge language models (LLMs) like GPT-5 are starting to show up in industrial settings, and—if you ask me—they’re about to change how we think about real-time intelligence on the shop floor. I’ll break down what I’ve actually seen, what works,…
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Current Trends in IIoT Applications – Insights from 2025
Read more: Current Trends in IIoT Applications – Insights from 2025Let’s talk about what’s actually changing on the factory floor with IIoT right now—not what slide decks and vendor pitches promise, but what’s really happening when teams connect machines, data, and people across different plants and industries. Some of these…
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Moving SAP OEE to a Modern IIoT Platform
Read more: Moving SAP OEE to a Modern IIoT PlatformI’ve been working with automated OEE systems for several years. Starting from early SAP MII implementations, I’ve built and supported solutions that collect real-time data from PLCs, calculate availability, performance and quality, and provide operators with live dashboards. These systems…
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What to Keep in Mind When Designing a New IIoT Strategy
Read more: What to Keep in Mind When Designing a New IIoT StrategyIf there’s one thing I’ve learned from two decades in the trenches of manufacturing IT and IIoT, it’s that a good strategy isn’t about chasing the latest technology or ticking off a checklist. It’s about making real improvements—connecting machines, data,…
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Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, and IIoT: Where They Meet on the Shop Floor
Read more: Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, and IIoT: Where They Meet on the Shop FloorLet’s talk about AR (Augmented Reality) and VR (Virtual Reality) in the world of Industrial IoT. I’ve been hands-on with both — Google Glass, HoloLens, and their cousins — and I want to share what I’ve actually seen work, what’s…