IoT Secure has gathered interesting facts and statistics from industry experts and news reports about the impact of smart technology on your sustainability efforts.
Impact of smart technology on sustainability
Smart technology and sustainability
According to Ericsson, there will be around 29 billion smart devices worldwide by the end of 2022. Estimates of the exact number of connected devices in the world vary, but industry experts agree that more and more people are adopting them every day. According to a Berg Insight report, about 51 million households in the US alone will have smart devices in 2021.
Most of these devices are marketed as a way to make your home more comfortable and save on utility bills and other costs, but some are compatible with reducing energy use and pollution. From homes and news reports, we’ve gathered interesting facts and statistics about the impact of smart technology on your sustainability efforts.
According to McKinsey’s November 2021 report, the potential economic value of Internet of Things devices is at least $740 billion in 2021 and is expected to grow dramatically by 2030. Manufacturing is one of the world’s largest industries and has been characterized by cutting-edge technology since the advent of industrialization. One way he sees smart devices and technology supporting manufacturing and other industries is by eliminating waste caused by human habits. In addition, precisely calibrated computer sensors allow machines to be switched off more efficiently.
Ross Helen // Shutterstock
Save energy and money with smart lights
LED bulbs use 75% less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs. Save even more energy by adding smart lights that can turn on your lights before you get home from work. This can mean almost 50% less light on throughout the day. This is a big difference. Smart lights can also turn on and off based on sunrise and sunset, so you can illuminate your day more evenly without fussing with switches. Unlike incandescent bulbs, fluorescent bulbs, and tubes, which can take longer to switch on and off, LED bulbs do not lose their life in this manner.
Ross Helen // Shutterstock
Helps reduce wasted water
The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that about 1 trillion gallons of water are wasted each year due to leaky homes. It may seem like a small problem, but if the toilet keeps running or slowly drips down the kitchen sink, it can cause huge losses. With technology that can automatically alert users to the presence of leaks, you can fix the problem faster and reduce this loss. You can work methodically and adjust pipes, looking for leaks in your home. Smart leak detectors can then confirm that everything is still in ship shape.
Denis Kurbatov // Shutterstock
Reducing energy consumption for home heating and cooling
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, air conditioning accounts for about 12% of a home’s energy consumption, and forced air heating can account for up to 29%. Programmable thermostats have already shown great improvement, allowing users to set a timer to start air conditioning before leaving work, for example.
Smart thermostats like the Nest go a step further and have algorithms that actually study how heat and cold move in your home and adjust accordingly. Nest reported in his 2015 that its “learning thermostat” saved users about 15% on cooling and about 10% to 12% on heating. This equates to an overall household energy savings of approximately 2% for cooling and 3.5% for heating.
NavinTar // Shutterstock
Limit chemical leaching and greenhouse gas emissions on farms
Agriculture has long focused on efficiency. Especially for smallholder farmers trying to turn narrow profit margins into affordable income. Exact numbers are hard to come by, but organizations such as PNAS claim smart sensors can monitor farms to enable more targeted application of chemicals such as water and pesticides. . This is intuitive. For example, computers are far better than humans at knowing exactly when to turn the fertilizer flow on or off.
Modern farm equipment can be programmed with a complete map of what to apply where, keeping movements precise and applying product where it is needed. A human operator, unsure and wanting to be less careful, may be over-applying the product through multiple deliberate actions.
Nolanberg11 // Shutterstock
Catch methane gas leaks more quickly
While carbon dioxide is getting more attention on the international stage, methane is the second most common greenhouse gas and can do more damage by the pound. For example, natural sources of methane, such as livestock, may decrease somewhat over time due to changes in diet, etc.
But methane is the most common component of “natural gas” used in stoves and heating, so some are man-made. Natural gas pipes that zigzag around the world are prone to leaks. His one system, already deployed in Italy, uses smart his methane detection with vehicle-based sensors to detect leaks that need to be patched.
This story originally appeared on IoT Secure and was created and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
juliet_dreamhunter // shutterstock
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