Intel and productivity solutions manufacturer Honeywell have teamed up together to bring the Internet of Things into retail business operations for retailers to learn more about their customers to better serve them.

The two are collaborating to come up with new Iota solutions that will leverage sensors, handheld computers, processors, bar code scanners, RFID tags and readers and cloud-based software. Their collaboration exemplifies how IoT is progressing, making dramatic changes outside of just a “cool factor.”

“To succeed in the e-commerce world, retailers need to invest in connected solutions and harness the power of the Internet of Things (IoT) to track inventory and gain insights into customer shopping habits,” said John Waldron, president and CEO of Honeywell’s Safety and Productivity Solutions business. “The collaboration between Honeywell and Intel will provide a platform for future technology developments to leverage both firms’ expertise in capturing and analyzing enterprise data.

“We look forward to working with Intel on industry-leading solutions this year,” he said.

Retail innovations
Honeywell and Intel are hoping to bring together back-end mobile and IoT solutions to help transcend the in-store experience to keep up with online. As mobile has bridged the gap between online and offline, it is important for retailer’s to backup their digital claims.

Solutions from this project will likely solve these issues. Through new platforms and retail products Honeywell intends to optimize the inventory process by monitoring and assessing the condition of goods moving.

Honeywell hopes to optimize online ordering and in-store pickup with these solutions. The solutions will improve inventory visibility, so that when customers order online there will be no discrepancies when picking up in store.

The solutions will learn about customer shopping habits and provide recommendations on how to move forward.

Internet of Things
IoT is becoming much more prevalent in retail and in the home.

For instance, with competition in the home automation market growing, Staples stepped away from its Staples Connect platform while continuing to focus on building the Staples Easy System smart-ordering service.

Staples Connect is an application-based platform for managing smart home devices such as thermostats, sensors, appliances and more. While Staples will no longer be selling the products in its stores or online, Z-Wave Products will continue to offer customer support and Staples Connect and Zonoff will make updates to the app (see more).

An executive from American Apparel at eTail East 2016 detailed how the brand is using an artificial intelligence and Internet of Things solution in which real-world displays interact with shoppers’ phones to start a purchase-enabled thread with a chatbot.

During the session, The Future Of Retail and the Convergence of Customer Centricity, IoT and Omnichannel, the executive also explained that American Apparel wanted to expand its mobile footprint but without having to immediately make an application, so it partnered with Postmates to introduce a delivery service that saw significant early adoption. The retailer’s digital displays are leveraging beacon technology and chatbots to make it easier on customers to instantly purchase and find information about products featured in display ads in an attempt to expand its mobile reach (see more).

“Technology can help transform retail, making stores more responsive to customer needs by connecting physical and digital retail environments,” said Joe Jensen, vice president and general manager, Retail Solutions Division at Intel. “By working with Honeywell, Intel plans to enable retailers to benefit from IoT solutions by having the visibility of real-time accuracy of on-shelf inventory. This will help delight shoppers with better inventory accuracy and in-store pickup of products ordered online.”