IoT for sustainability

As market leader in IoT systems, we are driving the green and digital transformation towards a net zero economy. For a better tomorrow.

The world is facing major challenges. At the forefront of these is the climate crisis, driven by rising global energy consumption, rapid growth in the world's population, and the ever-accelerating pace of urbanization and digitalization. All these challenges have one thing in common: they have an enormous impact on global energy consumption patterns.

The rise of the Internet of Things (IoT) enables manufacturers to design and develop products, that can help us to reduce the effects of climate change.

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Digital transformation and – by extension – the IoT are changing the way we live, work, produce, travel, and consume. The IoT has huge economic potential, but also a significant climate impact due to the billions of interconnected devices that require energy to function. And as digitalization reaches into more and more areas of our lives, our carbon footprint expands accordingly. Although the energy needed to run a single Internet search or send a single email is low, the figures mount up when billions of connected devices are performing these simple tasks on a daily basis. The IoT consumes a substantial amount of electricity, much of which is generated by fossil fuels. In addition, the significant number of data points collected by sensors and transmitted to data centers also generate vast amounts of data that needs to be stored and processed. While some strides are being made towards more energy-efficient data centers, by 2040, the storage of digital data is expected to produce 14% of the world's total emissions, which is roughly what is emitted by the entire U.S. now.²

Increasingly efficient building insulation can help to mitigate the effects of climate change, but heavily insulated buildings are not always good for human health. Poor ventilation can result in lower oxygen levels and a build-up of carbon dioxide (CO2). Even moderate levels of CO2 can have a negative impact on health and productivity. Infineon’s XENSIV™ PAS CO2 enables real-time CO2 monitoring for demand-controlled ventilation systems, air purifiers, and thermostats while allowing users to accurately measure and adjust indoor air quality. AND: it meets the performance criteria of internationally recognized WELL and LEED green building standards.

Press release (2023): PAS CO2 sensor for certified buildings

Video: Infineon’s CO2 sensor meets the highest measurement standards

Fix problems before they happen: Preventing equipment and system failures such as a faulty elevator or a malfunctioning air-conditioner is essential to energy-efficient building operations. Green buildings therefore need ways to monitor the status of their applications and equipment (condition monitoring), to predict failures before they occur and to conduct predictive maintenance.

Video: Predictive Maintenance for Smart Buildings powered by Infineon

Infineon established a global management system, IMPRES (Infineon Integrated Management Program for Environment, Energy, Safety, and Health ), which integrates targets and processes relating to ecological sustainability (including energy management) as well as occupational safety and health protection. IMPRES has been certified in accordance with ISO 14001and ISO 45001 standards worldwide. Additionally it has been certified in accordance with ISO 50001 energy management standard at our main European manufacturing sites as well as our Campeon corporate headquarters.

Digitalization and energy transition can go hand in hand

Intelligent IoT technologies are already being used today to introduce green practices, organize processes and use resources responsibly. There are already numerous innovative solutions in the areas of smart homes and buildings, smart cities and smart factories.

Green smart factories and industrial processes of the future

The biggest consumers of electricity today are buildings and industry sectors (production and logistics operations in particular), which jointly account for over 90% of global electricity consumption and have contributed over 90% (around 5,700 TWh) to global electricity demand growth since 2010.¹

Innovative, smart IoT applications can not only increase efficiency, but also minimize downtime, extend the lifetime of machines and plants, and increase resource efficiency. Smart IoT can shorten delivery journeys and delivery times, and thus contribute to reductions in CO2 emissions and fuel consumption. It can also enable more climate-friendly production methods.

^{1) IEA (2022), World Energy Outlook 2022, IEA, https://www.iea.org/reports/world-energy-outlook-2022}

Resource-efficient production using production data effectively and in real-time

For a long time, many companies assumed that cost savings could only be achieved at the expense of sustainability performance. Digitalization and data technologies are now redefining those perceptions, balancing both sustainability gains with cost improvements. Digitalization enables manufacturing companies to sustainably design and optimize their processes. Industrial automation technologies, integrated solutions for factory sensors, and reliable networking technologies can help optimize controls and control loops, enabling smart consumption control.

Environmentally conscious fleet management for optimized routes and ressource saving

Pressure on transport and logistics companies as well as industrial enterprises is increasing, driven by the fact that transport and logistics operations account for a significant share of global energy consumption, and rising traffic volumes mean rising levels of air pollution and emissions. Fleet managers are under more pressure than ever to make sure their fleet-related decisions take environmental and climate impacts into consideration. Location, fuel consumption, idle time, driver behavior, and vehicle condition all play a role in the total emissions produced by a fleet. IoT sensors deployed on low-power wide area networks provide critical insight into these metrics to better optimize routes, improve driving behaviors, and ensure timely vehicle maintenance.

Predictive maintenance techniques supporting resource-efficient production

Data collected in smart factories enables predictive maintenance and the huge potential it offers for cost, energy, and resource efficiency gains. Building on sensor data, predictive maintenance uses advanced analytics and artificial intelligence to predict machine failures before they occur, or to anticipate maintenance needs before they become urgent. This increases equipment uptime, in many cases reduces operating costs as well as overall maintenance costs, and enables optimization of spare parts inventory by matching predictive maintenance to actual equipment needs. All this saves energy and material resources.

2. The green power of smart homes and buildings

The transition towards a greener future also calls on households and building operators to adopt more eco-friendly practices. In buildings, electricity is consumed largely by appliances (45%) and by space cooling and heating (nearly 30%)¹. Green IoT technology solutions can help to make a home or building smart and energy-efficient, balancing technological advances with sustainability. For example, building management solutions can identify areas in use, ensuring that specific functions like lighting, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning are only activated on demand. Digitalization and automation technologies can also reduce maintenance effort and working hours, while extending the service life of HVAC and lighting equipment.

^{1) IEA (2022), World Energy Outlook 2022, IEA, https://www.iea.org/reports/world-energy-outlook-2022}

Smart thermostat with sophisticated digital interface to help save energy

A thermostat is a crucial component in heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. A smart thermostat can be a powerful tool to save energy and money. Modern systems are programmable, compute usage patterns, learn from the habits of users, and react to their surroundings. Additionally, residents can remotely turn the temperature up or down if they are not at home. This temperature control functionality can save a significant amount of money throughout the year. It also lowers energy consumption and emissions.

Modern HVAC systems for smart and efficient cooling

Standard functionality such as stable and smooth start-ups, variable operating speeds, and vibration suppression are must-haves in modern buildings. And cooling systems in private homes must be quiet. Smart air conditioners offer a number of compelling new advantages, including the ability to measure the temperature, CO₂ concentration, and air quality. They automatically decide when it is necessary to provide fresh, cool air. And thanks to machine learning, they adapt to the user's preferences and provide health check data to the manufacturer to support interventions before damage can occur.

Resource optimization: IoT devices collect data on resource usage to identify opportunities for optimization.
Environmental monitoring: IoT devices monitor environmental conditions to track changes and identify areas for environmental protection measures.
Energy efficiency: IoT devices improve energy efficiency by monitoring and controlling HVAC systems, and optimizing traffic flow.
Supply chain optimization: IoT devices optimize supply chains by tracking the movement of goods and identifying inefficiencies.

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Making green energy happen

If you want to learn more about energy efficient technologies from Infineon, click here and discover, how we make green energy happen

1) ABI Research market data forecasts
2) International Energy Agency

We make the IoT work – for a better and greener future