Cimdata Logo

Industry Summary Articles

Wednesday, November 01, 2017

Bell and Howell Selects ThingWorx Platform to Enable Smart, Connected Service

PTC today announced that Bell and Howell has selected the ThingWorx® industrial innovation platform to transform its service organization by enabling remote monitoring and service of its connected industrial mechatronic machines.

Headquartered in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, Bell and Howell delivers innovative service and technology solutions that enrich customer communications and fulfillment for the world’s largest finance, industry and public sector enterprises. The company helps its customers streamline high-volume, high-integrity production of customer communications and product fulfillment; track delivery throughout the supply chain; maximize postal discounts and monetize every customer touchpoint.

Bell and Howell’s service organization is among the most sophisticated in the world, excelling at production workflow, automation, and industrial mechatronics. The company selected the ThingWorx platform as the foundation of an innovative next-generation IoT-enabled offering designed to further optimize service capabilities for all of its OEM service partners. These partners include companies such as Cleveron, CMC, Fetch, Hewlett-Packard, Packsize, Savioke, Sharp, and Toshiba.

One of the first products to leverage Bell and Howell’s IoT-enabled offering, built on the ThingWorx platform, is the Cleveron PackRobot, a 16-foot autonomous self-service package retrieval system that allows customers to pick up their online orders in a matter of seconds by scanning a code on their smartphone. The PackRobot is currently being deployed by the world’s largest retailer throughout the United States. As the exclusive distributor of Cleveron products in North America, Bell and Howell is providing the installation, service, support, and remote monitoring of these IoT-connected machines.

ThingWorx will enable Bell and Howell to reduce equipment downtime, improve First Time Fixn(FTF), increase overall performance, and boost customer satisfaction.

“At Bell and Howell we are focused on innovation and creating next-generation solutions and services for our customers,” said Ramesh Ratan, Ph.D, CEO, Bell and Howell. “We selected the ThingWorx platform because we needed a complete IoT platform that could handle everything from connecting the device to building applications to analyzing data. With the ThingWorx platform, we will be able to not only monitor our machines, but also have the ability to connect and remotely diagnose and service machines, which will enhance our level of service to our customers.”

The ThingWorx platform is a suite of components that enable the deployment of applications that monitor, manage, and control connected devices; remote data collection from connected devices; independent and secure connectivity between devices; and device/sensor management and integration with third party systems.

“By leveraging the IoT for smart, connected service, service organizations can solve problems before the customer knows they exist, adding tremendous value to service operations,” said Jim Heppelmann, president and CEO, PTC. “Leveraging ThingWorx will enable Bell and Howell to deliver high-quality services and more robust IoT-enabled solutions for its customers.”

To view the original press release, please click here.

Search for ThingWorx on CIMdata.com

r
ipad background image

Featured Cimdata Reports

ipadcontent
PLM-Enabled Digital Transformation Benefits Appraisal Guide

The Guide is designed to help potential PLM users evaluate the applicability and payoffs of PLM in their enterprise, and to help existing users of PLM monitor the impact it is having on their product programs.

ipadcontent
Aerospace & Defense PLM Action Group

A CIMdata administered PLM advocacy group for the A&D industry

ipadcontent
PLM Market Analysis Reports

The PLM MAR Series provides detailed information and in-depth analysis on the worldwide PLM market. It contains analyses of major trends and issues, leading PLM providers, revenue analyses for geographical regions and industry sectors, and historical and projected data on market growth.

ipadcontent
PLM Market Analysis Country Reports

These reports offer country-specific analyses of the PLM market. Their focus is on PLM investment and use in industrial markets. Reports cover Brazil, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Russia, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

ipadcontent
Simulation & Analysis Market Analysis Report

This report presents CIMdata’s overview of the global simulation and analysis market, one of the fastest growing segments of the overall product lifecycle management market, including profiles of the leading S&A firms.

ipadcontent
CAM Market Analysis Report

CIMdata's definitive guide to the worldwide CAM software and services market. This comprehensive report provides critical intelligence on market size, user expenditures, trends, and segmentation, alongside authoritative rankings of the top CAM solution providers and reseller revenues.