Interview to Jessica Poliner, President & CEO Relayr.
Equipment as a Service (EaaS), which is a business model where equipment is provided to customers on a subscription or usage basis rather than being sold outright, has gained more attention in recent years with the increasing availability of connected devices and the growing demand for more cost-effective solutions. At IOTSWC23, Jessica Poliner made it clear that EaaS is “much more than a theoretical model” and explained how Relayr makes it happen. Spoiler alert: simplicity is key.
At IOTSWC23, you were joking about using the same presentation as in previous editions, as if nothing had changed. You obviously did not. What stage are we currently in?
Yes, I was just teasing. I talked about how I think in a downturn, which is certainly where we are now. But despite the harsh realities of our time, I think we have to encourage industrial companies to make space for innovation. Now it’s the time to invest in technology and move forward, so we can hit the ground running post-recession. The future is now.
Why is Equipment as a Service a game-changer in this scenario?
By 2025, EaaS market will reach 131 billion dollars, according to IoT analytics. For us, it’s a game changer because it transforms our partners and their end users’ businesses entirely. But why? Because the responsibility falls on the providers and not on the users. We take the assets off the balance sheet of the partners and provide technology, financing and risk restructuring instead of just selling the machine. The model ensures productivity by harnessing the power of Industrial IoT (IIoT).
So, why is the IIoT a key enabler of EaaS?
EaaS enables innovative, new features such as pay-per-demand with guaranteed uptime/performance. And IIoT helps with the monitoring of machine usage or material consumption as well as the monitoring of critical parameters to manage the risk and provide an uptime guarantee. It also leverages predictive analytics and accordingly maintenance to improve the performance of machines.
Do you think the EaaS concept is now better known and used than before the pandemic?
EaaS reduces the burden on the customer and provides operational excellence and productivity. You know, we’re seeing an uptick in opportunities for Equipment as a Service (EaaS) because I think it helps companies better manage their capital expenditures, which are certainly constrained as the pandemic, the inflation and the recession are happening.
How sustainable is adopting EaaS in these challenging times?
I think Equipment as a Service allows companies to operate more efficiently and better control expenses, which certainly improves sustainability. You put the risk on somebody else to manage the assets, so you’re only paying for the use of the assets. It really transforms the CAPEX to an OPEX kind of expense, and this is economically more sustainable. Additionally, you always need to have your end customer in mind.
What are the key actions for a successful implementation of EaaS? How does Relayr make it happen?
First of all, it’s important to define X in the pay-per-X model, understand your customer needs and define what X is – pay per part or pay per output while setting up the financial structure and knowing the risk. Additionally, the simplicity of the EaaS model is key to starting. At Relayr, we ensure that what you see is what you get and try not to reinvent the wheel. We also provide data-driven warranty and a trusted asset/finance management solution.
In the end, the goal is to run an efficient business, so we offer an EaaS platform which is easily integrated with partners systems, a monitoring solution, an OEM dashboard with real-time data, and operational KPIs, among other features so that your business outcomes and success always comes first.
Interview by: Anna Solana