-Advertising-
Wellington, March 26, 2018: IoT solutions company Spark announced today that its long-range, low-power network was now available for commercial use in 60 per cent of the places New Zealanders live and work.
What this means is that businesses and local councils can now use the network to connect to things like vehicles, waterways, machinery and carparks. Sensors on these objects will be able to send information over the network to the people managing the objects. Commands can also be sent back to sensors, telling them when to kick in or the kind of information to report on. For example, the volume of rubbish in a public bin, or water pH in a stream.
Michael Stribling, Spark’s General Manager IoT Solutions, said in a statement, “Our IoT capability is really gathering pace, and now we’ve got this critical mass of coverage we’re able to make the network commercially available. This is a real milestone for Spark as we help New Zealand organisations win big in IoT.
“While we currently have 60 per cent of rural and urban New Zealand covered, we’ll be working to extend that to 70 per cent by July this year. We’re also looking to partner with organisations to extend coverage into areas where they need it.”
The network uses LoRaWAN technology, which carries small amounts of data over long distances, using less power than cellular networks. This makes it ideal for connecting objects far from power sources. For example, to monitor an outdoor carpark or an employee working in a remote area.
Compared to cellular connectivity, Spark’s new long-range network is an affordable IoT option. It works with a wide range of low-cost sensor technologies that are significantly cheaper on average than sensors for cellular networks.
Image Credit: Spark