Your Employees are Talking, But Are You Listening?
FreeWave’s Kirk Byles explains why listening to your employees is an easy way to increase engagement and productivity among remote teams. WIRED recently published an article about why we are seeing pushback from executives about working from home despite the fact that businesses have transitioned successfully to the WFH model and employees routinely express greater satisfaction with it. The article highlights the disconnect in both planning and execution between executives and staff and it basically comes down to three things: assumption, bias, and transparency. It’s not about knowing all the answers, it’s about asking the right questions. One of the most important things we’ve done at FreeWave during the pandemic when working from home wasn’t a choice, but a necessity: increase the cadence of our engagement survey to every six months and *really* listen to feedback. Like most businesses in the last two years, we had to react quickly to the changing tides of COVID. We shut down our office on March 13th of 2020 and, after consistently receiving meaningful and reliable feedback from our staff, we decided to transition to a “remote encouraged” culture. And, it’s working. The article mentions that executives have very differing views, experiences, and appreciation for in-office than most of their own staff. There are assumptions and biases about what is needed for both productivity and engagement and about the experience that most staff have versus the experience of the executive. The survey refers to it as “a focus group of one. I have X, Y, and Z resources and experience so that must be true of everyone in the company from Assembler to Customer Service and Accounting.” We approached the challenge of engagement with a simple premise: we don’t know the answer so let’s ask questions and base an iterative plan on the data. We wouldn’t start developing a product without market research so why would we do the same with employee engagement? Transparency and the Fail Fast Philosophy In the article, Brian Elliott of Future Forum cites the reticence of executives to announce an action plan if they “don’t know all the answers”. Maybe it’s because we’re a tech-based business where iteration is the norm or maybe COVID taught us lessons in adaptability but, whatever the case, we’ve always understood the fail-fast philosophy is not just for the technical side of the company. While actively addressing the issues of assumption and bias in collecting the survey data, we still had one more challenge to address and that was transparency. To that end, not only do we present ALL survey data in our quarterly All Hands; we also announce specific plans to address areas of concern. We set expectations and not only encourage employees to hold us accountable for the action items but acknowledge that these plans build upon each other. In every, all-hands gathering we summarize any changes in survey results, announce whether the previous two- quarters plans’ have seen any success, and move forward with new plans to either maintain or improve engagement results. These relatively short timelines and repeated testing allow us to move quickly to actively address not just employee needs but the needs of the business as a whole. Results As any businessperson knows all it takes for top talent to leave is a phone call from a recruiter on the right day. Businesses who have neglected to both survey their employees, publicly announce results, and work on improving engagement are seeing this in droves. I’m sure there are many other companies like FreeWave that don’t have the ability to provide many of the perks that other large tech companies rely on such as gyms on-site or free food or even salaries in the top 10%. However, on the flip side, many of those companies have doubled down on returning to the office and implemented micromanagement and monitoring tools of their staff and even old-fashioned dress codes and attendance policies. Their employees become more frustrated at losing the flexibility, trust, and better work/life balance benefits they have come to appreciate during the pandemic. If they were successful and thriving over the past 18 months, why should we consider they wouldn’t be going forward? Maybe we’re lucky, but we’ve been able to attract some really top-tier talent from larger organizations by providing, not just the flexibility employees’ demand, but the trust that allows them to flourish.
Introducing Game-Changing Connectivity for Remote Operations
FreeWave’s new Fusion Bridge dual-radio gateway delivers seamless Wi-Fi connectivity to remote 900 MHz networks BOULDER (May 3rd, 2021) – Data is everywhere, but Wi-Fi is not. If remote operations lack on-site connectivity to gather and share real-time, business critical data, efficiency suffers. Today, Boulder-based FreeWave Technologies introduced a reliable way to connect remote assets and unlock siloed operational data: Fusion Bridge. The dual-radio bridge adds WiFi access point connectivity to remote 900 MHz networks. A plug and play option for existing ZumLink Networks, it makes it easy for enterprises to connect multiple devices and sensors in the field, access real-time data, drive new operational efficiencies and improve asset management. “Fusion Bridge solves a real problem for enterprises that have remote assets generating critical data in the field and requires staff to physically monitor or collect it directly,” said FreeWave CEO Kirk Byles. “Manual data collection is time-consuming, can introduce human error and is highly inefficient. But it also delays decision making, which not only adds costs, but also minimizes the ability for companies to proactively mitigate business risk. Fusion Bridge is another example of how we are working to help customers address real problems and add capability to existing network communications without substantial investments.” Fusion Bridge is over-the-air compatible with ZumLink networks and accommodates any WiFi device, including tablets, sensors, smartphones and security cameras. It offers an easy, browser-based configuration that is OEM-ready and features a fully customizable interface. If you are looking for a platform to deliver remote security intelligence applications including human or vehicle presence alerting, activity monitoring and remote access protection outside of network range, look no further than Fusion Bridge. To learn more about this remote WiFi bridge game-changer, as well as FreeWave’s comprehensive portfolio of edge computing solutions, contact your sales representative or visit www.freewave.com. About FreeWave Technologies With deployments in over 39 countries, FreeWave’s products are leveraged by industrial end users and OEMs alike to connect, control and optimize remote machines and processes to impact smarter decision-making, improve operational efficiencies and drive cost savings. Throughout our 27-year history, Freewave’s IIoT Connectivity and EDGE Solutions have solved thousands of customers’ problems in government/defense, energy, agriculture, and municipalities – achieve reliable connectivity for data telemetry and command and control in some of the most challenging, remote and rugged environments in the world. Today, we are transforming the extreme edge of operations – and the proliferation of smart devices within it – into a connected part of the enterprise with our IQ edge computing platform and ecosystem of solutions evolved for IIoT. Are you ready to transform your operation? Visit freewave.com to get started. # # # Media Contacts: Lisa DiBenedetto Corporate Communications lisa@ldbcomm.biz 630-338-2208 Renea Sloan Director, Channel Marketing rsloan@freewave.com
FreeWave Technologies Delivers New Edge Data Software Platform
The solution you need for real-time data processing and storage capability at the network edge BOULDER (March 4, 2021) – Today FreeWave Technologies, a leader in industrial edge computing and long-range industrial wireless connectivity, now offers seamless industrial data collection with the introduction of FreeWave Edge. The new software platform performs real-time processing of industrial protocols and sensor data providing edge data storage, processing and cloud compatibility alongside existing enterprise systems. The benefit? Faster, high-resolution data even under challenging connectivity scenarios with added store and forward capabilities. FreeWave Edge marks the first software introduction from is acquisition of CPU LLC, a decades old engineering focused software analytics company that produced multiple software suites in the industrial market. For existing FreeWave customers the addition of FreeWave Edge means greater access to network operations, while adding bandwidth and processing capacity. The platform also drastically reduces the need for additional capital investments. CPU has helped accelerate FreeWave’s momentum into SCADA and digital applications in the cloud. “FreeWave Edge is a direct reflection of our commitment to build a robust and fully-integrated suite of edge computing solutions for industrial customers and system integrators looking to increase network and operation efficiencies and configure data processing at the edge,” said FreeWave’s CEO Kirk Byles. “What all this means is, we listened to our customers who recognize the hodgepodge of hardware and software is hindering their growth, and we created a solution to fill that void. Too many times we’ve heard about how differing protocols can’t work together or hardware isn’t compatible, or…..it doesn’t’ matter. FreeWave is here to provide a bridge between hardware and software in the industrial world. This is our mission and passion.” FreeWave Edge makes it simple to configure custom system alerts and data processing specific to the needs of industrial operations, connecting them to preferred reporting systems, email or the Cloud. Lost connectivity can often mean lost data. Free Wave Edge addresses that with its Store & Forward feature at the edge, ensuring no critical data analytics get left behind. A straightforward web interface allows users to set up data inputs and connect to industrial controllers and devices with standard protocols or sensors via analog and digital IO. The platform also delivers the ability to publish data to a wide variety of enterprise tools via configurable MQTT. To learn more about FreeWave Edge capabilities and specifications, as well as FreeWave’s comprehensive portfolio of edge computing solutions, contact your sales representative or visit www.freewave.com. About FreeWave Technologies With deployments in over 39 countries, FreeWave’s products are leveraged by industrial end users and OEMs alike to connect, control and optimize remote machines and processes to impact smarter decision-making, improve operational efficiencies and drive cost savings. Throughout our 27-year history, FreeWave’s IIoT Connectivity and EDGE Solutions have solved thousands of customers’ problems in government/defense, energy, agriculture, and municipalities – achieve reliable connectivity for data telemetry and command and control in some of the most challenging, remote and rugged environments in the world. Today, we are transforming the extreme edge of operations – and the proliferation of smart devices within it – into a connected part of the enterprise with our IQ edge computing platform and ecosystem of solutions evolved for IIoT. Are you ready to transform your operation? Visit freewave.com to get started. # # # Media Contacts: Lisa DiBenedetto Corporate Communications lisa@ldbcomm.biz 630-338-2208 Renea Sloan Marketing Director rsloan@freewave.com
FreeWave Technologies Expands Integration Partnership in India
New Partnership Penned with Cotmac Electronics Pvt Ltd BOULDER (June 10, 2020) – Today, FreeWave Technologies, a leader in long-range industrial wireless connectivity and wired edge computing platforms announced it will expand the distribution of its industrial automation and edge computing solutions to India with new authorized integration partner Cotmac Electronics. As part of the Cotmac Group, established in 1896 as a cotton and machinery trading company, Cotmac Electronics is a respected name in industrial automation. Since its inception in 1992, Cotmac Electronics has grown to employ over 600 skilled and qualified engineers, it has 5 state-of-the-art manufacturing plants and 13 branch offices in India. The company provides innovative solutions for various factory and process automation applications in industries such as automotive, pharmaceuticals, energy, material handling, Oil and gas, as well as water/wastewater. Cotmac Electronics is the first choice in world class industrial automation solutions. “Freewave’s partnership with Cotmac in India is a powerful combination. I am confident that Freewave’s industry leading connectivity and EDGE compute platforms combined with Cotmac’s experience, people and channel reach, will ensure that together, working as one team, we will deliver the full potential of optimized IIoT solutions to verticals and clients across India” said Mike Tate, SVP Global Sales & Marketing, Freewave Technologies. General Manager for Cotmac Electronics, Nitin Apsangi said “The collaboration of FreeWave and Cotmac Electronics will deliver a powerful combination of strengths in the industrial automation space with transformative solutions to help customers achieve the full benefits of IIOT.” “With demand for Industry 4.0 solutions growing, our partnership with FreeWave uniquely positions us to deliver comprehensive solutions for manufacturing, plant automation, process control, and energy monitoring, from the edge to the core to the cloud,” For more information on FreeWave Technologies’ and its Intelligent Edge solutions, visit www.freewave.com. For more information on Cotmac Electronics and its integration capabilities, visit www.cotmac.io About FreeWave Technologies With deployments in over 32 countries, FreeWave’s products are leveraged by industrial end users and OEMs alike to connect, control and optimize remote machines and processes to impact smarter decision-making, improve operational efficiencies and drive cost savings. Throughout our 26-year history, we’ve helped thousands of customers – government/defense, energy, agriculture, and municipalities – achieve reliable connectivity for data telemetry and command and control in some of the most challenging, remote and rugged environments in the world. Today, we are transforming the extreme edge of operations – and the proliferation of smart devices within it – into a connected part of the enterprise with our IQ edge computing platform and ecosystem of solutions evolved for IIoT. Are you ready to transform your operation? Visit freewave.com to get started. # # # Media Contacts: Renea Sloan Marketing Director rsloan@freewave.com
IIoT and Work-Life Balance: A Healthy and Productive Relationship
This article was authored by Kirk Byles, FreeWave CEO The Industrial Internet of Things can improve productivity and promote a healthy work-life balance. Here’s how. “There is no such thing as work-life balance anymore. You’ve got to integrate them. Otherwise, you will fail miserably at one of them.” – Benjamin Laker, Forbes Because of COVID-19, the boundaries between our work and home lives continue to blur. I often find myself doing chores while on a conference call or listening to a webinar while cooking at my barbeque. And I’m becoming more interested in who is at the office, now that we’ve opened part-time (I use the key card application on my phone to monitor access). It’s not my intention to be Big Brother – working from the FreeWave office is voluntary. Rather, I want to gauge how folks are feeling. I took the same action to monitor my kid’s activities at home when I was still working from the office, to see whether or not they crank the heat or A/C when they get home from school. These are typical IoT-related activities we take for granted. Like most people, I’ve tried to strike the perfect balance between my life at work and my life at home. Since I’ve worked remotely for most of my professional life, I’m fairly disciplined when it comes to shutting off work at the appropriate time. Still, like so many people, I’ve recently found myself working extended hours. Experts criticize the concept of work-life balance because it suggests life and work are in opposition. And the pursuit of balance is exhausting. Some researchers suggest it’s better to embrace imbalance than strive to achieve a state of work-life nirvana. And I tend to agree with them. Of course, you have to schedule aspects of your work-from-home time, just like you’d plan family activities. Still, there’s nothing wrong with blocking out personal time during the day if you can spend a few hours hiking with your kids or friends during the afternoon. Even if you’ll be working at 10 PM as a result. This balancing act is new to quite a few folks, and it’s difficult. But, if you have the right solutions at your fingertips, it gives you peace of mind and helps you become more efficient. I mentioned mobile apps for my home and office, but what about tools for people working in industries that need to go beyond looking at cameras or names on a screen? Many people work in oilfields, on manufacturing floors, water sanitation sites, farms, or cities. And for most of their careers, they’ve been able to pull data from remote locations, view pressure gauges, monitor flow rates, check on pick and place machines for errors, and in some cases, manipulate those machines remotely (assuming they have the necessary skills). How does this work get done when you have to work from home? The right technology makes it possible. By placing edge computers with industrial applications where the action is happening, people can see the apps at work and relax, knowing they’ll be notified if there is a problem. This helps remote employees see what might be happening, and it also helps them know what is actually happening and how automatic changes improve systems. With edge computers, application-specific software, and communications technologies, folks working from home don’t have to stress about what’s happening on-site. And they don’t have to try to fix issues. The software corrects the issue before you know there’s a problem, so you can cook for the kids and rest easy knowing you’ve had zero downtime and machinery is running at absolute efficiency. The IIoT helps Mom, the field services director for a major utility, work from home, and be 10x more productive because of remote applications at the edge that make sure everything runs as it should. She can spend more time with the kids, and address aspects of her work she couldn’t get to before implementing this technology. It’s about creating efficiencies and solving problems before you even know there is one. An imbalance between work and home life is okay as long as you’re doing all you can to ensure work gets done and your home life isn’t neglected. The Industrial Internet of Things can make this possible for all of us.
FreeWave Technologies Introduces ZumEdge™
FreeWave’s Edge Intelligence portfolio allows instant data access and decision-making from the harshest edge environments to Cloud, analytics platforms in an easy-to-use integrated package BOULDER (May 19, 2020) – Today FreeWave Technologies, a leader in industrial edge computing and long-range industrial wireless connectivity, introduced ZumEdge™, the next generation of its Edge Intelligence platform. ZumEdge delivers an integrated I/O edge computing and narrow band radio network platform that makes it easy to connect analog and digital I/O devices directly to IIoT networks. The platform allows enterprise customers across numerous industry verticals to access and monitor critical data in the field and act on it immediately. “ZumEdge is ideal for any industry that requires sensor data capture, edge computing and long-range networking in isolated and potentially hazardous environments in a single, integrated package,” said FreeWave’s Chief Technology Officer, Parthesh Shastri. “The ability to simplify, capture and process a high volume of data at the industrial edge empowers our customers and partners to lower costs and time to market for new solutions.” With limited networking and data acquisition capabilities, critical sensor data is often stranded in the field, creating both inefficiencies and adding costs. ZumEdge with an I/O module reduces complexity, providing enterprises the data they need in minutes, not hours. Its web-based integrated I/O and network configuration tool supports the remote configuration of up to 15 IOEX modules (up to 180 individual I/Os). ZumEdge comes standard with the FreeWave IQ application environment and contains the Z9 radio module, making it over-the-air compatible with existing ZumLink networks and is housed in a DIN-Rail-Mountable case. To learn more about ZumEdge capabilities and specifications, as well as FreeWave’s comprehensive portfolio of edge computing solutions, contact your sales representative or visit www.freewave.com. About FreeWave Technologies With deployments in over 32 countries, FreeWave’s products are leveraged by industrial end users and OEMs alike to connect, control and optimize remote machines and processes to impact smarter decision-making, improve operational efficiencies and drive cost savings. Throughout our 26-year history, Freewave’s IIoT Connectivity and EDGE Solutions have solved thousands of customers’ problems in government/defense, energy, agriculture, and municipalities – achieve reliable connectivity for data telemetry and command and control in some of the most challenging, remote and rugged environments in the world. Today, we are transforming the extreme edge of operations – and the proliferation of smart devices within it – into a connected part of the enterprise with our IQ edge computing platform and ecosystem of solutions evolved for IIoT. Are you ready to transform your operation? Visit freewave.com to get started. Media Contacts: Lisa DiBenedetto Corporate Communications lisa@ldbcomm.biz 630-338-2208 Renea Sloan Director, Channel Marketing rsloan@freewave.com
COVID-19: A Letter to Our Customers and Partners
A Letter to Our Customers and Partners: In these challenging times, we wanted to take a moment to update you on how we’re responding to the COVID-19 virus. Our hearts are with everyone who has been impacted by this virus across our global community. In the midst of a pandemic, we are reminded of how quickly things can change and that we should take nothing for granted. With that in mind, health and safety remain our top priority. We’ve mandated all non-production employees who can work from home to do so, and have arranged for those essential production employees to observe social distancing at work to further eliminate risk. We are sanitizing our factory daily by wiping down all surfaces with anti-bacterial disinfectant. Any employee that displays or feels any illness symptoms are not allowed in the factory for a minimum of two weeks. Much like you, we’re continuously monitoring the evolution of this situation as we balance employee safety with business continuity. While these are clearly unusual circumstances, we’re committed to you our customers by trying to maintain, as much as possible, business as usual. We are assessing our supply chain daily for any signs of constraints, and at this time we are well positioned and don’t expect any changes in lead times. As things continue to evolve, we’ll continue to communicate with you. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your FreeWave Sales Representative. Best, FreeWave Technologies
Business Continuity and COVID-19
COVID-19 is forcing a change to the way we do business and globally confining employees to their homes, forcing the cancellation of public events and schools. FreeWave remains committed to our employees and customers as it has for the last 26 years and is here to continue supporting you during this challenging time. FreeWave’s solutions keep your workforce safely connected by allowing you to gather insights and analytics from the field, and transmit the data to any device, from anywhere, and at any time, without putting your employees in harm’s way. The health and wellbeing of FreeWave partners and customers is our number one priority. Which is why we offer solutions for remote and ruggedized environments that reduce costs and keep people free from harm: Contact Your FreeWave Account Manager today to learn how we can optimize and digitize your network, keeping your business on track.
Remote University On-site Training
Join FreeWave for our Remote University On-site Training Date: March 10th and March 11thTime: 830am-430pm each dayLocation: MCM Elegante Hotel, 5200 E. University | Odessa, Texas 79762Agenda: Tuesday March 10 RF Networks 101 Advanced Serial Network Configuration and Troubleshooting Intro To ZumLink and Ethernet Radios Q&A Wednesday March 11 ZumLink Ethernet Configuration ZumLink Optimization ZumEdge – Edge Enabled I/O Intro and Overview IQ Edge Platform Overview Q&A To register, please contact Jim Garrison, jgarrison@freewave.com. Space is limited. You are welcome to register for both days or just one. Just indicate which day(s) you’d like to attend.
FreeWave Announces the Release of their New Online Training Portal
Take your FreeWave experience to the next level with our new online learning center. FreeWave is primarily a supplier of hardware for the industrial space, which means that our products aren’t as simple to use as hardware designed for the consumer market. The specificity of FreeWave equipment makes training and certifications crucial. We’ve always offered training, but in the past, the sessions were conducted in-person. And while our team enjoys interacting with customers in a live setting, there are obvious drawbacks to on-site education. The value of hands-on training is undeniable, but it requires expensive travel, often for both the FreeWave team and our customers, and the system isn’t available on-demand, nor is it scalable. Understanding the importance of high-quality training, as well as the budgetary and scaling issues inherent to in-person instruction, we set out to create a different solution. Our team worked tirelessly to build the all-new FreeWave online training portal – a video-based learning platform designed specifically to train and certify FreeWave hardware customers. FreeWave’s team of tenured educators built the learning platform to address known customer challenges. We are one of the first in our hardware niche to provide a video-based online learning center. The training portal is a differentiator for us and you. What makes the FreeWave online training portal valuable? The FreeWave online training portal allows customers and partners to learn at their own pace. There are assessments after each chapter that allows users to test their knowledge. The learning center is specific enough to help customers and partners with their unique applications but broad enough to apply to every FreeWave customer regardless of industry (industry-neutral). The education center operates in real-time and will continue to evolve. Customers or partners will have up-to-date information about product releases, as well as notices and advisories specific to FreeWave hardware. The learning center is an excellent resource for notifications about products our customers might already use. Each course has a corresponding message board. Trainees can ask questions and receive follow-up responses from an instructor. The complimentary platform is immediately available to FreeWave customers. Public and private sector organizations with restrictive budgets aren’t always able to justify sending employees for training. Many learning courses with certifications cost up to $2,000 per ticket to attend, and the average group-size for in-person training ranges from 12 to 15 people. The ease of access and affordability of our new learning platform combined with on-demand features and real-time updates make it an invaluable resource. What are early adopters saying? “FreeWave did an excellent job on the videos, and I learned a lot! I especially like that the videos are broken into bite-sized chunks. I took notes throughout and nearly went through an entire pad of paper.” – FreeWave customer “I started the online course, and I love it!!!” – FreeWave customer A mini-case study: A newly-onboarded customer conducted a successful field test and sold FreeWave hardware the day following his training and certification. A learning process that in the past would have required on-site training conducted by a FreeWave educator, and hands-on assistance in the field test and sales process, was achieved within 24hrs and at no cost to either the customer or FreeWave. It’s important to note that the customer attempted to use a competitor’s hardware last year for the same purpose and was unsuccessful. The online training portal is designed for both resellers and end-users of FreeWave hardware. Our initial launch includes one certification and roughly seven hours of educational video content to get you started. Additional certifications and training videos will be added throughout the year. Are you an existing customer or partner? Click here to register for the FreeWave online training portal! New to Freewave products? Contact Us.
