Harnessing the power of IoT and cloud to predict to save energy

With new energy-saving solution, the start-up 75F endeavors to enhance the energy efficiency scenario among Indian businesses. The company offers smart solutions that maintain and manage the commercial buildings proactively. In an interaction with Dataquest, Gaurav Burman, VP and Country President, India, 75F talks about the company, internet of things and how the company seeks to yield profits in the long term.

Excerpts:
Q. Launched in August 2016 in India, 75F is making headlines with its name. Brief us about the idea behind the working of the company and what is there in the name - 75F?

75F stands for 75 Fahrenheit, which was set by the United Nations in 2008 as the optimum temperature in all its offices worldwide. Inspired by this, 75F seeks to deliver optimal comfort while saving maximum energy.

75F is a leader in building automation segment for commercial buildings in the US and has recently expanded its business operations to India. The company creates solutions that harness the power of IoT (Internet of Things) and cloud computing to predict building needs and manage them proactively whilst making buildings more energy-efficient, automated, smart and comfortable. Founded in 2012 in the US by Indian natives Deepinder Singh and Pankaj Chawla, 75F uses Internet-based tools & technologies, hence the positioning of ‘The Internet of Air’.

Q. What are the trends and problems in the commercial buildings segment?

There are five key trends in the commercial buildings segment – increasing automation across commercial spaces, increasing awareness of the need for energy efficiency, customers becoming more demanding in terms of comfort, air quality operational visibility and lastly new technologies making all of these benefits available at a price point affordable to most. Large or small, the Indian business consumer is looking for efficiency, and comfort at an affordable cost.

Q. How difficult is it to integrate IoT into existing infrastructure?

There are numerous challenges with respect to integrating IoT into existing infrastructures viz.

· Integration should not disrupt the existing workplace

· Existing systems should be integrated without the need to be replaced to accommodate new standards

· Managing multiple protocols & also wireless technologies

· Taking care of heightened security norms

Fortunately, with new & more powerful tools available, it is possible to overcome these challenges and easily deploy IoT-based technologies into most existing infrastructure.

Q. How do you plan to establish 75F lucratively in the Indian Market?

Indeed, the growth potential for 75F in the Indian subcontinent is huge. New building deployments represent a great opportunity to excel as the growth drivers of the Indian economy appear to be robust for the medium term. The retrofit-friendly feature of our solution also provides a good scope.

We plan to establish ourselves in a few verticals such as IT/ITeS, healthcare and hospitality along with the four major metropolitan cities. Our objective is to expand in the next 2-3 years. We are expanding our solution offerings across numerous sectors. This will add to the capabilities and width of the solution as well as enhance the services suite for the company. Simultaneously, we look forward to deploying additional go-to-market channels to name a few.

Q. What will be your GTM strategy in India?

Our current Go-to-Market has primarily been Direct-to-Customer. We are also in the process of building a strong channel base which will be trained and certified by 75F to install and integrate our solution seamlessly.

We will be present in key events, publications and online forums to spread our message of delivering comfort while saving energy.

Q. Who are your key customers and what developments have been witnessed in India after the launch?

We have installed over 1000 control zones in the US, and our clientele includes Taco Bell, Yoga Fit, Magnet 360, Rockler and many more. In India, where we just recently launched business operations, we bagged some big wins including an Indian e-commerce giant, leading player in the BPO segment, one of the major international airports, and so on.