Why are Industry Cloud solutions gaining traction?

An industry cloud is a kind of cloud solution that has been personalized to the requirements of a specific industry. A general-purpose cloud is an out-of-the-box solution that may not meet the requirements of every customer. An industry cloud solution meets different industry requirements like regulatory mandates or performance requirements. It can be designed to provide solutions in remote locations such as oil rigs. An industry cloud solution is vertically aligned and includes computing resources, APIs, data models, tools, and workflows.

Modern businesses invest significantly in the cloud but may not need all the services that a general-purpose cloud may offer. Industry clouds resolve this common concern by offering specialized services. For example, a banking industry business would need to adhere to complex financial regulations which may not be relevant for a retail company. Hospitals need to adhere to strict patient privacy considerations which may not be applicable in the manufacturing sector. In other words, the industry cloud helps customers accelerate, improve, and innovate in their specialized space.

What is the future of Industry Cloud?

As per a Gartner survey done in November 2023 across businesses in North America and Europe, 39% of businesses affirmed the adoption of industry cloud platforms. 14% of businesses said they were running pilots while 17% said they were planning to deploy industry cloud platforms by 2026. In 2023, around 15% of businesses had adopted industry cloud. By 2027, Gartner estimates that more than 70% of businesses will have adopted industry cloud platforms.

Fast-track your time to value with Industry Cloud solutions

The adoption of industry cloud platforms helps businesses achieve faster and more reliable business outcomes as cloud platforms use industry-proven, advanced components and solutions. Resources can focus on activities that bring out a competitive advantage of the company’s product instead of working on commoditized activities. Also, industry clouds have advanced analytics and reporting capabilities that provide valuable data insights that can be further utilized to shape strategy, product development, and market differentiation. These are some of the use cases of industry cloud solutions across different industries-

Healthcare: In the healthcare sector, industry cloud platforms facilitate Electronic Health Records (EHR) management for hospitals and clinics and provide a telemedicine platform for remote patient consultations. They are complaint with regulations like Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) for handling sensitive patient information. They facilitate Health information exchange (HIE) for securely sharing patient data between healthcare providers and provide medical imaging storage and analysis for radiology departments. In precision medicine, Industry Cloud can integrate genomics data with patient records and medical imaging to personalize treatment plans based on individual genetic makeup. Industry cloud platforms predict and prevent disease outbreaks by analyzing patterns in patient data, environmental factors, and population demographics. IoT sensors and wearables connected to the cloud can continuously monitor patients' health metrics, enabling early detection of health issues and proactive intervention.

Finance: In the finance sector, Industry Cloud platforms provide risk management and solutions which support compliance with financial regulations such as Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). They enable fraud detection and provide high-frequency trading platforms with low-latency data processing. They provide secure document storage and collaboration for financial institutions. Advanced industry clouds provide high-performance computing resources and AI algorithms for developing and deploying complex trading strategies. Blockchain implemented within industry cloud solutions help in fraud detection within financial services and enables streamlined settlements and secure and transparent transactions. Machine learning is used for risk assessment, personalized advisory services and to analyze market trends.

Manufacturing: In the manufacturing sector, industry cloud platforms enable digital twin simulation by creating digital replicas of physical manufacturing systems within the cloud to optimize production processes, simulate "what-if" scenarios, and predict equipment failures. They help in predictive maintenance by using sensor data from connected machinery to predict equipment failures before they occur, minimize downtime, and optimize maintenance schedules. Cloud-based design tools and simulation software can be leveraged to optimize designs for additive manufacturing processes reducing material waste and improving product quality.

Retail: In the retail sector, industry clouds are integrated with AR technology and enable immersive virtual try-on experiences, product visualization and interactive shopping interfaces. AI algorithms help analyze customer buying patterns, competition, and market trends to alter prices dynamically. IoT sensors and blockchain technology enable product tracking and improve inventory management.

Selecting the right Industry Cloud solution

Selection of the right industry cloud platform is the most important step. The industry cloud must be aligned with the company’s business strategy, and it should enable value creation quickly. It is imperative to outline the business’s industry-specific cloud requirements and the business goals and expected results should be clearly defined. The target use cases should be identified, and the industry cloud should be able to enable new revenue streams, productivity gains and meet sustainability goals through technology transformations. The business should carefully evaluate the level of competitive differentiation, the industry cloud adoption would bring. The industry cloud should be able to meet the regulatory requirements of the specific vertical. It should be able to disrupt the existing value chain if needed and create a new business model. Existing relationships with vendors often make it easier to integrate some platforms but the business should also evaluate if they provide the flexibility and ability to innovate further.

A study needs to be conducted to check the compatibility of the industry cloud package with the existing application. Moreover, the IT environment should be reviewed to identify gaps in the system which the industry cloud should fulfill. Additionally, the cloud’s support attributes should be evaluated: the platform should offer data monetization and analytics functions for decision-making. The total cost of ownership should be considered, including hidden costs. A budget should be set up for deployment and operations of the industry cloud. This budget should focus on the return on investment and the value the cloud will bring to the enterprise and end-user clients. The business should also meet with multiple cloud service providers, consultants, and services firms specializing in the specific industry to get their feedback. Industry forums, associations, user groups, publications, and case studies should be explored to learn from others about their industry cloud experiences and models.

HCLTech’s Industry Cloud solutions

HCLTech has over 100 industry cloud solutions across multiple verticals which have been adopted by many of its customers. Some of the solutions that HCLTech is offering with its partners are as detailed below.

• HCLTech has a cloud solution built jointly with AWS in the manufacturing sector. xLMCloud is a complete catalogue of solutions that businesses can evaluate in their cloud transformation journey. Major benefits include the detection of anomalies in real time which improves plants’ efficiency. Smart factories reduce the total cost of ownership with improved reliability. They enable remote and flexible work and digital twins in a connected ecosystem.
• In the financial sector, HCLTech offers Novus Payments solutions which is a series of verticalized solutions in banking, insurance, and capital markets. Amongst its numerous benefits, the main ones are that it enables straight-through processing for accurate and real-time information availability and improved risk management. Ziva is HCLTech’s intelligent banking omnichannel assistant that customers can engage through voice or text.
• In the telecom sector, HCLTech offers an augmented network automation platform. Using this solution, customers can achieve faster time to markets for new wireless services and 5G networks by automating wireless network configuration and simplifying network management complexities.
• In the healthcare sector, HCLTech’s CARE (Connected Assets in Regulated Environment) is an industry leading solution to improve patient care and enable better clinical outcomes. It helps healthcare companies monetize the wealth of clinical and device insights while being regulatory complaint.

Industry clouds are at the confluence of business and technical capabilities that organizations need to be successful in their digital transformation journeys. By careful evaluation and deployment of industry cloud solutions, businesses can achieve the differentiation which is needed to reach their growth targets with greater agility, flexibility, and innovation.

To know more, you may write to us at HCBU-PMG@hcltech.com.

Source: www.gartner.com/en/articles/what-are-industry-cloud-platform HCLTech Rated As A Leader In IDC MarketScape Worldwide Industry Cloud Professional Services 2022 Vendor Assessment | HCLTech