This burgeoning industry is expected to hit a value of US$922 billion by 2025, according to a recent Million Insights report, as IoT tech proliferates and devices like processors, sensors and connected systems become more accessible to a broader pool of enterprises.

The market is predicted to reach a CAGR (compound of annual growth rate) of 27.8 percent in the next six years. Organizations across manufacturing, healthcare, and transportation are expected to seize on the technology. Improving worker safety and reduce operating costs are key objectives— with networks of sensors able to provide new, real-time insight and control over systems and performance— the latter of which could lead to more competition between businesses.

Adoption of IIoT is also enjoying government-sponsored initiatives and efforts to promote the technology, says the report, while a growing preference towards automation of various business processes is complementing its integration.

IIoT technology is touted as integral to the approaching era of ‘Industry 4.0’ or ‘smart manufacturing’— the new phase of the industrial revolution driven by interconnectivity, automation, machine learning, and real-time data. Advances in IIoT technology will allow businesses to improve existing processes and produce new and more effective business models, said the report.

IIoT solutions represent the fastest-growing segment of the technology, with providers focusing on embedding and adopting connected systems, consisting of multiple information systems, devices, and sensors into several industry verticals and business processes.

When it comes to which markets are most advanced, the report revealed that North America has shown major growth owed to growing awareness of IoT’s benefits and presence of prominent industry players, such as GE, IBM, Cisco, Siemens, and Intel. The APAC region is also expected to hold a major market share in industrial IoT, with “massive” growth forecasted for the year ahead, particularly in countries such as India, China, Japan, and Taiwan.

Last month saw the first 5G and IoT-driven smart factory trial launch in the UK. It aims to demonstrate how the emerging cellular communications technology will serve as core component the next wave of manufacturing, including in factory floor production, reconfigurations, real-time analysis and controlling machine movements remotely.