Cisco announced on April 6 it has agreed to acquire Fluidmesh Networks in a move the company says will strengthen its Internet of Things (IoT) portfolio. Fluidmesh provides wireless backhaul systems for environments ranging from high-speed rail to enterprise, industrial and urban settings. “Fluidmesh’s solutions are quick to deploy and configure, offering customers a cost-efficient, low-maintenance solution,” Cisco said when announcing the deal, which it expects to close sometime in the quarter ending July 25.
“Fluidmesh will extend Cisco’s industrial wireless offerings to industries with on-the-move assets and applications in situations where reliable backhaul is mission-critical,” Cisco continued. “Cisco’s scale, combined with Fluidmesh’s solution-based offerings and relationships with systems integrators, will accelerate Cisco’s industrial IoT business to enable successful industrial wireless deployments, broaden reach to key customer segments, partners, and end users.”
“With wireless technology playing a greater role in every organization’s multi-access IoT strategy, reliable wireless connectivity is paramount to organizations operating industrial IoT environments, whether that’s manufacturing, mining, rail, or ports, where wireless technology automates operations to improve safety and lower costs,” commented Liz Centoni, senior vice president for emerging technologies and incubation at Cisco. “The acquisition of Fluidmesh strengthens Cisco’s offerings in this space with leading technology that’s designed to provide zero loss of data transfer at speeds in excess of 300 km/hr.
“Today’s wireless technology is allowing organizations to improve productivity and worker safety,” Centoni continued. “Organizations such as Caterpillar offer wireless technologies for unmanned vehicles, and mining operations such as Boliden in Garpenberg, Sweden are using wireless technology to remotely operate 23-ton loaders in a small space. If communications fail, it could result in the unit stopping and halting production, ultimately requiring human intervention. On the other hand, a loss in communications with a high-speed train or subway is unacceptable. While most wireless solutions work well for slow-moving objects—less than 30 km/hr—Fluidmesh’s leading technology is designed to provide zero loss of data transfer at speeds in excess of 300 km/hr.”
