IoT test network launches in Sydney

KPMG and the IoT Alliance Australia (IoTAA) have launched a new community for IoT networking in Sydney to allow IoT developers to develop, prototype and test their services and devices.

The KPMG-IoTAA Barangaroo Community gateway will allow anyone within a 3–5 km radius to connect their IoT devices for free. It will support up to 1000 simultaneous devices.

The gateway was developed through a collaboration between KPMG, IoTAA, Meshed and IoTAA and International Towers Barangaroo.

Based on the LoRaWAN standard, which is customised for low-power, long-range IoT deployments, the network operates on the 915 MHz Industrial and Scientific Spectrum band.

The IoT network launched yesterday at an event attended by Communications Minister Mitch Fifield during KPMG Australia’s inaugural IoT State-of-the-Nation workshop and networking event. The event showcased the work underway at the IoTAA and its more than 125 member organisations.

IoTAA Chair and Communications Alliance CEO John Stanton said the IoT has the potential to add up to $120 billion to the Australian economy by 2025.

“This represents an uplift of up to 2% in Australia’s GDP across a range of environments including factories, retail outlets, smart cities and homes, motor vehicles, other transport modes and even human health and fitness — IoT is a pervasive disruptor,” he said.

IoTAA was incorporated in July after emerging from the Communications Alliance IoT Think Tank. The alliance has six areas of focus, including building a collaborative Australian IoT community, ensuring adequate availability of spectrum and fostering local IoT start-ups.

Image courtesy of Line Ørstavik under CC