I am writing this blog at Boston’s Logan Airport. Yesterday I went to see a Red Sox baseball game for the first time in more than 10 years. A Taiwanese manager who grew up in Japan and is a staff member at Stratus HQ booked a great seat at Fenway Park.

As a continuation from my previous column, the field of payments, as well as many other industrial fields, is experiencing a wave of internationalization and technological innovation, and many experts seem to think that a major change that can be called a payment revolution is taking place.

The concept of digitalization within the manufacturing industry can feel a bit like trying to build a bridge between two islands – IT and OT. Each side has been aware of the other and each understands the other’s importance. But the idea of connecting to one other can be met with resistance.

Downtime disrupts the supply chain on the front and back end of the food and beverage industry. Behind the curtain; profits and compliance are at risk when the production floor grinds to a halt. Safety also becomes a concern since injuries often occur when equipment is down, plant managers have limited visibility or systems are in maintenance mode.

The rising tide of data that organizations now receive, manage and analyse shows no signs of receding. The emergence of the Internet of Things (IoT) in particular has increased data management exponentially. More than ever before, the need for reliable hardware and accessibility solutions is a pivotal part of most organizations’ long-term plans.

Manufacturers leaning on outdated, stacked systems could very well find themselves left behind if they don’t modernize in order to keep pace with the explosive IoT. Gartner predicts that by 2020 the number of IoT devices will reach an astounding 50 billion. The need to maintain a system with zero downtime will continue to rise as the the existing network of physical devices grows.

In this second article in our virtualization series, we take a closer look the benefits of virtualization, especially how it can provide the perfect solution for desktop environments.

Last week, I emailed the head of EMEA Stratus with “Congratulations!” EMEA is a generic term for Europe, the Middle East, and the African region, and the representative of Stratus lives in Paris, France.