HARMAN DTS and Lexmark Innovate via New IIoT Solutions

HARMAN Digital Transformation Solutions, with 7,000 professionals, 200-plus clients, and 45-plus offices across 12 countries, helps businesses create visionary technology solutions. Ever-changing industry needs require adaptable strategies, and HARMAN DTS blends the expertise it has accrued over the years with dynamic, people-first modernizations to create new hardware, software, and whatever proves necessary to succeed across physical and digital domains.

Earlier this month, it was announced that HARMAN DTS would entering a partnership with global cloud-enabled imaging and IoT technologies provider Lexmark. Founded back in 1991 as a spin-off of IBM, Lexmark (i.e. after Lexington, Kentucky, the company’s home), Lexmark serves customers across sectors in manufacturing, retail, healthcare, financial services, education, and government.

Together, HARMAN (as part of its IoT offerings portfolio) will deploy Lexmark’s own IoT technology on new projects for specific customers, marrying IIoT and AI solutions from the two to support enterprises and public institutions facing unique challenges.

Specifically, Lexmark will provide its Optra IoT technology and HARMAN DTS will lend its domain competency and large network of integration expertise across platforms and industry protocols. This will help clients develop new types of IIoT applications. As an example, one of the first combined offerings will be an AI-powered solution that is able to detect anomalies and defects in products on manufacturing lines; this is work that typically relies on labor-intensive manual inspections. And notably, Lexmark has tested a similar solution internally, finding that it delivered a 40% improvement to its inspection speed, a 99% reduction in errors, and a clear ROI within three months.

"With healthcare and industrial being two of our key focus areas at HARMAN Digital Transformation Solutions, along with our talented team, we have an edge above the rest in the industry. We are confident that the association will successfully deliver the best possible IoT solutions to customers," said Sanjay Bhartiya, Commercial General Manager at HARMAN DTS.

"Our expertise with IoT/IIoT for connected products and our visual AI capabilities for connected operations will provide HARMAN with rapid solution capabilities," said Vishal Gupta, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology and Information Officer at Lexmark. "HARMAN's significant customer network will allow us to expand our footprint and further grow Lexmark's IoT business."