Commercial equipment that once operated in isolation now demands connectivity; customers expect predictive maintenance and remote management capabilities.
IoT connectivity is revolutionizing how commercial equipment manufacturers deliver value by enabling real-time monitoring, predictive insights, and service-based business models that were previously impossible. From critical infrastructure monitoring to precision industrial control, rapid product development, and connected refrigeration systems, IoT is transforming equipment from one-time purchases into intelligent services.
In this blog, we explore three examples of how companies in the commercial equipment ecosystem are leveraging IoT connectivity powered by Blues to transform their industries.
RACO Manufacturing: Reliable Remote Monitoring for Critical Infrastructure
RACO Manufacturing has spent over 75 years providing remote monitoring and alarming for municipalities, industrial facilities, and water and wastewater operations. Many of these systems are deployed in locations where reliable communications cannot be assumed, including isolated lift stations, remote wells, unattended tanks, and treatment infrastructure. Over time, RACO has evolved from basic alarm autodialers such as the well-known industry workhorse Verbatim, which relied on Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS), to cellular-based remote monitoring systems designed around a simple reality: alarms must get out even when networks fail.
Launching in Q1 2026, RACO’s Verbatim Gen2 system provides comprehensive monitoring for wastewater, water, and industrial facilities, with communications reliability built into the core of the product. The device monitors pumps, wells, tanks, and other critical infrastructure assets using both wired sensors and virtual channels sourced from PLCs or SCADA systems. When any monitored channel exceeds a defined alarm setpoint, Verbatim Gen2 immediately notifies a configured list of remote operators, allowing lean teams to manage large and geographically dispersed systems with confidence.
These real-time alerts are critical to preventing environmental and compliance incidents by ensuring operators are informed the moment conditions move outside safe or expected ranges. Verbatim Gen2 delivers this capability at a price point well below traditional SCADA-based installations, with a user experience purpose-built for municipal and industrial alarm monitoring rather than complex control room workflows. For organizations facing tight budgets and increasing regulatory scrutiny, this approach supports a shift away from costly emergency responses and toward more controlled and timely intervention.
Verbatim Gen2 is designed to detect and report issues as they occur without relying on manual checks or delayed reporting. Alarm logic is processed locally on the device, and notifications are delivered immediately using the best available network. Built-in satellite backup ensures there is always a path to communicate alarms, even when cellular coverage is unreliable or completely unavailable. This dual connectivity architecture uses primary cellular communication with satellite backup to help ensure alarm delivery continues regardless of terrestrial network conditions.
“With Verbatim Gen2’s dual connectivity architecture, we are focused on giving municipalities the reliability they need for critical infrastructure monitoring,” said Chris Rappoli, Head of Product and Engineering at RACO. “By combining cellular connectivity with satellite backup, we help ensure alarm notifications can get through in challenging locations where single-network solutions may fail.”
That level of reliability is essential for critical infrastructure monitoring, where missed alarms or communication gaps can lead to compliance risks, equipment damage, or threats to public health.
Simple Injection: Precision Chemical Dosing in Remote Operations
Simple Injection recognized a critical gap in industrial chemical injection systems: existing products lacked the remote control and monitoring capabilities that operators desperately needed. In oil and gas operations where injection sites are separated by vast distances, field personnel spend a significant amount of time traveling between locations to check tank levels and adjust injection rates.
The Speedgoat system transforms chemical injection into an intelligent, remotely managed operation. The connected system combines sophisticated pump control with integrated cellular connectivity and real-time tank level monitoring, all accessible through a dashboard and smartphone app.
The business impact is immediate and measurable. The system can automatically adjust pump speed to meet target injection rates, calculate precise dosing based on flow rates, and optimize methanol usage by injecting only when environmental conditions require it, eliminating unnecessary chemical consumption.
Speedgoat’s certified design ensures reliable operation while providing critical environmental protection. The leak-safe design diverts any seal leakage back to the inlet line rather than allowing chemicals to reach containment areas or the ground.
The system also eliminates batch truck requirements in many scenarios, allowing operators to schedule precise chemical doses remotely.
“The Speedgoat with Blues connectivity solved the problem our customers told us about—they needed reliable remote access to monitor and control their injection systems,” explains Matthew Kull, Owner and Developer at Simple Injection. “With cellular connectivity built in, operators can now manage dozens of sites from their dashboard without the constant travel and guesswork. That’s transformed how our customers approach chemical injection management.”
Prodigy: Engineering Ideas into Reality Through Connected Innovation
Prodigy has spent nearly four decades transforming innovative concepts into market-ready products for customers, several utilizing Blues technology. The product development firm brings together electrical engineers, firmware developers, and mechanical engineers to tackle complex design challenges across multiple industries.
The Smart Meter Reader project for NextEra Analytics demonstrates Prodigy’s capability to deliver connected solutions at speed. NextEra Analytics operates independently from Florida Power & Light’s regulated utility operations, creating strict regulatory requirements for data separation. Consulting activities must remain completely separate from utility-held customer data, which means real-time electrical usage must be collected directly at customer sites using independent measurement systems rather than accessing utility meters.
The Smart Meter Reader was specifically designed to meet this compliance requirement while maintaining the speed and accuracy NextEra Analytics needed for effective energy consulting. The mobile, cloud-connected device captures usage data compliantly and securely without relying on utility-side access, enabling fast energy analysis while respecting regulatory boundaries. This approach replaces manual meter reading processes that consumed significant labor resources while introducing timing delays and transcription errors.
Automated meter readings cut manual labor requirements by up to 80%, transforming the economics of energy audits. Tasks that previously required dedicated personnel walking sites with clipboards now happen automatically with cellular-connected devices that stream data directly to cloud analytics platforms.
The system’s flexible, reusable design supports multiple site deployments, allowing energy consultants to maintain device inventories that rotate across measurement campaigns rather than installing permanent infrastructure at each location. This approach dramatically reduces capital investment while accelerating project timelines.
Because NextEra Analytics operates independently from the regulated utility operation of Florida Power & Light (also owned by NextEra Energy), strict regulatory rules require a clear separation between consulting activities and utility-held customer data. As a result, real-time electrical usage must be collected directly at the customer site using independent measurement systems. The Smart Meter Reader was specifically designed to meet this requirement by capturing usage data compliantly, securely, and without relying on utility-side access while still enabling fast, accurate energy analysis.
Secure cellular connectivity enables rapid data collection, providing real-time insights into energy usage patterns. Engineers access current data through cloud dashboards rather than waiting for field personnel to complete site visits and manually input readings.
“Blues lets us focus on what we do best: engineering innovative solutions for our clients,” says David Mackenzie, VP Product Development at Prodigy. “Instead of spending months wrestling with complex cellular integration, we used Blues to deliver the Smart Meter Reader from concept to field deployment in just eight weeks. That speed to market is what gives our clients the competitive advantage they need.”
Rather than spending months on cellular integration challenges, the Prodigy team leveraged Blues cellular connectivity to go from zero to prototype rapidly so they could focus on core measurement and automation features.
See These Solutions Live at CES 2026
These customer examples illustrate how connected products are transforming commercial equipment manufacturing across multiple industries, from critical infrastructure monitoring and precision chemical injection to energy management and connected refrigeration systems.
The common thread across these success stories is the elimination of connectivity complexity, allowing for a focus on core product innovation. RACO Manufacturing’s dual-connectivity infrastructure monitoring, Simple Injection’s automated chemical dosing, Prodigy’s accelerated development timelines, and True Manufacturing’s predictive refrigeration maintenance all share a similar approach: partnering with proven connectivity solutions that work out of the box, allowing engineering teams to focus on the innovations that differentiate their products.
Want to see these products in action? All these companies will be showcased at the Blues booth during CES 2026 in Las Vegas. It’s a unique opportunity to meet the teams behind these innovations, see live demonstrations, and discover how cellular connectivity is enabling the next generation of intelligent equipment.
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