An Open Letter to Our Industry
For 15 Years, Erbessd Instruments has stood at the forefront of revolutionizing, creating and embracing change in the Condition Monitoring Industry, and in light of recent trends we’ve noticed, we believe it is our responsibility to address the direction some organizations in our industry are taking. As many of you have surely noticed, 2024 has seen consolidation and changes in the condition monitoring and predictive maintenance market. We at Erbessd Instruments would like to address these developments and reaffirm our commitment to you, our valued customers, dedicated distributors and future partners.
The Case of Amazon Monitron
A prime example, we would like to refer specifically to the case of Amazon’s Monitron. Recently, Amazon announced the discontinuation of Monitron–a vibration monitoring solution introduced a few years ago–without offering a direct replacement. For those organizations that invested in this system, this move leaves them at a sudden dead end.
For Amazon, a trillion-dollar company, it may simply be another experiment, akin to the Fire Phone and Amazon Restaurants, and part of Amazon’s famous risk-taking culture. However, for those who relied on Monitron for their long-term maintenance strategies, it has significant implications. The expectation for long-term solutions that improve the way our customers do business is the first priority in Erbessd Instrument’s strategic risk analysis strategy, to avoid this very catastrophe for those who trust us with their assets.
To make matters even worse, Monitron was launched as part of Amazon WebServices. Since Monitron relies entirely on Amazon Web Services, the hardware effectively becomes useless once the servers go offline. The sensors become the proverbial equivalent of a brick
We know, as analysts, former technicians and practitioners, that investments in condition monitoring systems often-hand are planned and executed over many years and represent a significant expenditure of organizations. Amazon customers now have to scramble to keep the lights on this system and start considering alternatives for the future with little advance notice. Erbessd Instrument recognizes the respects not only the planning, execution and investment costs of the strategic decisions our customers make to employ a Condition Monitoring Solution, but also the effects a sudden service disruption or product discontinuation like this can have on staffing, employee morale and confidence in an organization’s leadership. A swift decision to simply cut a product line has a ripple effect that often goes unnoticed by companies of Amazon’s size and structure.
Our Commitment to Long-Tern Support
We would like to take this opportunity to reiterate to Erbessd Instruments customers, distributors and future partners that we are here for the long run. Vibration analysis and condition monitoring is at our company’s heart. This is what we do and what we will continue doing. This is not an experiment for us, this is our primary business and our passion. Developing solutions that add value to those who use them, and creating the confidence to succeed with Erbessd in your corner is paramount to everything and every decision we make.
Take for example the first Phantom vibration sensors. We first shipped them seven years ago. Today, those same sensors can still be upgraded to our latest firmware to gain features that we hadn’t even dreamed of at that time, like Phantom Sync, and are compatible with our latest developments like the Phantom Gateway Gen2 and the Wiser Vibe app. The batteries for those first sensors can still be changed using our battery adapter. Our earliest customers deserve the same respect and support as our newest ones.
Secondly, let’s discuss software. We are the creators of DigivibeMX, a world leading vibration analysis software. We are continuously improving it, and we have released many new versions over the years. Furthermore, more than 10 years since their release, we still provide support and training for our DigiVibeMX 9 and DigiVibeMX 10 software packages. Currently, we are finalizing the release of DigiVibeMX 12 with many more advanced features, but plans are already in place to support the software it will replace (DigiVibeMX 11) for many years to come. This is the Erbessd Instruments level of fanatical support. This is the Erbessd Instruments way.
Our Unique Approach to Cloud Technologies and Data Ownership
At Erbessd Instruments we understand and believe in all the advantages of cloud-based solutions. Our EI Analytic platform offers a powerful Software-as-a-Service option for vibration analysis and condition monitoring. However, we also understand the risks associated with cloud solutions–particularly concerning business continuity and data ownership. This is where Erbessd Instruments is truly different.
A cloud providers’ decision to end a service can leave organizations scrambling, as seen with Amazon’s Monitron. With us, you have the flexibility to deploy our solutions fully on-premises, ensuring you remain in control of your own infrastructure and data. We firmly believe your data is yours, which is why we provide APIs and industrial protocol support at every step of the data path. Many of our customers integrate their sensor data into their own databases and data lakes, while still benefiting from our software’s powerful capabilities, and our dedicated support team.
Confidence in Our Sustainable Growth and Independence
Finally, we would like to close this letter with a commitment. We are a company that started 15 years ago by our founder scratching his own itch, by creating better software that existed for his own vibration analysis and balancing service business. Since then, we have been growing organically at a sustainable rate, driven by the sole desire to meet the needs of our users with continuous and valuable innovation. In those 15 years since our inception, we have never accepted outside funding. Erbessd Instruments is wholly owned by its leadership. We don’t owe anything to anyone, except you…
We owe our entire success to you – our loyal customers, dedicated distributors, and future partners.
Sincerely,
The Erbessd Instruments Team
