In 2017, the Dutch market for RDF-based IT-solutions started to grow fast. As a consultancy specializing in Linked Data, we had more RDF-related work in 2017 alone than in the period 2012 – 2016. What has changed in the past four years? The market has grown significantly, and demand is currently growing at a faster rate than supply. (Yes, we are hiring!) Much activity can be seen in the public sector, health care, industry, logistics, publishing, and many more domains. The fastest growth is probably to be found in asset management and construction.
As always when a fundamentally new technology takes over and starts to replace more traditional approaches, the process of adoption is not a smooth curve. Not all projects are successful, and hurdles need to be overcome, both technical as well as cultural ones. The need for solid training materials is on the rise, as is the need for experienced practitioners. In this presentation I will take stock of the various developments. After presenting the broader picture, I will zoom in on asset management. I will try to explain the main drivers and show examples of some of the concrete challenges that we need to overcome. These developments are prototypical of what happens in other domains also.