Making a difference with innovative apps

Waterford making a difference with innovative apps

Waterford has hit the headlines in recent months thanks to its tech community who have created some incredible apps which have been instrumental in the fight against Covid 19. Here Lynda Lawton takes a look at just a few of them which are set to make a huge difference.

NEARFORM

Nearform are working with the HSE to develop a mobile tracing app for Covid-19. The potentially life-saving app will facilitate the rapid notification of people who have been in contact with someone who has subsequently been found to have tested positive for the virus.

The new real-time symptom tracking and digital contact tracing app will curtail the spread of the virus and help eliminate the growth of clusters. As such it will be a vital part of Ireland’s national response to Covid-19.

While concerns regarding data protection are still being worked through, it is understood the app will be piloted with a large-scale field test ahead of a public release and a Data Protection Impact Assessment will be done in parallel with the field test. It is expected the app will be publicly available in the coming weeks. Innovative Irish start-up Ordee are on a mission, to get hospitality and retail back to business, safely according to Anthony Cronin, CEO and CoFounder, a Tallow resident and former Waterford Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the international award-winning Flexiwage Application.

Ordee allows publicans, restauranteurs and retailers to put their energy into their passion, while the GPS-based app ensures that their venue is remaining compliant with “Return to Work Guidelines”. The cloud-based platform will allow owners to easily document and broadcast their venues’ compliance and availability to their customer base. “It’s critical that venues can re-engage with their customer base, while at the same time ensuring everybody can have a great and safe night out,” assured Cronin.

Customers will be able to inform themselves, through Ordee, as to what venues have socially distanced space available and reduce contact by ordering and paying directly from the app. “Ordee looks after the order processing and payment too, so venues can give reassurance to their customers while focusing on great service,” said Cronin.

 Visit the website www.Ordee.ie for more information or

contact on info@ordee.ie

TABLEPAY BY SCNE

SCNE (Social City Nightlife and Entertainment) Waterford’s dedicated entertainment and nightlife app now has a brand new feature specifically targeted to support and facilitate the safe reopening of restaurants and bars amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tablepay is a brand new addition to the SCNE app, which will allow customers to safely order, pay for and receive their food and drink directly to their table. It comes at a time where, in a world of social distancing, contactless options have never been more prevalent and SCNE hope that in providing a safe, yet highly convenient option for customers, it will play a great role in restoring confidence and peace of mind when revisiting Waterford’s fantastic hospitality and tourism sector in the very near future.

TablePay technology will be offered to all Waterford venues completely FREE of charge during the midst of this pandemic. Venues simply upload and provide their amazing existing offerings to SCNE’s system and they handle everything else.

According to creator Jordan Casey, “We’ve seen huge success with these types of products on a national level previously, and we feel that now, more than ever, there is a real demand and necessity for a zero-contact solution that at the same time proves to be very convenient and could certainly help in reattracting customers.”

 Email thescne@gmail.com or message “SCNE Waterford” on Facebook