Smart innovators

Smart City innovators

In the second of a series of three articles, Rebecca De Cicco details the importance of supporting innovative companies in developing technologies for smart cities

New technologies are increas- could have an immediate impact on citiingly dominating and chang- zens. Take, for instance, the development ing how we live. Our love for of applications for smart metering for technology has seen compa- parking and utility management which nies like Apple, Microsoft, Amazon and all need the willingness of the authority Facebook become the largest on the plan- for successful implementation. et. Behemoths like Alphabet (Google’s parent company) are looking to Smart Smart City technology companies City technologies with, for example, its The use of BIM within infrastructure has Sidewalk Labs venture that aims to a significant bearing on Smart Cities, and improve urban life. But while these as I mentioned in my previous article, giants are servicing many of our desires, when BIM is utilised fully, ‘smart’ inforit’s the smaller tech companies that are mation could be translated to an asset developing the tools to create and drive owner or city and reused downstream. the Smart City. Ensuring these systems are connected to

With so many developments and ideas other Smart City applications will offer on the radar like sensor technologies and the data required for future infrastrucautonomous electric vehicles, it is the ture, planning and maintenance. SMEs that have the ability to bring these As a small technology-based SME our ideas to market. The challenge, however, focus is not only on BIM and its technololies in supporting their businesses finan- gies for the built environment, rather cially and testing the offering insight to concepts. Programmes such About the author government and institutional bodies as Innovate UK and the Future Cities Rebecca De Cicco is the on what the future of a city landscape Catapult are there to director and will be to develop support these inno- founder of policies and princivative companies to Digital Node, a ples around it. We create the solutions BIM-based con- focus on helping to our urban chalsultancy working with clients these policymakers lenges. By providing all over the understand that our support through world to educate, manage and support the current working demonstrator pro- implementation of a clearly defined pro- methods just won’t grammes, grant cess, underpinned by technology. cut it in the future funding competi- and the time to start tions, network-build- planning is now ing activities, strategy, and Future Cities before we run the risk of running behind. Missions, SMEs can seize improved Cities across the world are currently access to knowledge and markets not just being supported by subject matter in the UK, but globally. experts in this field to help their strate-

Collaboration is a crucial part of the gies and make recommendations toward aim to grow UK companies and by pro- the services we’ll need to procure, test viding them with the environments to and review prior to implementing policy. test prototypes in real urban settings Digital Node was one of several SMEs along with the networks of leading aca- that travelled to Melbourne for the Future demics, designers and architects, SMEs Cities Mission to Australia. We were forin the UK could prove to develop the tunate to be exposed to many companies foundations for our Smart Cities across that are selling services to the market in the world. Collaboration should also Australia, and all of whom are leading the include local authorities; after all, this is future city challenge in London and globwhere the monitoring of a city’s infra- ally. Here is a selection. structure, services and environment Westfield Technology Group has developed and manufactured a fully autonomous POD that can run on private roads/ cycle paths. It also produces the GTM vehicle (M1 vehicle), and (in conjunction with Johnstons Sweepers) makes an autonomous road sweeper that can detect foreign objects. The company also enables platooning of vehicles (a virtual train) to reduce congestion and supports trials, deployment and safety-case work with their team.

Looking to ‘smart’ parking, the app from JustPark aims to make parking easier by enabling over 1.5 million drivers to find parking in seconds – with real-time and predictive information on availability, restrictions and price. Drivers reserve and pay for a guaranteed space via the company’s apps helping property owners to manage their parking assets more effectively – from office car parks to on-street bays, multi-storeys to private driveways.

Grid Smarter Cities has an ecosystem of solutions to connect communities and people with transport, parking, goods and services. The company is involved in telematics, disability access, virtual kerbside management, skip distribution and waste management solutions. In its own words, Grid envisages the city of the near future as “digital, connected and convenient”, aiming to revolutionise urban mobility while reducing pollution.

The technologies supporting the smart city agenda will continue to evolve. We will see an explosion in the coming years of a multitude of start-ups, which will shape how we use, grow and navigate our cities. Future generations will not accept analogue, and manual ways of interacting with services and objects and the way in which this will evolve will not only be inclusive of the more forward-thinking cities, but commonplace in the majority of our developed cities around the world.

The small, agile SME will take its place as an authority. These small companies, fuelled by innovative and generally Generation X employees, will govern and drive the industry to challenge itself, while the technologies that support these challenges will evolve further than our minds can imagine.