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FEATURE
Building the foundation of smart cities By 2050, the world’s urban population is expected to be nearly double the size of what it is today. This rapid transformation undeniably entails challenges, to which the notion of smart cities is often presented as a panacea. But what exactly is a “Smart city”, and how do we overcome the challenges of urban densification? The Link asked two of the Chamber’s member companies, Icomera and Sweco, that contribute to the development of smart infrastructure, one of the pillars of a smart city, in different ways. BY: TOBIAS ALMQVIST
By using technology and data purposefully, societies will be able to improve the quality of life for city-dwellers, e.g. by developing safer and more efficient transport systems. Reliable, high-speed internet connectivity can be seen as the backbone of a smart city because it is needed to keep the vast ecosystem of devices and sensors connected. Connectivity is key Connecting over 5,000 trains and 26,000 buses and coaches worldwide, SCC member Icomera is the global leader in mobile Internet connectivity for public transport. “We believe that connected public transport vehicles are a key element in delivering the smart cities of the future, and we are working to build a world in which we can stay connected while we travel, wherever we travel,” Peter Kingsland, SVP UK & APAC at Icomera says. “Our patented technology provides the fastest, most secure and most reliable connection available to moving vehicles. In a transport context, passengers benefit from ubiquitous Wi-fi con-
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nectivity through being able to turn travel time into productive time, for both work and leisure. Beyond Wi-fi, our platform also supports a wide variety of other value-adding applications, such as remote vehicle monitoring, which improves operational efficiency and reduces costs, and sophisticated digital video surveillance, which ensures that passengers and staff are kept safe during their travels.” Connectivity also in a broader sense Sweco, a northern European engineering, environment and design consultancy is committed to sustainable urban development – a topic which is shared through its regular research reports that look at topical issues facing the urban environment from the citizens perspective. “Look for instance at the average time it takes to get to work in London. It hasn’t reduced in the last 50 years, and that’s the same with most European cities because we live further and further away. We spend more time in our cars and we experience more congestion on the trains. So how do we solve that? How do
we put people back in our urban environments and get them walking and cycling?” Geoffrey Palmer, Sweco UK’s Director of Buildings, asks rhetorically. “For me, a smart city is not necessarily about the technology. It’s not about having Internet of Things-technology in your fridge so that it can tell you what the temperature will be tomorrow. It’s about a shift towards renewable energy, making use of natural heating and ventilation, as well as lowering the energy use peaks e.g. by making use of timers on electrical devices so that everyone is not turning on their dishwashers at the same time, thereby lowering the burden on the network,” Geoffrey says. In addition to increasing and improving internet connectivity, the development of smart cities is also about connecting different parts of society. Geoffrey continues: “Intelligence comes by using less to start with, and then see how we can share locally. Let’s say you have two apartments - one facing east and one facing