From Adelaide to Zeehan, and all around the world, cities are striving to enhance the value they add to their communities through the application of “Smart” technologies, and some are now on their fourth or fifth wave of tweaking “Smart City” strategies that have been in place for years. In July, Forbes magazine noted New York, London and Paris as some of the smartest smart cities, based on the IESE Cities in Motion Index. Are you like many of the clients GHD is supporting in this space, taking the first steps on your smart cities journey to improve the competitiveness, liveability, safety and sustainability of your city? GHD is working at all levels of Australian government, and with relevant stakeholder associations, to help local councils across the country turn their “Smart City” strategies into reality more efficiently and effectively. Here are five tips we’ve collected along the way on how to get there faster:
1. Start with the end in mind
Cities have clear vision statements on how their communities can become a better place to live, work and play and know what is needed to achieve this. By focussing your Smart City efforts on key themes within your local council strategy – improving environmental health, waste management, road access, property development, social justice, safety, sports and leisure, or waterways – your community will resonate quickly with the changes proposed. At GHD, we believe that Smart City initiatives must deliver real community outcomes in order to be adopted and appreciated. A great example of this is a council in regional Victoria who GHD is supporting. Their digital strategy and Smart City agenda are driven directly from their Corporate Plan and are very closely connected to their local community circumstances which differ significantly from those of an inner city.
Aligning Smart City initiatives to strategic outcomes ensures that the community connects with the reasons for making changes, and can see that council are spending their rates wisely.
2. Use smart technologies to plan just as much as do
Smart cities use data analytics to determine the best use of their resources to activate a better future. The use of Digital Engineering to provide “digital twins” of key assets can help to visualise the impact of changes being made. Digital twins integrate artificial intelligence, machine learning and software analytics with data to create digital simulation models that update and change as their physical counterparts change, to represent its near real-time status, working condition or position. Today’s GIS platforms allow you to quickly immerse yourself into 3D city models by teleporting to static viewpoints and comparing different urban design scenarios. By using VR headsets and hand controllers, the community can interact with 3D City Models and help to define preferred outcomes. GHD has the expertise to support councils with this and are working with councils on Digital Engineering standards to seek widespread adoption and support a digitally built Australia.
3. Prioritise activities based on reducing operational costs
While Smart City technologies do not generate revenues for councils, they can dramatically reduce costs. Understanding your operational expenses can help to identify where the best return on investment may lie. For councils, this typically relates to the costs associated with waste management, road upgrades, or maintaining sports facilities. Smart bin collection, as an example, is particularly effective in rural areas where large distances must be covered in order to collect waste. While many cities are still in the early stages of their Smart City journey, GHD are currently working with some cities who are now taking steps towards the implementation of a Smart City platform and region wide IoT network connectivity. Smart City platforms collecting real time data on air quality and flood water, will provide cities with insights to create resilient and healthy environments for its residents as well as save cost as extreme weather conditions are becoming more common.
4. Determine the business case before proceeding with pilots
Smart City initiatives quickly fail when the bottom line benefits cannot be determined or demonstrated. Interestingly, the converse can apply where after the business case has been approved and a pilot starts, it quickly unearths an array of benefits that had not been anticipated or included in the business case. GHD has seen examples of this where public transport is enabled solely to deliver WiFi to passengers but once the connectivity is in place, it becomes apparent that the data gathered provides operational insights that lead to improved efficiency and reduced costs. GHD is experienced in developing business cases that prove economic and social benefits before such initiatives even start. Using business cases from other councils around the world as a base for your own business case can save time and money when seeking business case approval.
5. Don’t work in isolation
Industry and academia are already well versed in ways to expedite value in the Smart City space. By using competitions and hackathons you can get their help to solve your most complex problems. For example, the influx of universities into Western Sydney has quickly developed into working relationships on some of the “wicked” problems the area faces. Local campuses are working with local councils on ‘Smart City’ pilots that help address the challenges of a growing population combined with aging infrastructure. Many councils are now partnering with universities and companies within their local government area to solve localised issues. Strong stakeholder engagement can provide plenty of good ideas to enhance the outcomes planned from Smart City initiatives.
