GRID SMARTER CITIES AMONGST WINNERS IN SMART DUBLIN AND ENTERPRISE IRELAND INNOVATION CONTRACTS TO ADDRESS LOCAL AUTHORITY CHALLENGES.
North East based Grid Smarter Cities was one of 21 companies collectively awarded approximately €700,000 under Enterprise Ireland’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) initiative which will enable them to explore innovative solutions to address challenges faced by Local Authorities. The Phase One funding has been awarded to carry out the feasibility study of their solutions in the Dublin and Belfast area.
The funding was awarded under five categories, with Grid being awarded the funding for their work in ‘Last Mile Deliveries’ — optimising deliveries in Dublin and Belfast.
During the project, Grid will pilot their Kerb solution, looking to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of deliveries by better managing the finite amount of kerb space in the city centre — in turn improving air quality, noise pollution and road safety.
The announcement was made by Smart Dublin, in partnership with Enterprise Ireland, at Fingal County Council. The project is supported by Fingal County Council, Dublin City Council, Dun Laoghaire Rathdown, South Dublin County Council, Belfast City Council, Cork City Council, Waterford City and County Council and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland.
Fingal County Council Chief Executive Paul Reid said: “We are excited to be hosting and supporting the 2018 SBIR launch. We are always striving to improve and develop our services and through the SBIR process, we have been able to explore and pilot innovative cost-effective solutions that improve local authority services for businesses and citizens”.
Neil Herron, CEO of Grid Smarter Cities added “We are delighted that Enterprise Ireland and Smart Dublin have chosen Grid Smarter Cities Kerb Solution to help manage and optimise Last Mile Deliveries by looking to intelligently manage the kerbspace. We are keen to demonstrate how a practical understanding of the needs of the competing users of the kerbspace can be managed using our Kerb virtual loading bays booking app in order to create delivery efficiencies, reduce congestion and by doing so improve air quality.”
Alan Murphy, Smart Dublin Lead: “The SBIR process is a fantastic opportunity for Smart Dublin to engage in Open Innovation; tapping into the open market to explore new ways of delivering Council services for our citizens. This current SBIR round has the potential to significantly address known challenges regarding Mobility, Environment and Citizen Engagement.”
ENDS
Grid Smarter Cities
Grid Smarter Cities is an eco-system of smart solutions — connecting communities and people with transport, parking, goods and services.
There are a number of inter-connecting companies and solutions under the Grid umbrella including Kerb, a Real Time Dynamic, Intelligent Kerbside Management Solution for Cities.
Kerb allows commercial vehicle operators to opt to book and pay to park/load unload on previously unavailable kerb space in high density, urban areas or to extend loading periods in time restricted locations.
Grid also has a number of Patents for their technologies, covering the both the UK and Internationally.
Smart Dublin
Smart Dublin is an initiative of the four Dublin Local Authorities to engage with smart technology providers, researchers and citizens to solve regional challenges and improve quality of life. Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) is a pre-commercial procurement initiative administered by Enterprise Ireland. Its aim is to drive innovation across all sections of the Irish public sector via engagement with the market via competitive challenges.
SBIR Last Mile Delivery Challenge
Dublin City Council and Belfast City Council are seeking smart, low cost solutions to optimise freight and cargo deliveries in urban centres in order to reduce the number of goods vehicles and improve air quality and noise pollution. Six companies have been awarded Phase One innovation contracts to develop their solutions.
