Described as ‘Glastonbury meets Tomorrows World’ the four day innovation festival held annually by Northumbrian Water is going fully digital for the first time, and will take place on 14-17 September. It has attracted more than 6,500 visitors across previous events.
A programme of multimedia experiences, group exercises and real world case studies has been jointly put together by Liverpool based technology company Mobile GIS Services (MGISS) and the European Space agency (ESA). The groups will showcase the potential of satellite positioning systems in tackling some of the environmental and societal challenges being faced by the water industry.
“Under the theme ‘We Need Space to Innovate’ we are aiming to explore how we can use satellite services to improve asset management for organisations such as Northumbrian Water alongside the wider water and critical infrastructure sectors,” commented Mike Darracott, MGISS Managing Director.
MGISS and ESA will kick off the Innovation Festival with an exhilarating piece of music by Public Service Broadcasting (PSB) – ‘Go!’ from the ‘Race for Space’ album which covers the Apollo 11 Moon landing as a theme and will build on JFK’s ‘Case for dreaming big’ for the ambition and commitment to innovation which will help solve future water and utility supply challenges.
MGISS and ESA will then deliver one of just five Daily Dashes; rapid, sprint style workshops that run through all stages of the subject in just one day and include music, video, live demos and hands on workshops to explore specific topics relevant to the water industry. The MGISS and ESA Daily Dash will provide a better understanding of how satellite services can be used to improve asset insight and operational performance.
“Satellite positioning systems are extensively used for asset location and yet do users really understand the full array of technology on offer or the additional potential that can be derived from earth observation data?” added Alan Cross, Regional Ambassador for the European Space Agency. “By working with MGISS we will demonstrate how improved positioning and asset insight has the potential to deliver benefits for operational resilience, improved safety and higher productivity.”
MGISS is a multi-award-winning company that advises organisations such as Northumbrian Water in the smart use of geospatial data and technologies, to inform strategic asset management
ESA is Europe’s gateway to space; its mission is to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.
For further information about the NWG Innovation Festival and to register to attend visit: innovationfestival.org
