As a prelude to European Utility Week an invitation-only networking reception was held on 2nd November in the centre of Vienna. Professor Enrico Motta took this opportunity to discuss the key issues related to smart cities within the context of utilities.
Following an introduction by HMA to Poland Robin Barnett, Professor Motta led the first session of the evening. He advised on what kind of role Big Data analytics play in the utility industry and what that means for privacy and data ownership. The ‘Digital Utility of the Future’ and the issues which surround Operational and Information Technologies appeared amongst the topics his talk covered.
Other speakers included Patrick Caiger-Smith CEO of Green Energy Options and Daniel Burgess, Senior Business Development Manager for Trade and Investment in the Welsh Government. The event served as an excellent opportunity to share the experience of the MK:Smart project with a wider audience. Attendees included delegates from industry, government and local authorities from across Central Europe.