The area of Smart Cities of the Valencia Provincial Council has approved a 2.5 million euro budget for smart cities projects across the whole province.
Up to 133 municipalities have requested the implementation of different programs linked to this initiative. Such initiatives will tap data collection and analysis to bring about different technological enhancements in the quality of life of the citizens and the environment.
The economical aid granted to each project can be up to 20 000 euros – as long as it does not exceed 80% of the total amount.
Strategies devised to develop smart cities have similar features. In fact, 42% of these have to do with mobility and traffic control.
It is quite clear that digitization, along with the implementation of AI systems and the drive brought by IoT lay the foundations of smart cities, placing the focus on creating sustainable, efficient and safe environments for everyone.
Many other projects concentrate on improving the quality of life, which is closely related to achieving more sustainable cities.
For example, some of the fields in which such projects are proposed try to improve the air quality, apply measures to reduce noise, develop more effective fire systems and improve waste management.
Even if general measures are proposed and for public spaces – such as the ones taking advantage of these strategies –, the truth is that smart cities cannot exist without smart homes, that is why this area gets the attention it deserves, especially when it comes to building digitization or smart-building development.
These programs can approach very specific initiatives when proposed separately. If put together, though, pretty ambitious projects can be run, opening the door to a new generation of smart cities.
The representative for Electronic Administration and Innovation, Juan Ramón Adsuara, explained that the budget allocation made by the area of Smart Cities of the Provincial Council is intended to bridge the gap between great and modest municipalities.
Measures applied to both smart homes and smart cities have been usually associated with big cities, because unique milestones is synonymous with considerable expenditure – which is out of reach for smaller towns having lower budgets.
As for now, every municipality will be able to join the digitization process of their systems, as well as to create important synergies.
Every municipality will benefit from such synergies for free thanks to platform “Smart”, which is offered by the Province Council. It will operate as an open-code development system and a cloud-storage service.
Municipalities benefiting from these programs can transfer all the information into the platform. Apart from that, each entity can have individual and even customized access to it.
Every municipality will, therefore, discover all the practical uses of the smart tools and check the ongoing projects. They will be able to analyze and share information and also check how efficient a service is in each municipality.
Continuous progress is a key objective. By performing real-time analysis of the projects of the 133 municipalities, they can develop good practices, optimize services, reduce costs and grow in terms of sustainability.
Smart cities are developed based on two types of project: those intended for the public realm and those for the private or personal domain – such as building digitization.
One smart home added to another and thus together is exactly what drives the arrival of smart cities. They certainly depend on the investment made in public lighting, traffic-control systems, sanitation costs and even waste management.
However, the ideal of smart city will not be achieved if this effort does not reach every household and, collectively, each building in such city.
That’s why a number of projects on building digitization are being carried out. They propose new ways of constructing, as they place the focus on preventing risks, reducing costs, as well as on enhancing efficiency, productivity and services.
Technologies such as BIM (Building Information Modeling) modeling help better plan any construction, cut down on unnecessary costs and even be ahead of schedules.
Thanks to the Internet of Things (IoT), a building can feature built-in connectivity systems so as to make the energy resources more efficient and reduce consumption.
This is also an excellent contribution to the environment, as it reduces polluting emissions, optimizes ventilation and air-conditioning systems. You can even find self-sufficient buildings that do not require external energy to operate.
Building digitization brings homeowners the same benefits as those in public spaces, only the advantages are more evident at an individual and family scale.
Smart homes are cost effective, more sustainable and comfortable at all levels. This development, linked to projects such as traffic, mobility and pollution enhancement will allow people to live in smart cities where everyone can have a healthier life.