INTELLIGENT BRANDS // Green Technology
ACCESS TO SMART
INFRASTRUCTURE
AND CITY-WIDE
WIFI NOT ONLY
IMPROVES THE
QUALITY OF LIFE
FOR RESIDENTS,
BUT ALSO IMPACTS
POSITIVELY
ON BUSINESS
PROSPECTS AND
PROPERTY VALUES.
Combining connectivity and sensors enable
smart lights, which can measure ambient
lighting and use motion sensors to turn lights
on and off as needed, such as when people
or vehicles pass by a particular area.
This can help municipalities save up to 80%
on lighting energy costs as compared to
using traditional street lights and allow them
to free up resources for other improvements.
Having connected street lights and a city-
wide communications network means that
city authorities also no longer have to worry
about routine inspections to see which lights
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INTELLIGENTCIO
need replacing. As they are connected to a
central control system, smart street lights can
report when and why they fail, helping cities
realise up to a 90% savings in maintenance
and service costs. municipality might stand to benefit from.
Improved communication capabilities help
enhance emergency response and utility
support, while research shows that good street
lighting helps reduce crime by up to 20%.
Enabling new services, improving
public safety Access to smart infrastructure and city-wide
WiFi not only improves the quality of life
for residents, but also impacts positively on
business prospects and property values.
Connected street lights can do more than
just save money for a municipality; it gives
them the opportunity to use the same
network to enable additional services,
including WiFi connectivity for local
businesses and residents.
Similarly, the infrastructure can be used
for a wide variety of smart city services,
such as using motion sensors to identify
open parking spaces, using live location
information at bus stops to improve the
residents’ commute.
When combined with other smart meters,
city authorities can even shift to getting
automatic usage reporting for electricity,
gas and water being delivered along a
particular street.
Utilities can even enter new markets, such
as the provision of charging services for
the growing number of electric vehicles.
This can be as simple as installing a built-in
power socket on the street light pole at the
same time as traditional lights are being
replaced with LEDs and motion sensors are
being installed.
There are many intangible benefits beyond
the cost savings or new revenue that a
Doing nothing is not an option
How much cities need to invest in getting a
smart lighting project started depends on
the types of existing street lights and the
cost of the replacements. It is not a simple
formula and engineers will be required to
produce a formal plan.
Once the core communications network is
installed and the smart street light poles
deployed, additional smart infrastructure or
services can be added in a phased approach.
Upgrades can also be carried out suburb by
suburb rather than the entire city at once.
Experience with such initiatives around the
world have shown they typically return on
investment to be between three and five
years, with the shortest being two years, and
the longest being seven years.
However, cities cannot afford to not invest
for the future. They can clearly see how
much they are spending today on street
lighting and project their future requirements
accordingly. Certainly, if they do nothing, the
existing street lighting will continue to burn
money that they could have saved on. n
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