2 DIGITAL CITIES


Digital Cities


Inspirational speakers, insight- ful case studies, hands-on workshops and healthy debate combined to make the Digital Cities series of events, hosted by FutureScot in association with The Sunday Times Scotland, a compelling medium with which to engage in the nation’s digital future. Over two weeks during


September, the Digital Cities team set up in Dundee, Edin- burgh, Aberdeen, Stirling and Glasgow, providing a platform for policymakers, skills special- ists and professionals from a range of digital technologies to present their insights, and a fo- rum for hundreds of delegates to pose questions and propose solutions. This supplement provides a


snapshot of the events’ content and output; more features, as well as presentations and information about the organi- sations involved, can be found by clicking on the Digital Cities block on the homepage at www. futurescot.com. The series was supported


by XMA, Check Point Soft- ware Technologies Ltd, Skills Development Scotland, Smart Energy GB, CGI UK, Glasgow University, Registers of Scot- land and Spacehive. Our thanks also to the Scottish Govern- ment, Scotland’s city councils, Chambers of Commerce, Scotland’s universities and col- leges, the Federation of Small Businesses, SCDI, SCVO, the Scottish Government, The Data Lab, ScotlandIs, CivTech®, Op- portunity North East, NESTA and CENSIS.


Think smart


“There is undoubtedly a sig- nificant appetite for smarter, more intuitive technology in our everyday lives. Smart meters will enable much of this to happen. For example, in the future consumers will be able to share their energy data with innovators offering them new lifestyle services. This could be especially true for our health and social care sectors where customer energy data is shared sensitively and responsibly to allow a relative, close friend or care service to monitor some- one who is elderly or vulnerable in their home via their smart meter data, to make sure they are safe, well and warm. “Smart meters will help with


Scotland’s carbon reduction targets and other ambitions such as cutting fuel poverty, where every possible tool is needed to help households get their energy use under control and their homes warm and healthy. Smart meters are going to transform the energy market in lots of exciting ways, both in terms of the consumer benefits that will be felt by every household, but also the national benefits to our energy system.” www.smartenergygb.org


Be safe


“Digital cities will improve how we live and work and save money. It will involve more automation of devices and technology, acting on our behalf. This raises the question of how we can secure these new technologies to keep our digital future safe. Check Point can provide this security through a wide range of products and ser- vices and are already working with organisations in Scotland to achieve this goal. “The move towards digitisa-


tion of services is here to stay; we need to make sure that the businesses and services that we consume as part of a digital nation are secure and safe. At- tackers, creators of malware and other ill-intentioned individuals and organisations love the idea that we are adopt- ing these new digital versions of services in our cities. It gives the attackers a much larger attack surface from which to disrupt or destroy services and data. We need to make sure that we secure our services and data against such attacks.” www.checkpoint.com


Want to find a good place to live? How map-based data could help


BY HILARY BROWNLIE


There’s a myriad of property data out there, from house price information to property title details. Wouldn’t it be useful if all that information was available in one place? That’s why, at Registers of Scotland (RoS) we’re developing ScotLIS. ScotLIS is an innovative, map-based land and information service that will facilitate easy access to a wide range of data relating to land and property in Scotland. RoS is in the midst of a digital transfor-


Digital Cities is an independent publica- tion by Canongate Communications distributed in The Sunday Times Scotland. All rights reserved. Neither this publication or part of it may be stored, reproduced or transmitted, electronically, photocopied or recorded without prior permission of the Publisher. Digital Cities is published and exclusively distrib- uted in The Sunday Times Scotland. We verify information to the best of our ability but do not accept responsibility for any loss for reliance on any content published. If you wish to contact us, please include your full name and address with a contact telephone number.


mation that will ensure we are a modern, digital registration business that can effectively support the conveyancing and property information market in Scotland. A significant benefit of ScotLIS is that it will be a national asset not only for professionals, but also the general public, who for the first time will have access to a map-based property information service underpinned by Registers of Scotland’s data. Working in conjunction with stake-


holder groups, including solicitors, map- pers, and local councils, RoS has been continuing to develop the service based on user insights. We reached a significant milestone in August when the service en- tered private beta. For private beta, we’ve invited a number of existing customers to test the service under controlled condi- tions, meaning we can gain live feedback while still in this development stage. Private beta will last for about four


weeks, and during this time we’ll be gradually adding additional participants to the service; by the end of the process we’ll have over a hundred individual users interacting with ScotLIS. A major benefit of private beta is that our participants will have the opportunity to complete live transactions through ScotLIS, allowing us to better understand customer interactions with the new service at this early stage. After private beta, we’ll soon move into


public beta. During public beta, ScotLIS will be open for a much wider profession- al audience to sign up, with our develop- ers continuing to monitor the service. Public beta will also see a considerable


increase in engagement with the ‘citizen’ side of ScotLIS. For RoS, this is another key stage in delivering a strong final product that meets the needs of all our customers. Private beta isn’t the only way we’re


communicating with our customers in the development of ScotLIS. Over the past few months we’ve held a number of user experience events; these are another important tool for ensuring that ScotLIS is designed with our customers in mind. For instance, in a similar vein to our


Alpha Day in June, in August we hosted a two-day event in Aberdeen. It offered numerous stakeholders from across our customer base to get a first look at Scot- LIS. We held both one-to-one and group sessions, so we could maximise engage-


ment and collect detailed responses that only a multi-structured event can bring. We’ve received consistently positive


feedback throughout private beta and our recent events. Customers are en- thusiastic about the improvements that ScotLIS offers compared with existing services, and also how it looks likely to deliver savings in both time and effort across their day-to-day activities. The format of our user experience


events was also positive; attendees found that the relaxed atmosphere encour- aged meaningful discussion, while they also valued the opportunity to see a live demonstration of ScotLIS itself at such an early stage. The rest of 2017 will be an exciting


time for the ScotLIS team, as well as everyone else at RoS. Whether you’re a solicitor trying to find the exact boundar- ies of a client’s property title, or a family deciding the best place to move, ScotLIS will greatly increase accessibility to a wide range of property information. We’re excited for the potential that


ScotLIS holds alongside the rest of our digital transformation. More information on ScotLIS can be found at www.ros.gov. uk – you can also keep up to date with the latest news by visiting and signing up for alerts from our blog – https://insideros. blog/


Hilary Brownlie is the ScotLIS service designer at Registers of Scotland.


1 October 2017


CivTech: Solving public sector challenges and launching new businesses


The Scottish Government has said its accelerator programme will revolutionise how technology-led businesses work with the public sector, writes William Peakin. Following a successful pilot, CivTech® will match digital technology innova- tors – typically start-ups and SMEs – with public sector organisations looking to create digital solutions for a range of ‘civic challenges’. “It aims to drive innovation in public


services, empower the public sector to think differently, and provide economic development opportunities for digital companies,” one of the project’s leaders told the Digital Cities series hosted by FutureScot in association with The Sunday Times Scotland. Last year’s pilot saw nine firms deliver


a range of products in partnership with the likes of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), the NHS and Transport Scotland. This led to a new flood forecasting system, smart road monitoring software which promises “to detect potholes before they happen”, and a new fundraising service for homeless people enabling them to raise and access emergency funding. “It is a truly smart and innovative ap-


proach to public sector procurement that has the potential to disrupt and enhance current systems,” said Bob Downes, SEPA’s chair. “Especially impressive is the pace of the project, the calibre of the work, and its high level exposure it has gained in such a short time”. Learn to Love Digital was one of the


CivicTech pilot companies. It developed an app called Highlands Discovery which provides a deeper connection with the surrounding landscape for travellers when driving on the A9. Company co-founder Stephen Heron


said: “CivTech is a great way of bringing innovation into the Scottish public sector. The experience has enabled us to make connections with the public sector and other start-ups within the tech industry. “It has given us an opportunity to access markets that would otherwise have been


The Highlands Discovery app provides a connection with the surrounding landscape for travellers on the A9.


impossible. We were supported every step of the way in developing our product through the accelerator, a challenging, intensive but rewarding process. We now want to leverage this experience to maximise the commercial potential of our product.” As well as being provided with access to


training workshops and co-location space, winning bidders can secure contracts worth up to £100,000 – while retaining 100% equity and intellectual property rights, with the potential to sell their newly-developed products to other organi-


innovative approach to public sector procurement” Bob Downes, SEPA chair


Over the past few months Registers of Scotland has held a number of user experience events


“It is a truly smart and


sations around the world. In CivTech 1.0, all six of the winners have secured follow- on contracts worth more than £1.3m with 23 new jobs created. Finance Secretary Derek Mackay said:


“Scotland is highly regarded around the world for innovation. We have some of the brightest entrepreneurial minds based here on our own doorstep, so it makes perfect sense to tap into that talent to help the public sector work faster and smarter. “If we want to be a world leader in tech


we need to create conditions that allow companies to thrive, and that includes


enabling new ways of working, such as streamlining the public sector procure- ment processes and working in a more agile, fast-paced way.” The recently launched CivTech 2.0


poses a new set of challenges, and invites companies and individuals to propose a solution, including protecting birds of prey, tracking visitors to historic attrac- tions, improving access to statistical information, creating a smarter outpatient booking system, using data to improve access to public services, and mobilising networks to build ‘brand Scotland’.


North-east push to become global digital leader


A new industry sector board focused on building digital capability and capacity in the north-east of Scotland has been created, with aim of establishing a physi- cal hub, providing access to early stage growth funding, and supporting high- potential digital companies to become global success stories, writes William Peakin. Plans for the board were announced


over the summer and details outlined at the Digital Cities event in Aberdeen last month, hosted by FutureScot in associa- tion with The Sunday Times Scotland. The private sector economic develop-


ment body Opportunity North East (ONE) aims to accelerate the development of the digital economy in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire through the establishment of ONE Digital, supported by £4m in ad- ditional funding over four years. ONE Digital becomes the fifth sector board within ONE and will focus on


building digital capability and capacity in the region. Sir Ian Wood, chairman of ONE, said:


“We currently have parts of a digital cluster in the region, but there’s a huge market here with industries with signifi- cant scope for digital solutions. The oil and gas industry, particularly operators, is making major investments over the next few years in automation, artificial intelligence and robotics with the supply chain doing likewise. Food, drink and ag- riculture are also very active in achieving digital efficiencies, as is tourism. “The key ingredients of the success-


ful cluster will be a physical hub to help nurture and grow digital tech companies, a strong focus on encouraging entrepre- neurship in the sector, some early stage seed funding, community events to foster entrepreneurship, and maximising the potentially significant contribution from the city’s two universities”


Continued from Page 1


machine learning, and has developed tools which can streamline the process of generating the data needed for 5G planning. “The 3D platform also supports the


development of virtual and augmented reality applications, which provides op- portunities for remote training and field support. Indeed, the educational and skills development potential around 5G technology is another reason we are so excited about the University’s Smart Campus project,” said Brecknock. The proposed 5G demonstrator, de-


tails of which were outlined at the Digital Cities event in Glasgow last month, hosted by FutureScot in association with The Sunday Times Scotland, is one part of the university’s ambitious expansion plans. Last December, it gave the go-ahead


to spend £430m over the next five years as part of a £1bn, 10-year investment. The first phase includes a new learning and teaching hub on University Avenue, linking to a refurbished Boyd Orr build- ing, due for completion in September 2019. Earlier this year, Glasgow City Council


granted the university planning consent for its plans for the former Western Infir- mary site, overlooking the River Kelvin. It will become home to new buildings for engineering and arts, a research hub and innovation zone, the Institute of Health and Wellbeing, and the Adam Smith Business School. “We believe [this] will be a major


economic driver for the city and for Scot- land as well as underpin this university’s world-leading position,” said principal and vice-chancellor Professor Anton Muscatelli when the decision was an- nounced. “This will be one of the biggest educational infrastructure projects in Scotland’s history.” Last month, FutureScot was taken on a tour of the planned expansion by


Michael Burns, business development manager at the university’s research, strategy and innovation office. Passing through Bute Hall, out onto


the South Front overlooking Kelvin- grove Art Gallery and Museum, Burns spoke about the university’s aim to link its expansion with some of Glasgow’s other key assets, including Kelvingrove and Kelvin Hall, the Scottish Events Campus, the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and, across the Clyde, the creative media quarter. “We’re very aware that the effective-


ness of what we develop as a physical project will depend on the strength of the digital infrastructure that we can connect to, most notably the 5G campus, a digital district in the heart of the city, that we are beginning to develop with strategic partners,” said Burns. If the 5G demonstrator gets the go-


ahead, it will be up and running in time for Glasgow hosting the UEFA European Football Championship in 2020, an ideal showcase for the technology. It is also the year that the European Commission has set as one of its connectivity targets; that 5G should be commercially available in at least one major city in each EU member state. “The demonstrator has the advantage


of being part of the largest capital invest- ment in western Scotland,” said Burns. “We think of this project as a strong example of the university sector driving change through collaboration with city and national partners.” Ultimately, the will focus will be on


innovation in – and the integration of – data, digital and engineering technolo- gies. It will, said Burns, “create a world-


changing, connected, healthy and vibrant university campus and provide a platform for the research, development and demonstration of city scale solutions with social, technological and economic impact for the city and the city region.”


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