Cleantech takes over consumer markets
Consumer_Cleantech_Report1
Consumer_Cleantech_Report1
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enabling trends<br />
8. Smart City<br />
COMPANIES<br />
Smart city as a service platform: IoTsens<br />
Smart routing and mobility: Kutsuplus, BikeCitizens<br />
Smart heat renovations: Thermondo<br />
Smart waste collection: Enevo<br />
Smart Cities tackle difficult urban problems with new technological<br />
solutions. The management of growing cities is complicated due to<br />
intensifying problems like traffic, the high cost of upgrading infrastructure,<br />
growing emissions, and ever more complex administrative<br />
systems.<br />
Smart City solutions use information technology to bring about<br />
new kinds of co-operation and to enable the interweaving of different<br />
city elements (energy, buildings, transportation, and users). In this<br />
way, existing infrastructure can be utilised better and by using fewer<br />
resources, and the growing needs of cities can be satisfied. This is<br />
crucial in Europe and especially in Finland where a major proportion<br />
of building stock dates back to 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s. At the moment,<br />
these areas are far from energy efficient and have come to an age of<br />
renovation.<br />
The smart city is one that adapts to both the environment and its<br />
citizens. From the service viewpoint, smart cities can offer citizens<br />
the services they need with a push of a button – or even without the<br />
button. As street lights, sewage systems, solar panels, thermostats,<br />
cars, trams, and ad screens become interconnected, a new wave of<br />
optimisation will sweep the urban environments. The connected city<br />
will enable radically different business models and businesses.<br />
9. Growing anti-regulation attitudes<br />
Whether the conversation is about the efficacy of the public sector,<br />
opening hours of retail shops, or advertisement of alcoholic beverages,<br />
one can be sure about one thing: the regulation debate has most likely<br />
touched the issue. The rapid transformation of the world has proven<br />
to be a major challenge for the regulation system, also in Finland. The<br />
present regulation is partly planned to serve and support the traditional<br />
institutions and industries. While it is doing so, it is hampering<br />
the emergence of many of the most innovative new businesses.<br />
Experiments and trials are one way for testing the effects of certain<br />
actions, for example the impacts of new laws or different forms of deregulation.<br />
Very recently, the idea of experimenting has mainstreamed<br />
in Finland. For instance, The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra has conducted<br />
dozens of experiments in various contexts <strong>over</strong> the last years.<br />
Another indication of this is that fostering experimental culture and<br />
several specific experimental procedures were mentioned in 2015’s<br />
g<strong>over</strong>nment programme (Finnish G<strong>over</strong>nment, 2015).<br />
Many highly valued disruptive companies such as Uber have been<br />
proclaimed illegal in Finland (see i.e. Yrittäjät, 2014) or are at least<br />
having problems operating in Finland due to regulation. Especially<br />
companies in the fields of sharing economy and distributed energy<br />
solutions often find it difficult to operate under the current regulation.<br />
Efficient and systematic testing protocols, introduction of deregulation<br />
areas, and well-planned adjustments in regulation could foster<br />
<strong>consumer</strong> cleantech innovations.<br />
<strong>Cleantech</strong> <strong>takes</strong> <strong>over</strong> <strong>consumer</strong> <strong>markets</strong> 18