Oct 27, 2017   SOURCE: BusinessWire

Bristol Overtakes London as the United Kingdom’s Leading Smart City, According to Navigant Research

A new white paper from Navigant Research, commissioned by Huawei, examines the strategy and execution of 20 leading smart cities in the United Kingdom, highlighting each city’s strategy, key projects, and overall readiness to execute its smart city vision.

The political, economic, social, and environmental challenges facing the UK are increasing the focus on the role of cities in driving innovation in areas such as transportation, clean energy, health and social care, education, and urban sustainability. Cities are responding with support for an ambitious range of technology projects, and they are also developing new strategies and governance models that aim to embed innovation at the heart of city policy. Click to tweet: According to a new white paper from @NavigantRSRCH, Bristol and London are the UK’s leading smart cities.

“Bristol and London continue to set the pace for UK cities. Both are building on their existing programs and are working hard to embed innovation across city operations, infrastructure, and service delivery,” says Eric Woods, research director with Navigant Research. “Bristol has edged ahead to take the top position largely because of the strong momentum it has shown over the last 12 months. The city has made significant strides in extending its innovation programs and in the closer integration of those initiatives into city operations.”

According to the white paper, UK cities are demonstrating an impressive commitment to service and technology innovation. Many cities have begun embedding smart city ideas into city planning and operations while preparing for the impact of the next wave of technologies, including 5G, autonomous vehicles, and machine learning.

The white paper, UK Smart Cities Index, was commissioned by Huawei UK, and evaluates the UK smart city market with a focus on two dimensions: Strategy and Execution. The Strategy dimension assesses each city’s vision, goals, and objectives as they relate to its smart city program. The Execution dimension assesses the city’s actual achievements from initial projects to full-blown deployment of innovative technologies and services. Cities are profiled, rated, and ranked with the goal of providing an objective assessment of the relative strengths and weaknesses of their smart city programs. The white paper is available for free download on the Navigant Research website.

About Navigant Research

Navigant Research, the dedicated research arm of Navigant, provides market research and benchmarking services for rapidly changing and often highly regulated industries. In the energy sector, Navigant Research focuses on in-depth analysis and reporting about global clean technology markets. The team’s research methodology combines supply-side industry analysis, end-user primary research and demand assessment, and deep examination of technology trends to provide a comprehensive view of the Energy Technologies, Utility Transformations, Transportation Efficiencies, and Buildings Innovations sectors. Additional information about Navigant Research can be found at www.navigantresearch.com.

About Navigant

Navigant Consulting, Inc. is a specialized, global professional services firm that helps clients take control of their future. Navigant’s professionals apply deep industry knowledge, substantive technical expertise, and an enterprising approach to help clients build, manage and/or protect their business interests. With a focus on markets and clients facing transformational change and significant regulatory or legal pressures, the Firm primarily serves clients in the healthcare, energy and financial services industries. Across a range of advisory, consulting, outsourcing, and technology/analytics services, Navigant’s practitioners bring sharp insight that pinpoints opportunities and delivers powerful results. More information about Navigant can be found at navigant.com.

About Huawei

Huawei is a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider. Our aim is to enrich life and improve efficiency through a better-connected world, acting as a responsible corporate citizen, innovative enabler for the information society, and collaborative contributor to the industry. Driven by customer-centric innovation and open partnerships, Huawei has established an end-to-end ICT solutions portfolio that gives customers competitive advantages in telecom and enterprise networks, devices, and cloud computing. Huawei's 180,000 employees worldwide are committed to creating maximum value for telecom operators, enterprises, and consumers. Our innovative ICT solutions, products, and services are used in more than 170 countries and regions, serving over one-third of the world's population. Founded in 1987, Huawei is a private company fully owned by its employees. For more information on Huawei, please visit www.huawei.com.

* The information contained in this press release concerning the report, UK Smart Cities Index, is a summary and reflects Navigant Research’s current expectations based on market data and trend analysis. Market predictions and expectations are inherently uncertain and actual results may differ materially from those contained in this press release or the report. Please refer to the full report for a complete understanding of the assumptions underlying the report’s conclusions and the methodologies used to create the report. Neither Navigant Research nor Navigant undertakes any obligation to update any of the information contained in this press release or the report.