In the age of digital transformation, cities around the world are rapidly evolving to meet the challenges of today and the needs of tomorrow. Similarly, Hong Kong is facing pressing environmental issues such as climate change and many other urban challenges resulting from demographic change and urbanisation. To address the above challenges, the Hong Kong SAR government updated the Smart City Blueprint last December to further accelerate Hong Kong’s smart city development.
“What the world needs now is technology with purpose – smart city solutions that will ultimately improve city sustainability and liveability. Siemens is uniquely positioned to connect the physical and digital worlds and support our customers to solve tomorrow’s problems,” says Erdal Elver, President and Chief Executive Officer of Siemens.
Emphasising the importance of tech-savvy talent, he explains how Siemens Smart City Digital Hub, powered by Siemens’ Advanta team, fosters an innovation ecosystem to tackle the pain points of Hong Kong.
“With the right suite of smart city solutions, Hong Kong can be transformed into a world-class smart city where the way people live and work can be substantially improved. To realize this vision, Siemens is providing technologies to leverage smart data in enhancing the management of our city and improving our quality of life.”
Transforming energy landscape with grid edge
As the global energy system becomes more and more decentralised, endless possibilities are created through digitalisation. Grid edge solutions is one such example that opens up opportunities for citizens to participate in the energy generation process.
“Grid edge empowers citizens to intelligently integrate renewables in the energy grid, and actively participate in the decarbonisation process. With the help of technologies like solar power panels, renewable energy can now be widely generated for immediate use, storage, or sold back to the grid,” explains Elver, further illustrating with a case example: the Pebbles demonstrator in Allgäu, Germany enables peer-to-peer energy trading based on blockchain technology and allows locals to become energy traders to pioneer the future of 100 percent renewable energy.
“With tailor-made grid edge solutions, the energy system’s flexibility and reliability are enhanced, supporting the transition towards a zero-carbon future,” says Elver.
Leveraging eMobility to reduce carbon footprint
The mobility sector ranks second in carbon emission levels after energy and is expected to grow at an even faster pace. In line with the Hong Kong government’s net zero target by 2050, much attention is being paid to eMobility, and Siemens is providing the city with an array of eMobility infrastructure to energize its fleet.
Instead of charging vehicles once a day, its high charging system leverages “opportunity charging” to fully utilise brief intervals during the day for recharging, which requires less battery capacity and charging time.
With its automatic “off-board top-down-pantograph” charging between ceiling and electric public light buses (e-PLB), it saves space for Public Transportation Interchanges (PTI), which is especially relevant to Hong Kong’s depot-less minibuses and congested roads. “We are very delighted that the technology will be employed at Yue Man Square’s PTI for electric public light buses to improve Hong Kong’s roadside air quality,” says Elver.
Making buildings smarter
Accounting for 90 percent of the electricity used in Hong Kong, buildings generate over 60 percent of the city’s carbon emissions. Noting that people spend most of their lives in buildings, this comes as no surprise. “To create comfortable, safe, and energy-efficient buildings, our smart facility management solutions integrate multiple building systems into one single platform, allowing facility managers to control various systems with insights generated from real-time analytics,” describes Elver.
“When unusual patterns in operations are detected, the system’s predictive maintenance algorithm will alert facility managers to avoid unexpected downtime.”
With an additional focus on tenant comfort, he points out that Siemens’ smart office solutions consist of IoT sensors and workplace intelligence platforms such as Enlighted and Comfy to facilitate optimized office conditions, maximum utilization of amenities, and ensure energy efficiency. These solutions are laying the foundations for future-proof digital workplaces and helping companies adapt to the new normal working model.
“Sustainability and digitalisation lie at the core of the future we are building. At Siemens, we are fully committed to achieving carbon neutrality by 2030 and empowering our customers as they accelerate Hong Kong’s smart city journey,” concludes Elver, adding that collaborative efforts across building, energy and mobility sectors are crucial for the development of a smart city’s urban and technological infrastructure.
To engage stakeholders and keep the dialogue going, Siemens will be hosting Siemens Smart City Forum 2021 on September 15 to discuss the latest innovations and technological trends that will enhance Hong Kong’s liveability and sustainability. For more information, please visit the event website: siemens.com/SmartCityForumHK2021.
Siemens Smart City Forum 2021
Date: Sep 15 (Wed)
Time: 2:30 pm – 4:00 pm
Format: Virtual Conference
Tel: +852 2583 3388
Email: scc.hk@siemens.com
Event website: siemens.com/SmartCityForumHK2021
