HomeMy WebLinkAboutFCS-17-006 - Digital Kitchener - Civic Innovation Lab
REPORT TO: Finance and Corporate Services Committee
DATE OF MEETING: February 13, 2017
SUBMITTED BY: Dan Murray, Director of Technology Innovation and Services,
519-741-2200 x7825
PREPARED BY: Dan Murray, Director of Technology Innovation and Services,
519-741-2200 x7825
Justin Watkins, Interim Manager, Business Relations and
Solutions Delivery, 519-741-2200 x7203
WARD(S) INVOLVED: All
DATE OF REPORT: February 2, 2017
REPORT NO.: FCS-17-006
SUBJECT: Digital Kitchener – Civic Innovation Lab
___________________________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDATION:
THAT staff be directed to establish a civic innovation lab at Communitech for a three year
pilot term, as outlined in staff report FCS-17-006; and further
THAT the Mayor and Clerk be authorized to execute an agreement with Communitech for
the civic innovation lab (Lean Lab), subject to the City’s continued funding for
Communitech expansion and to the satisfaction of the City Solicitor.
BACKGROUND:
On January 9, 2017, Council approved Digital Kitchener – the city’s first ever digital
strategy. The strategy was developed through extensive outreach both internally and
throughout the community. Establishing a civic innovation lab for Internet of Things
(IoT) and other “smart city” solutions was identified as a key initiative for 2017 that will
directly support a number of the actions identified in Digital Kitchener, and position the
City to deliver extraordinary results early in the strategy’s mandate.
Council has approved an ongoing annual investment in Communitech which will be
leveraged to establish the civic innovation lab. This opportunity will position the City to
benefit from an economic development standpoint and will also leverage the
Communitech innovation “ecosystem” to help the City solve its own municipal
challenges. By working alongside City staff, start-up and scale-up companies will help
develop and refine products that solve municipal challenges. These solutions can then
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be marketed to other municipalities or private industries, further strengthening
Kitchener’s economy.
REPORT:
Purpose of a Civic Innovation Lab
City staff are recommending Council approve establishing a civic innovation lab for a
pilot period of three years in the heart of the community’s technology incubator,
Communitech. The lab will work on “smart city” focused projects of the City’s choosing
to solve civic challenges, either where a) entirely new solutions need to be envisioned
that are outside the expertise of city staff, or b) where staff cannot commit time to
address the challenge because of the day-to-day demands of maintaining core services.
The lab will work closely with city staff to define the problem clearly, brainstorm ideas,
prototype and pilot solutions to validate and prove the approach. This allows the city to
lower risk by confirming solutions before it commits to the procurement or
implementation of a full-scale solution. The lab will also be unencumbered with the day-
to-day operational demands of the municipality and will be able to focus solely on these
new activities allowing the chosen projects to move swiftly forward. The model also
provides an opportunity for city staff to be exposed to new ideas which can then be
brought back into the organization.
What Will a Civic Innovation Lab Look Like?
In simple terms, a civic innovation lab will be a dedicated physical space (approximately
350 square feet) within the Communitech Hub. It will be co-located with other similar
spaces established by start-ups, scale-ups, large corporations and institutions that have
similar interests in collaborating to develop innovative technologies which have
commercial potential. It will be led by a lab director who has responsibility for
overseeing the lab, leading projects, liaising with city staff and potential partners, etc.
The lab director will be supported by a small team of co-op students (typically one or
two per term) and city staff who will be seconded to the lab on a temporary basis
depending on the specific projects underway. The city will set the project priorities and
monitor the progress of the lab to deliver against those priorities.
Potential Projects
There are many examples of potential “smart city” projects that can be undertaken by
the lab, including:
1. Improving the services and amenities provided to our citizens:
a. Leveraging smart water metering to proactively notify our customers of
excessive water usage (i.e. leaky toilet or water softener)
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b. Providing real-time water and natural gas consumption information for
residents so they can understand their usage patterns and implement
household conservation efforts
c. Monitoring live traffic conditions to help route and direct emergency
responder vehicles
d. Reducing driving time and vehicle emissions by allowing motorists to
locate available parking options with smart parking applications
e. Using vehicle and pedestrian sensors to control the level of streetlight
illumination improving safety and reducing electrical use
f. Sensing waste receptacle levels to ensure they are emptied before they
overfill
2. Solving specific municipal challenges:
a. Lowering the cost of meter reading for both water and gas consumption
b. Identifying areas of water leakage in the municipal water system by
monitoring flows, pressure and meter usage (i.e., use predictive analytics
to determine water main breaks)
c. Monitoring storm water levels during rain storms to proactively respond to
possible flooding or blocked drains
d. Monitoring sound pressure levels across the city to assist in validating
bylaw complaints (i.e. music, airplanes, fireworks)
There are numerous other examples not even yet contemplated.
A process for identifying and prioritizing municipal challenges for the lab to address will
be developed before the lab is operational. Corporate Leadership Team (CLT) will
provide the ongoing operational governance for the lab’s project work plan ensuring that
the right projects are being chosen based on overall benefit and work area readiness.
Staff will report back to Council on lab projects and priorities through Digital Kitchener
strategy updates.
Alignment with Digital Kitchener
The civic innovation lab is a key initiative of Digital Kitchener and directly supports its
priorities. Specifically, a civic innovation lab aligns with Digital Kitchener the following
ways:
Connected: the Connected theme contains a core action of leveraging the
growing field of IoT to develop smart city capabilities to enhance the lives of
citizens. With council approval in 2016 for implementation of the narrowband IoT
network, as well as a $300,000 commitment to facilitate pilot projects related to
IoT/smart city initiatives, the City is well positioned to lead in the adoption of IoT
solutions. A civic innovation lab will allow the City to pilot solutions and prove the
value in this emerging technology before investing in full scale implementations.
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Innovative: the Innovative theme advocates for the City to engage Kitchener’s
talented community of innovators to assist in finding solutions to local civic
challenges. Establishing a lab at Communitech will create a forum for the City to
present municipal service challenges to eager innovators looking to develop
cutting-edge, “made in Kitchener” solutions. The lab will also facilitate flexible
solution development that will support local start-ups.
On Demand: as IoT and smart city technologies continue to evolve, the data
collected will become an important asset to be used for future solutions and
supporting decision making. Making IoT data available through the City’s open
data program will provide new insights into how the systems are operating and
how they can be improved.
Communitech’s Role
Communitech will host the civic innovation lab and provide tailored support to help the
city set up and operate the lab, drawing on its expertise with other organizations under
the enterprise innovation program. Communitech will assign a dedicated account
manager that will work with the lab director to identify any opportunities to help the city
expand its reach to achieve success on our defined objectives. From recruiting the right
team and designing the right programs, Communitech will tailor an approach to help the
city articulate its innovation challenges and build customized activities to solve them.
Exposure at Communitech will also provide an outlet for the city to showcase its
innovation activities through regular tours and events. The Communitech Hub sees over
15,000 visitors each year. This will provide a great venue to tell the Kitchener story
which was another theme heard throughout consultations for Digital Kitchener.
Potential Funding, Partnerships and Sponsorships
Upon Council approving the establishment of the civic innovation lab, city staff will begin
to investigate and apply for any possible funding available from other levels of
government that supports public sector innovation. There is significant interest in
promoting innovation at both provincial and federal levels of government and staff
believe the city may be able to access additional funds to scale up the lab. Accessing
any possible funding sources from other levels of government for co-op students will
also be explored.
Staff also anticipate interest from other municipalities in joining certain projects that the
civic innovation lab undertakes. The lab will take on challenges that are likely to face
many municipalities and the solutions will ultimately be shared. A cost sharing model
will be established for these projects which will lower the ongoing costs to the city.
There is also a potential of corporate sponsorship opportunities emerging. Any such
opportunities will be assessed to ensure that the core objectives of the civic innovation
lab will not be negatively impacted by private corporate interests.
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Progress Updates
The civic innovation lab is being initially proposed as a three year pilot project. Staff will
formally report back on the lab outcomes throughout the pilot project as part of the
Digital Kitchener updates to Council as well as informally through lab visits and updates.
Success will be measured against the following key performance indicators:
Number of innovative IoT projects identified / year
Number of pilot projects completed / year
Projected cost savings/efficiency/corporate value on a per project basis
Number of engagements that put municipal challenges before the tech
community / year
Number of projects moved from pilot to proposed solution / year
ALIGNMENT WITH CITY OF KITCHENER STRATEGIC PLAN:
Strategic Priority: Effective and Efficient City Services
Strategy: 5.2 - Improve the design and delivery of city services so that they provide what
citizens want in the most reliable, convenient and cost efficient way
Strategic Action: #68 - Corporate Technology Strategic Plan and Digital Strategy
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:
Funding for the civic innovation lab has been allocated as follows, with no additional
funding being requested at this time:
1. Civic Innovation Lab Space / Communitech Program Support
Communitech has offered that, as part of the annual financial support of $300,000 from
the City for its capital expansion, it will provide up to 350 sq. ft. LeanLab space within
the expanded corporate innovation space at no additional cost to the City. This offer
includes full access to the programs and staff support that Communitech provides to
their enterprise innovation lab clients.
2. Funding for Pilot Projects
Seed funding to allow pilot projects to proceed will be required. The ability to purchase
needed software and hardware components to complete pilot projects will be critical to
keeping the lab moving forward on solving municipal challenges. The intention is not to
fund the entire city-wide implementation of projects but to validate the proposed solution
and develop business cases for the project based on the findings of the pilots.
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The $300,000 IoT/smart city fund established as part of the LED streetlight conversion
project will be used to fund the lab’s IoT/smart city pilot projects. This aligns perfectly
with Council’s approved intention for this fund.
3. Staffing of the Civic Innovation Lab
The minimum required resourcing for a successful innovation lab is as follows:
1 Lab Director – funded through the 2017-2019 contribution to Digital Kitchener
in the Economic Development Reserve Fund
1-2 Co-op students per term – funded through the IoT/smart city fund and/or
operating areas based on the specific projects selected.
City staff – various short-term, temporary staff secondments will occur throughout
the initial three year term of the Lab – funded through operating areas based on
the specific projects selected
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT:
INFORM – This report has been posted to the City’s website with the agenda in
advance of the council / committee meeting.
CONSULT – The public at large has been offered the opportunity to provide input and
share ideas on the Digital Kitchener project through various engagement opportunities
as described in this report.
COLLABORATE – Many stakeholder groups such as Kitchener Public Library, the
Mayor’s Forum participants and the City’s advisory committees have collaborated to
develop innovative ideas for Digital Kitchener.
ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Dan Chapman, DCAO Finance and Corporate Services
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