Catherine Caruana-McManus
Smarter Cities Executive, AN/Z
Digital Futures Roadmap for Smarter
Pilbara Cities
Key recommendations from the Smarter Pilbara Cities Innovation
Discovery Workshop - Perth
Building for a Smarter Pilbara Future
A smarter city uses advanced information and communications technology capabilities to achieve strategic goals.
A smarter city is:
 Instrumented: using technology to collect data from a variety of sources and turn it into information from
vehicles to traffic lights to electricity meter's
 Interconnected: connecting people, people with city systems, city systems to each other, and itself to other
cities and entities.
 Intelligent: not only responding to changing circumstances by adapting in near real-time, but also recognising
patterns to anticipate and model change to help make informed decisions and adapt accordingly.
A smarter city serves human needs and productive human endeavours with the
highest possible quality of life for its citizens.
Foundational Digital
Assets
Broad-Based
Telecommunications
Social Networks & Two-Way
Communication
Connected digital devices
Infrastructure Assets
Optimised
(Energy, Water, Waste)
Feedback Loops
Asset Management
Social Business & Collaboration
Tools
Community Wi-Fi
Digital Business Hubs
Integration across
Disciplines
Outcomes Based
Active Participation
Investment Partners
Managed Services
Remote Management &
Redundancy
Cloud Services
Innovation Centres & Investment
in New Industries
Innovation Discovery | © IBM Corporation 2013
Predictive &
Responsive 24/7
Engaged Citizens
Innovation Partners &
Venture Capital
Climate
Intelligent Operations Centre
Real-Time Data Visualisation
IP Generation & Re-Use
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A vision for “Smarter” Pilbara Cities ………
Young people are
staying for their
education &
engaged in
interactive learning
Tele-working &
home based
businesses are
thriving
Community & industry
are contacted by smart
mobile apps ahead of
time regarding
extreme weather
events and ongoing
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status.
Power, water &
waste systems are
integrated &
citizens are
engaged via usage
dashboards
Communities are
using social media,
social business &
collaboration tools
Creative content,
local stories & IP
assets are being
offered digitally to
reach wider
communities
Innovation Discovery | © IBM Corporation 2013
Transport &
accommodation is
can be booked via
smart apps.
Online training,
certification &
mentoring is reaching
out to indigenous and
supporting local
workers
Connected healthcare
gives residents care
24/7 where ever they
are.
Businesses & Trades
are connected
across regional &
global markets
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Pilbara Cities Opportunities for Success
Smarter Infrastructure
Foundational
Digital Assets
Transformational/Differentiator
Game Changer
Global Trading Hub
Intelligent Operations Centre
For Ports, Transport
Multi-Use &
& Cities
Import Port/Logistics
Cyclone & Extreme Weather
Prediction & Modelling
Mass Scale Renewables
Inter & Intra Transport
New Innovation in
Road, Rail
Smart Energy
Food Security
Connected Healthcare
Mgt
(Farm to Fork)
Integrated Energy, Water
Cultural Assets
& Local IP
Community Wi-Fi
Demining
water for
farming
Smart
Water
Mgt
& Waste
Aquiculture
Centre of Excellence
Port Community System
Digital Hubs for
Enterprise
Innovation in
Building Energy Management &
Housing/Urban Design
The innovation initiatives shown above were derived from the Break-Out Session Work Groups at the Workshop.
Innovation Discovery | © IBM Corporation 2013
4
Pilbara Cities Digital Futures Roadmap
Action: Connected Communities & Smarter Digital Services for Business

Broad based communications (satellite, fixed, broadband, mobile, wireless) required to
provide robust and reliable (24/7) communications across the Pilbara Communities, to Perth
and global networks. Critical to enable effective ‘work place’ as well as ‘home place’
communications. SMEs require reliable service levels, communities need bandwidth to
support connected healthcare, interactive education, ongoing training/skills accreditation,
online shopping and virtual experience centres etc.
Priority/Time
High
WA Government,
Telstra
NBN, Mining
Companies
Centre for
Broadband
Innovation CSIRO

Development of flexible and affordable service delivery models & ongoing management, e.g.,
cloud based, remote management and monitoring.

Community/Public Wi-Fi networks across public places to enable 24/7 ideas generation and
community connectivity including co-operation with mining companies to access wireless
mesh networks and roll-out of NBN.
Medium

Drive Digital Innovation Hubs for business and community - leverage the established NBN
Digital Hubs initiative, regional data centre and cloud-based service initiatives to support
business demonstration centres, education and training/skills development.
Medium

Training and support needs to be delivered for targeted Information and Communications
Technology (ICT) and internet literacy programmes including appropriate use of technology
for indigenous communities.
High
Innovation Discovery | © IBM Corporation 2013
Resp.
WA Government,
Telstra
NBN
Ongoing
PDC/NBN,
Business
partners,
Chambers of
Commerce
Pilbara Institute
WA Education
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Pilbara Cities Digital Futures Roadmap
Action: Drive Pilbara Cities Social Collaboration
Priority

Leverage open data catalogues and community generated content including community
and local council lead with industry and private sector input/buy-in, e.g., transport
information, housing/planning approvals. The Workshops highlighted the need for making
information more readily accessible to citizens and in easy to use ways to suit the diversity
of the population of the city.

Innovation and Collaboration Jams – using social networks such as facebook, twitter,
blogs and online – seek feedback and ideas from local, national and international
constituents to put forward new ideas as to how to create a better Pilbara.
Medium
Community
engaged and
driven

Develop a smarter and connected city platform - a virtual city space that leverages social
media networks acting as a central repository and community exchange point for action
oriented projects by city stakeholders and citizens. Social Communities and trading places
for people, business and tourism ranging from local produce, art work to swap meets.
Medium

The Pilbara virtual city space will provide the ability to connect and share ideas, will allow
people to connect via social media sites, and will be personalised to each person. Active
participation by the Pilbara community is what will provide value from the Pilbara virtual
city space, and providing a site that is simple, personalised, and allows people to connect
and share will deliver this participation.
PDC/WALGA lead,
however engage
ICT partners to
build and seek
citizen/stakeholder
s inputs on
functionality,
applications,
design and
business models

Harness social business enterprises for innovation, IP creation and cultural assets – build
digital spaces for local, regional and global collaborations and leverage unique content and
stories from the region.
Medium
Community
engaged and
driven

Indigenous ICT engagement - Collaborate with local leaders to encourage within smaller
communities and towns centres (Roebourne, Onslow, Tom Price) the appropriate use and
engagement model for technology by indigenous communities with a focus on youth and
families.
High
Innovation Discovery | © IBM Corporation 2013
High
Resp.
PDC, Shire & Town
Councils, WALGA,
Community &
Cultural,
Transport/Tourism
Indigenous
communities,
Education, WALGA
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Pilbara Cities Digital Futures Roadmap
Action: Smarter Infrastructure for energy, water and waste

Integrate water, energy and waste management across services authorities to optimise
existing networks, reduce energy, water and waste inefficiencies
Priority
High
Immediate
Resp.
Horizon Power,
Water
Corporation,
Waste
Management

Actively engage with energy, water agencies and community to deploy widespread
renewable energy (wind, solar, geo-thermal, district-cooling) solutions including ‘start-ups”
for local provisioning and town centres.
Medium

Incorporate inclusion of smarter infrastructure procurement clauses as part of Royalties for
Regions grant application process and encourage other regional infrastructure initiatives to
support provision of interconnected and intelligent networks across water, energy, waste,
roads, buildings, precincts (port, foreshore).
High
PDC, Pilbara Shire
& Town Councils

Shortlist a range of key projects to seek funding under the Clean Technology Fund, Clean
Technology Council
High
Pilbara Shire &
Town Councils

Leverage other smarter infrastructure initiatives like SenseT in Tasmania - Sense-T is the
world's first economy-wide sensor network. Currently under development, it will aggregate
historical and spatial data with real-time sensor data from across Tasmania to help
business, government better manage their resources. It is also a test bed for new
approaches to social, economic and environmental sustainability – this includes new
models of natural capital accounting. http://www.sense-t.org.au/
Innovation Discovery | © IBM Corporation 2013
Immediate
Medium
New Energy
Investment
Organisations,
Horizon Power,
WA Government,
University sector ,
IBM and other
innovation
partners, Telstra,
NBN
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Pilbara Cities Digital Futures Roadmap
Action: Build a framework for cross-community Connected Healthcare & Related Research

Given the remoteness and FIFO business models operating in the Pilbara it is imperative
that the region adopts new approaches to healthcare. The promotion of medical services
for remote communities and indigenous healthcare is a major opportunity for the Pilbara
region.
Priority
High
Immediate
Resp.
Aboriginal Health
Services, Private
Health Insurers,
CSIRO, DHS

Digital healthcare hubs - Using the new Port Hedland hospital as the hub and leveraging
the work being undertaken by the building the brand of the Pilbara Healthcare services
networks as world class care, teaching and research facility for connected healthcare
models.
High
NBN, WA
Government,
Chambers of
Commerce

Establish Best Practice and Centre of Excellence for Indigenous healthcare leveraging smart
connected healthcare practices. The Pilbara could become a world leader in indigenous
healthcare service delivery models with the establishment of centres of excellence across
maternal and child health, chronic disease, opthamology national indigenous healthcare
centre of excellence, connected healthcare platform.
High
Aboriginal Health
Services, Private
Health Insurers,
CSIRO, DHS
Innovation Discovery | © IBM Corporation 2013
8
Pilbara Cities Digital Futures Roadmap
Action: Drive new innovation agenda for economic diversity

The Pilbara needs to be put on the national innovation and research agenda and focus on new
industries across aquaculture, agribusiness, renewable energy, water re-use and optimisation,
indigenous healthcare, cyclone predication and modelling systems, integrated ports and
logistics etc. To achieve this, we are recommending the PDC instigate an innovation
“movement” through a Smart Consortium.

The consortium would be lead by the PDC and business leaders in the Pilbara together with the
WA Government, Federal Dept of Innovation & Science, industry innovation leaders and NGOs
to openly collaborate on the digital and innovation vision and transformational ideas and
identify the appropriate project leads and resources for existing and new innovation initiatives.

Develop an Innovation Roadmap Plan and that focuses on the “how to deliver innovation” as
opposed to the specific projects and include:

•
guidance on the governance model – i.e. who should lead projects
•
appropriate business engagement models for projects to which city involvement is
limited in terms of funding and support
•
Recommendations as to how to best galvanize partners and resources for projects
•
Enabling organisational structures, processes and metrics for key transformational
innovation projects; and.
•
Review of existing Pilbara Cities plans and identify areas where greater collaboration
amongst stakeholders could occur as well as create greater linkages both physical and
digital linkages.
Link Pilbara Cities Connected and Innovation strategy with other state, federal and industry
related innovation initiatives specifically the CSIRO Digital Futures Flagship, the National
Health Reform (PceHR), NBN, TeleWork & Remote Reworking, National Resources Sector
Workforce Strategy, Building Energy Management, Renewable Energy & Savings
Initiatives/Grants & National Water Reform.
Innovation Discovery | © IBM Corporation 2013
Priority
Resp.
High
PDC, CEOs of
Industry,
Departments of
Innovation,
CSIRO, IBM
Research, NICTA,
Curtin University,
VCs
High
PDC in
partnership with
ICT industry eg
AiiA and leading
innovation
partners
High
PDC, Pilbara Shire
& Town Councils
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