The Connected Places Catapult welcomes the Government’s consultation on a new Industrial Strategy. As the UK’s innovation accelerator for transport, cities and place leadership we are excited about the opportunity this represents. We are encouraged by the strong focus on the importance of unlocking the complexities of place, as well as the role that data and digital technologies have to play in raising the economic productivity of our cities and regions.

As the Resolution Foundation and others have demonstrated, the UK struggles with the dual challenges of low growth and high inequality, which has left us lagging our European peers in terms of living standards and productivity. Closing that productivity gap would yield incredible returns – an additional £100 billion in gross value added (GVA) per year. According to the Centre for Cities, hundreds of thousands of new jobs would be created if UK core cities achieved productivity levels equivalent to their European counterparts.  

An Industrial Strategy that recognises the importance of place, connectivity and innovation is critical to that endeavour.

Place as a driver for successful sectors and clusters

We welcome the fact that the Green Paper articulates the important role of place. It is also encouraging to see cities explicitly referenced as places that require focus given the important role that they can play in driving economic growth.

We recognise the Government’s need to focus the outputs of the Industrial Strategy around sectors to maximise the potential for long-term sustainable growth. But the economy is a matrix of both places and sectors. We would encourage the Government to ensure that there is no disconnect between the Green Paper’s recognition of the importance of place and the focus on sectors.

A strictly sectoral focus does not allow for challenge-based emerging sectors to occur. In our experience ‘emerging sectors’ occur where technological capabilities with place-based applications are applied across sectors. This often happens as opportunities to work with government and industry create new commercial propositions that respond to place-based challenges.

We also support the focus on clusters and basing investments on robust analysis of strengths and opportunities. We caution against an overreliance on single sectors in any given area, noting the huge opportunity for innovation when diverse sectors intersect and ideas share between one industry/cluster to another. Places which fixate on a single cluster also lack resilience and agility. There is a risk in emphasising clusters that we create unhealthy competition between regions.

Through our work with place leaders across the UK (e.g. the Innovation Places Leadership Academy, the UK Innovation Districts Group, the Freeport Innovation Network), we are also well placed to provide practical support to those seeking to deliver innovation-led local growth.

Innovation & Local Growth Plans

We see an opportunity for the Industrial Strategy, complemented by robust Local Growth Plans, to promote nationwide collaboration between places and clusters which make up different parts of our innovation value chains. This will promote mutually beneficial flows of talent, investment and knowledge across all parts of the chain. We see this as an opportunity to apply a market-driven focus to cluster development, emphasising access to emerging markets and creating tangible business opportunities, as companies join clusters to grow their bottom line.

Capacity to deliver innovation-led local growth is unevenly distributed across combined and local authorities as they face multiple competing fiscal and other pressures. This requires new thinking and resourcing approaches to capacity development and new strategic thinking. Without building innovation capability, there is a danger that the gap between innovation rich and experienced regions, and those regions with untapped potential, will grow. Without broader coordination, Local Growth Plans risk unnecessary fragmentation, competition or duplication.

Investments in high-productivity sectors will deliver a weak return if the places in which they are based are not optimised. Local Growth Plans need to not only describe how places will deliver sectoral improvements in support of the national growth mission, but also place-based transformations in the physical, digital and civic fabric of the place to support a flourishing innovation economy. 

We can help unlock innovation in local growth planning and delivery, strengthen regional digital capability and capacity, and align local plans into national activity and vice versa providing a consistent approach across the UK.

Digital & data leadership

We welcome the Green Paper’s focus on the role of data in supporting the Industrial Strategy, as well as the role of Government in removing the barriers to sharing data to improve business operations and decision making.
 
It is important that Government plays a leading role in reusing public sector data by adopting the principle of “collect once, use many times,” treating data as essential infrastructure. It should incentivise data sharing to unlock regional and sectoral potential while aligning policies with global best practices and market standards. Public sector data, including the proposed National Data Library, should be prioritised as a driver of innovation and growth.
 
We welcome the provisions in the Data (Use and Access) Bill – mandatory sharing, funding mechanisms, and enforcement—extend across sectors. A cross-sector Smart Data framework should promote secure, standardised sharing, enhancing productivity and innovation. Clear governance, pro-innovation regulation, and alignment with international frameworks, such as the Interoperable Europe Act, are essential.
 
Improving data literacy and capabilities within businesses will enhance their use of data across supply chains, foster collaboration, and strengthen competition in data-driven markets. These efforts will ensure the UK’s public and private sectors thrive in an increasingly data-driven economy.
 
It is also important to adopt a standardised approach across Government, industry, academia and Catapults. A decentralised approach to data sharing infrastructure is vital for unifying fragmented systems across transport, energy, and water, reducing costs and boosting productivity.

This will:

• Establish transparent governance 
• Identify critical cross sector uses-cases and route maps
• Inform legislation, policy and investment in demonstrators
• Inform the development of a framework of future-proof components (technical and socio-technical) building on existing digital assets and legacy technology
• Share strategic insights to guide the market to implement this infrastructure effectively, fostering innovation and resilience across industries.

Innovation-friendly procurement

Thanks to technical advances we are seeing incredible innovations being unlocked in the UK by new suppliers from academic spinouts, small and medium sized businesses (including start-ups), scale-ups, venture capitalists, accelerators, corporate innovation teams and many others. These diverse suppliers are helping to achieve better, cheaper and quicker outcomes and create more value from the £400bn the public purse spend per annum on third party suppliers.
 
If just 5% of public sector contracts were brought to market in this way, it would transform £19bn of existing spend into innovation fuel annually. There is an opportunity to nurture this approach further and reform how the public sector shapes markets by not only effectively delivering public policy outcomes, but also by creating new businesses that could be exporting services across the world. To achieve this, we must go beyond Research and Development and use procurement to realise more value by scaling solutions.

• Being more open with the market on the challenges the public sector is facing;
• Applying effective procurement routes to market;
• Creating the right culture and environment for innovation in the public sector to thrive;
• Using experimentation to test, iterate and build evidence on where innovation can add value, and scouting the market for those hard-to-find companies that can solve key problems; 
• Upskilling on the buyer and seller side on how public and private partners can co-create, work together and create a more entrepreneurial approach to solving public policy agencies.

We are delighted to once again participate in Innovation Zero, and we’re contributing to a number of sessions, including: 

Andrew Chadwick, Ecosystem Director, Air Mobility & Airports, joining the Fuelling Flight: Hydrogen session on 1 May at 11:45.

Alison Young, Head of Global Investment, joining the session on Funding the Automotive Transformation, on 1 May at 12:25 in the Transport & Mobility Forum.

This year, we are proud to host our own Pavilion, a place designed to showcase real innovation, and provide opportunities to connect with thought leaders, and UK and global peers.

To review our full Agenda of sessions and activities taking place over the three days and plan your visit, please head to the UKREiiF website > Programme tab > Download Programme or > Click on the Connected Places Catapult Pavilion dot to browse online.

Make sure to visit our Pavilion in Pavilion Square, we look forward to connecting with you in Leeds!

We’re delighted to participate in the Open & Agile Smart Cities Conference. Make sure to visit our Connected Places Catapult stand on the show floor and to join the sessions our experts are participating in over the course of the two days.

“Sometimes you can literally taste pollution in the air,” remarks industrial product designer and entrepreneur Matteo Maccario. “Once you know it is there – and exactly what you are breathing in – it’s hard to ignore.”

Matteo and colleagues from start-up company Pluvo have developed an air purification device for use in large public spaces, known as the ‘Pluvo Column’, and is about to install its first units on two railway station platforms: a couple at Birmingham New Street and one at Salisbury station in Wiltshire.

The company has been supported by Connected Places Catapult on two recent accelerator programmes: one focused on Intelligent Mobility in association with innovation agency Wayra UK and another set around Milton Keynes. It has also been part of an SME engagement programme and network with the Catapult.

The Pluvo Column features a three stage filtration system to remove airborne pollutants including exhaust gases – such as nitrous and sulphur oxides – and particulate matter. Air is sucked in from the base of the unit, filtered and released back into the local environment above head height. The units can operate either to a pre-determined schedule, or start working when air quality monitors housed inside the unit detect that levels of pollutants have reached a threshold.

“We are confident that the devices can have a significant impact on air pollution within a radius of 25 metres or greater,” Matteo says. “And as you get closer to around 13 metres, levels of particulate matter have been found to reduce by about two thirds.

“For the trials in Birmingham and Salisbury we are targeting areas with seating where people are waiting for trains, in order to create cleaner air zones, as both stations see a fair amount of diesel trains passing through. But the devices could also help station managers to better understand the impact that certain trains can have on air pollution; highlighting the times of day when spikes in pollution are being seen – and for how long.”

Matteo Maccario, CEO, Pluvo

Aiming for form, function and return

Matteo developed the air filtration device alongside company co-founder Rikesh Chotai after graduating from a double Masters in innovation design and engineering with Imperial College London and the Royal College of Art.

Their aim was to develop a system that not only improves air quality, but looks attractive in an urban setting – and can generate revenue.

Matteo and his team researched and tested a series of existing filtration technologies – most of which were designed either for small enclosed spaces like homes, or larger industrial processes – and refined them for use in public settings.

They set about designing infrastructure to house the purifier and came up with a 2.7 metre high ‘totem’ which has an elliptical form and no sharp corners. “We were very focused on how the column should look. The fact it is an elliptical shape makes the engineering a bit more difficult, but we were keen to maintain the aesthetic,” Matteo says.

Each totem features advertising screens on two sides as a mechanism to help pay the running costs and generate income. Static advertisements will be displayed for the initial station trial sites, but digital LED screens are planned for future iterations of the device.

Matteo adds that if the units prove to be a commercial success, they may incentivise clients to install more of them; helping to clean even more of the air at railway stations.

Pivoting from streets to stations

Pluvo’s original plan was to install air purification devices alongside busy roads and in town centres. Trials took place beside the North Circular Road in London but when it came to permanent installations, council planning processes proved slow and unpredictable. Matteo decided to pivot towards transport hubs and the rail environment and partnered with Network Rail (which manages Birmingham New Street) and South Western Railway (which looks after Salisbury) to trial the Pluvo Column.

The company realised that the device’s impact may be even greater at stations than beside streets because the units can be placed at pollution hotspots, close to where many people gather and wait.

Matteo adds that the devices could work equally as well in other transport hubs, such as metro stations, inside multistorey carparks and beside pick-up and drop-off zones at airports.

Placing clean air devices prominently in public spaces could also help to raise the importance of clean air among the public, Matteo suggests – especially if the messaging of the brands being advertised on the side of the units has an environmental theme. “Everyone talks about sustainability and the need to limit climate change, but unfortunately the threat of air pollution to human health doesn’t get as much attention. The more people can become educated about the importance of clean air, the more chance we have of seeing legislation introduced to help reduce the problem.”

Pluvo’s participation in the Intelligent Mobility accelerator with Connected Places Catapult and subsequent showcase day led to discussions with rail industry representatives, including an innovation manager working for South Western Railway which resulted in the Salisbury trial.

“The Catapult made several important connections for us, including with Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital in London which carries out air quality research,” Matteo says. “We were also invited along to various events such as rail investor days, and have been kept in the loop when opportunities arise.”

Matteo Maccario, CEO, Pluvo

Early Years

Matteo Maccario was born in Nashville, Tennessee to Italian parents and the family moved to Canada when he was 11. As a child, he remembers wanting to be an inventor and took a keen interest in the environment and nature.

His father was an engineer “which probably influenced my career” and Matteo enrolled on a mechanical engineering degree at Western University before spending four years of his early career at a heavy machinery firm involved in fabrication and assembly.

He later worked as a lean business consultant, and participated in a climate impact and entrepreneurship programme with the European Institute of Innovation and Technology. He also enrolled on a circular economy fellowship programme with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, led by the former sailor.

In 2016 he enrolled on the double Masters course with Imperial and the Royal College, which gave him an appreciation of how engineering and design can come together. Five years ago, Matteo co-founded Pluvo. The team outsources the manufacturing of the new devices in the UK, but for now Pluvo assembles the units itself. “I enjoy getting hands on; it’s important to physically feel the joy or pain of how the design comes together,” says Matteo.

“Our primary focus with the units is functionality, but we also consider the sustainability of the materials we use, their embedded carbon and whether our units can be easily updated, upcycled or reused, rather than ending up in landfill in some distant future.

“The start of our journey has been full of learnings,” he adds. “We are still in our early days, but have investors on board and are looking to raise £1 million to help with our expansion,” he says. “I’ve been fortunate to work on many interesting projects, but this has been the most exciting journey yet.”

Matteo also joined us on a previous episode of the Connected Places podcast – listen below. 

Sam Markey, Ecosystem Director, will join the panel titled ‘The rise of Innovation Districts: Knowledge, Inclusion, Growth’ at 15:15 on 27 September, and he will also contribute to the Roundtable on the Power of Partnership. Dr. Rachna Lévêque, Senior Housing Innovation, will contribute to the Retrofit Roundtable.

Dr. Rachna Lévêque, Senior Housing Innovation Lead, will host a retrofit panel in the Built Environment Hub on 16 November from 11:45, titled ‘Accelerating residential retrofit for health and climate resilience’ and will be joined by retrofit leaders and innovators from Arup, Gbolade Design Studio, and Twin Sustainability Innovation / LETI.

On Wednesday 4 October (Day 2) from 15:00, we will host our very own Connected Places Catapult panel titled ‘Home Retrofit: Moving beyond EPC to improve health, wellbeing, and climate resilience’. Speakers include Andy Mitchell, Managing Director, Green Building Store; Dr. Rachna Lévêque, Senior Housing Innovation; and Alanna Gluck, Delivery and Engagement Manager, both from Connected Places Catapult.

That same day from 15:15, Gavin Summerson, our Built Environment team lead, is joining the panel titled ‘Beyond the Numbers: Building Trust in Data in the Built Environment’.

Colleagues and SME’s part of our network will be onsite for the duration of the event. Come by our stand to speak with one of our experts and to learn more about our projects and other opportunities.

Connected Places Catapult is pleased to invite you to the Connected Places Networking Reception, an official UKREiiF event.

Meet existing and new key stakeholders and industry experts, national and international local government, investment community and built environment stakeholders driving the levelling up agenda, innovation and green finance. You’ll learn more about the Cities Commission for Climate Investment (3Ci) and Connected Places Catapult flagship initiatives in the levelling up and green finance agenda.

Venue: The Royal Armouries Museum, Armouries Drive, LS10 1LT, Leeds
Room: The Tournament Gallery

Places are limited to 200 attendees only. If you would like to attend please register your interest as soon as possible and we will get back to you if you have been successful.

Please note that to attend this reception you need to have a valid UKREiiF delegate pass. If you don’t, unfortunately you won’t be able to attend.