Three Ohio companies have combined their resources and talents to tackle the challenges many cities face as they try to examine the merits of smart cities implementation.

Cleveland Electric Laboratories (CEL), Eco Development and LogiSync are all Ohio companies that possess capabilities in ICT and IoT that collectively remove many of the barriers for cities considering the adaptation of a smart cities approach. With nearly 150 years of combined experience in sensing, energy management and IT automation, the three companies feel the time is now to help cities and their benefactors.

“Even without the recent turmoil in Ukraine and the preceding pandemic, it was becoming clear that resource management and efficiencies gained from smart services management generated cost savings and environmental advantages that could no longer be ignored,” said Ashley Chance, CEO of Eco Development. “Now, with the current energy crisis looming and the National Smart Cities Conference being held in Columbus in a few weeks, we sensed an urgency in bringing our knowledge base together to inform the many conference attendees that we are ready to assist them, not only here in Ohio, but anywhere in the world where governments or agencies may be considering these types of initiatives.”

Eco Development is a Mason, Ohio company that specialises in renewables, lighting retrofits and environmental consulting.

In examining the merits of the partnerships, the companies began to realise that there was no one-size-fits-all approach that would work, but that each smart cities initiative needed to be considered on its own merits.

“We have been on the forefront of services automation for over 25 years and each appliance we have automated or improved throughout our history had both benefits and provided new opportunities that shaped our approach,” said Ed Yenni, CEO of LogiSync. “For instance, when household electricity required an in-person check of the meter, we instinctively felt that wireless communications would upend the industry and we reacted. Now we are working with Cleveland Electric Laboratories to automate their no-power sensing capabilities for smart cities use, eliminating the need for retrofitting cabling to automate city services.”

Avon, Ohio-based LogiSync has been developing device automation for over a quarter century.

Smart cities implementation is gaining momentum in various ways. Technology has never really been the issue, but more the implementation of the schema is what often proves most challenging. This can be due to financial hurdles, which often require the investment be placed ahead of the efficiency gains. Across the globe, innovative financing options are appearing from even the biggest brokerage houses in the world. Firms such as Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs have created funds with the sole purpose of making green energy and smart cities initiatives happen without the usual eye towards profit, but rather with a broader aperture towards social benefit.

CEL president Alan Seymour said: “Our meetings with international partners and federal agencies used to consist of gathering sensing requirements for national and international security purposes, now we are meeting with banks, investment firms, city managers and other technology providers to determine what sensors will be required to automate city services such as water and electrical provisioning as well as unique services such as more efficient trash removal and mass transit availability.”

In the USA, depending on the state’s regulatory schema, a city considering adopting a smart cities approach could even see the financing paid for by simply having the reductions in their energy bill used to pay for the gains over time allowing for low or no upfront costs in making the improvements.

The three companies are hoping to entice the many city managers and decision makers attending this year’s Smart Cities Conference from ideation to implementation.

“I’m always amazed at the innovative business ideas coming from Ohioans,” said Frank LaRose, Ohio’s secretary of state. “It is especially gratifying that inventors and entrepreneurs are choosing to chase their dreams here at home, utilising the vast business and technology resources we have all over the state.”