IN2 organized a special business-technology conference aimed at representatives from Croatian utility companies. More than 150 experts from gas and water distribution and supply services sector gathered in the Plaza Center in Zagreb.
The key conference topics included discussions on new business models brought about by digital transformation in Croatian natural gas and water distribution services sector, application of next-generation communication networks and making use of benefits provided by Internet-of-Things (IoT). This technology is based on networking large number of various types of devices to facilitate collection, exchange and data processing. Member of IN2 management board, Katarina Šiber Makar, emphasized the importance of IoT at the opening keynote.
“Internet-of-things technologies are going to play a key role in the utility services sector, as they are bound to drive digital transformation in this area. IN2 has the power and the resolve to become a competence and excellence center for digital transformation, both in Croatia and the wider region”, said Šiber Makar, citing IDC data showing 35 billion devices being connected to the Internet by 2020. Market research agency Gartner projects that the number of smart metering devices in energy and utility sectors will double, reaching an installed base of almost a billion by 2020. The European Commission claims that wide adoption and application of Internet-of-Things technologies will produce savings of up to USD 157 billion by 2035.
The conference is a special project by Sector for digital business and development of new business areas in IN2. It aims to present global and IN2’s in-house solutions for acquisition and analysis of Big Data, geoinformatics (GIS), and Internet-of-Things technologies to Croatian utility companies. IN2 implemented several systems of this variety in utility companies in Croatia, with the latest being from Croatian regions of Slavonia and Dalmatia.
