Clive Davies, Smart Towns Advisor for Menter Mon, talks to Business News Wales about the Smart Towns project

The Smart Towns project comes as part of the Welsh Government’s recently announced package of support to revitalise Welsh town centres. The aim is to enable businesses to plan projects that lead to economic growth as well as to make the best use of digital technology.

This includes utilising data to help firms better understand their customer base and trends that will support future planning and marketing activities. The ‘Year of SMART Towns’ is closely aligned with the Welsh Government’s Transforming Towns agenda and wider funding for town centres.

According to Tomos, the Year of SMART Towns aims to “encourage and facilitate towns across Wales to regenerate and bring life back into the high street.” He adds:

“The project is being led by Menter Môn who have been piloting a range of SMART and Internet of Things interventions over recent years. They also organised the SMART Town Masterclass series in partnership with Welsh Government.”

Also on the delivery team is Clive Davies, who has driven the adoption of SMART technology in Cardigan, and Linda Chandler from Hyperlocal Cities, who has multinational experience in SMART Cities.

What is a smart town?

A smart town is an urban area that uses different types of electronic methods and sensors to collect data. Insights gained from that data are used to manage assets, resources, and services efficiently. In return, that data is used to improve the operations and future prosperity across the town.