Tag: North

North encourages next generation of technology workforce

  • North encourages next generation of technology workforce
  • Edinburgh-based apprentice Connor Ratter works on innovative CCTV project across capital city

North, the UK’s leading technology services and solutions provider, is encouraging young people to embark on a career working with a range of technologies through its dedicated apprenticeship programme.

As part of Scottish Apprenticeship Week 2023 (6-13 March), North is celebrating its team of apprentices by shining a light on the valuable contribution they are making within the industry. The team hopes to inspire more young people to explore a career in technology, future proofing the sector’s talent pipeline.

North plans to expand its apprenticeship programme by continuing to offer positions each year in disciplines including Advanced Networking, Safety & Security and Network Cabling.

With a commitment to an 80/20 split between academic and practical learning through Skills for Security, North offers apprenticeship opportunities in safety and security, data networking, and data cabling disciplines.

As well as industry-specific knowledge, North upskills apprentices in soft skills, such as customer service and client management, to ensure they are workplace ready whilst completing the apprenticeship.

In 2021, North was appointed to undertake a £2.6 million project for City of Edinburgh Council to upgrade its CCTV provision across the city, including the delivery of a new CCTV Control Centre which includes a leading edge video analytic solution, and the replacement of analogue CCTV with high-resolution Internet Protocol (IP) cameras.

As part of the project, the local authority officially opened its Smart Operations Centre in the City Chambers in December 2022, taking Edinburgh one step closer to becoming a leading Smart City.

As part of this project’s social value commitment, North onboarded a dedicated apprentice, Connor Ratter, to help deliver and support the roll out. As a safety and security apprentice, Connor has been trained in an area that is becoming ever more important within private and public sectors.

Throughout his time at North, Connor has now gone on to work across more service and maintenance based projects, involving fault finding and planned maintenance activities. He has also worked alongside experienced professionals with several high-profile clients, including the Royal Hospital for Children & Young People, Royal Edinburgh Hospital and the National Museum of Scotland.

On completion of his apprenticeship in 2025, Connor will be a fully qualified Safety & Security engineer and will go on to enjoy full-time employment at North.

Connor Ratter, Safety & Security Apprentice Engineer at North, said: “It can sometimes feel overwhelming to know what career path you want to take, but the North apprenticeship programme has given me an invaluable opportunity to work alongside and learn from experienced engineers, reinforcing that I want to excel as an engineer.

“Making the switch between working in financial services to engineering was no easy feat, however I have been supported by a brilliant team with the opportunity to work with interesting clients from the start of my apprenticeship.

“I have learned an entirely new set of skills that I will continue to develop throughout my career and I’d encourage anyone considering an apprenticeship to go for it and enjoy the journey, it’s been incredibly rewarding.”

Joining Connor on the Safety and Security programme is Kieran Wakefield and Jamie Small, based in the North East of England and on the data cabling and data engineering courses are Ben Gould, Tom King and Ciaran Falloon, also based in Scotland.

Ian Reid, Technical Field Service Manager at North, said: “We are very proud of our fantastic team of apprentices, and we are consistently looking at how we can enhance and expand the opportunities we provide at North. Intrinsic to a successful industry is investing in tomorrow’s talent, providing hands on experience in a supportive environment. 

“Connor has been a real asset to the team at North, working alongside senior engineers and directly with our customers. He has demonstrated determination and enthusiasm, and undoubtedly will go on to enjoy many more successes within his career at North.”

To find out more information about North’s apprenticeship programme, visit: 

https://north.tech/about/people/?Utm_source=PR+&utm_medium=News+&utm_campaign=Scottish+Apprenticeship+Week+2023+

Edinburgh eyes smart city status with new cutting-edge control centre

City of Edinburgh Council Leader Cammy Day has officially opened a revolutionary new City Operations Centre.

Harnessing high-tech to help keep the city safe and moving, the new centre will position Edinburgh as a leader in the UK for smart security and surveillance tools.

It has been delivered in partnership with IT service and solutions provider North as part of a £2.6m contract, funded by the Council and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) 2014-2020 programme known as ‘Scotland’s 8th City – the Smart City’, which is contributing £712k in grant funding towards the project.

Replacing an outdated control centre which was no longer fit-for-purpose, the new smart Operations Centre will be manned and receive real-time data from the CCTV network 24/7. This will integrate other technologies which will help to improve traffic flow, transport infrastructure and city planning – subsequently improving the city’s collective carbon footprint.

Given the accessibility to real-time data, advanced analytics will drastically help the Council and partners respond to emergencies and manage large-scale events like Edinburgh’s Hogmanay and August Festivals.

Council Leader Cammy Day said: “This new operations centre has been years in the making and it’s fantastic to see it live in action. With cutting-edge low-carbon technology designed to keep the city moving and our communities safe, it drastically steps up our capabilities as a Council.

“We’ve completely overhauled the technology we use within the control centre and across the city – replacing outdated analogue cameras with intelligent internet-enabled devices. This means we can analyse events and traffic in real time. Particularly as our city grows, our investment will support the safety of the public and wider community, deterring and preventing anti-social behaviour and crime like we sadly experienced recently on Bonfire Night and Remembrance Sunday.

“Edinburgh is fast becoming an example of a truly smart city and its thanks to trailblazing projects like this. We’re also rolling out waste and housing sensors, innovative digital learning opportunities in schools, while exploring an urban traffic management control system which is a tool for monitoring traffic flow.

“The whole operation is much more sustainable and data driven which, crucially, is going to lead to more efficient Council services for the people of Edinburgh.”

Scott McEwan, acting CEO at North, said: “Helping to drive positive change through smart technology and improved operational systems across Edinburgh is something that North is incredibly proud of. Working together, the city now has access to real-time data that will influence the future of city planning, improve large-scale events and create a greener environment for generations to come.

“The City of Edinburgh Council is making transformational steps to becoming a Smart City and its forward-thinking approach to the adoption of IoT solutions will help to accelerate their ambition to reaching such status.

“We are really excited for the local authority to see the seismic impact introducing smart technologies has on the quality of the environment, and importantly, on the health and wellbeing of people who live in and visit Edinburgh.”

The data is captured by a new CCTV system rolled out across the city which is significantly expanding security coverage. This has included upgrading the city’s digital Video Surveillance System (VSS), enhancing video analytic function and data protection capabilities, and replacing analogue cameras with high-resolution Internet Protocol (IP) devices.

As part of the delivery, North also contributed to a number of community benefits to help deliver social value within local neighbourhoods. This included recruiting an Edinburgh-based modern apprentice and an apprentice to assist the roll-out of the CCTV network and the provision of curriculum support activities to local schools and community volunteers.

Edinburgh is one of the seven Scottish cities collaboratively working towards becoming a world leading Smart City. Supported by the Scottish Cities Alliance, a partnership of Scotland’s seven city local authorities and the Scottish Government, £45 million, including £18 million of ERDF support plus cities match funding of £28 million, is being invested in the ‘Scotland’s 8th City – the Smart City’ Programme.

Edinburgh set to take part in new Internet of Things trial

Scottish Councils create safer and more sustainable communities through smart tech

The city council is one of six Scottish local authorities – alongside Scotrail, Blackwood Homes and Care and Borders College – set to benefit from a new Internet of Things (IoT) trial which has the potential to transform the experience of people who live within communities across the country.

The ‘IoT Accelerator Packs’ are being supplied by North, the UK’s leading IoT service and solutions provider.

The innovative packs are set to provide access to real time data insights on waste management, air quality, social housing solutions, building health and water monitoring capabilities. Used in the right way, they have the potential to transform the ways in which local communities live and work and can deliver a wide range of societal and economic benefits.

With access to the Scottish Government-backed national Internet of Things network, IoT Scotland, and funded IoT Accelerator Packs, the organisations involved can investigate and evaluate the power of IoT technology. Scotrail, Blackwood Homes and Care and Borders College are taking part in the innovative trial alongside the following:

  • Aberdeen City Council
  • Angus Council
  • East Renfrewshire Council
  • City of Edinburgh Council
  • Fife Council
  • Highland Council

Working closely with each organisation, North determined the services which would most benefit from smart solutions.

Comprising of sensors and the back-end services required to deploy the selected pack, the IoT Accelerator Packs are accompanied with professional services to facilitate the rollout. The North team will then evaluate and capture feedback, with deployment and support fully funded by the provider.

Fife Council has selected intelligent waste management technology. This will help to reduce their carbon footprint and operational costs using data to monitor smart bins, which align waste collection frequency with demand, significantly reducing costs and emissions. 

Scotrail, Edinburgh City, Angus and East Renfrewshire Council will have the ability to measure air quality within train stations, council buildings or across a busy town centre, measuring and reporting on temperature, humidity and pressure, alongside primary air pollutants, enabling environmental teams to access and collate measurements in real-time more easily and frequently than traditional manual processes.

Similarly, Blackwood Homes and Care will be implementing the use of sensors within its social housing to monitor and improve living environments. This will ensure parameters such as moisture control and ventilation are adequate, providing a healthy living environment for tenants whilst also protecting the fabric of the building.

Borders College will use the technology to monitor levels of CO2 within the working environment across its building. With high levels of CO₂ saturation proven to have a detrimental effect on an occupant’s health, affecting productivity, comfort, absence rates and learning retention.

Aberdeen City Council will implement smart sensors to monitor its water, alongside Highland Council, which has already successfully adopted the smart IoT sensor technology across its schools, care homes, leisure centres and council offices to gather a range of data and insights.

The addition of water monitoring is set to help each of the organisations maximise their water safety, by continuously monitoring and measuring water temperature to identify and reduce the risk of legionella and other bacteria.

Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy, Kate Forbes, said: “These innovative accelerator packs have been designed to help organisations explore Internet of Things (IoT) solutions which can deliver sustainable social and economic benefits for local communities.

“Digital technologies like IoT help drive forward our economic recovery while reducing business costs and enabling progress towards net-zero emissions.”

Alasdair Rettie, Group Technical Director at North, said: “IoT technology has the power to truly transform our lives, from revolutionising the ways in which we work, to ensuring that we live in safe and healthy environments. Whilst providing us with the ability to access data which allows us to make informed decisions to improve services across communities.

“We are elated to assist these 10 organisations across Scotland, as they pave the way to use IoT technology to its fullest potential, enhancing their operations and existing systems. From connecting large scale cities to remote communities, the opportunities brought about by the implementation of IoT within our digital connectivity infrastructure are endless, particularly as we work towards Scotland’s social and economic recovery.

“The use of such solutions provides extensive opportunities and a vast number of benefits, and we are pleased to be able to provide these organisations with this opportunity.”

IoT Scotland is the UK’s most advanced IoT network, and it is hoped that through the ‘IoT Accelerator Packs’, local authorities will realise the benefits insightful and actionable IoT data can deliver, driving the adoption of IoT technologies and smart solutions to revolutionise the lives of people throughout Scotland.

Data gathered by these smart solutions will remain the property of the council and all data will be handled in accordance with data protection and GDPR regulations. Councils will have the opportunity to pay to expand and continue the solutions after the initial 12-month period if they so wish.

Councils interested in taking part in the IoT Accelerator Pack programme should get in touch through the following email address: contact@north.tech.