5G RuralDorset Programme Manager
Two years ago, you could write everything I knew about wireless communications on the back of a SIM card.
Fast forward 18 months and I’ve been named a 5G Trailblazer by Ericsson, helped deliver a series of telecoms world firsts and led my team onto a London stage to pick up three awards at Connected Britain, beating off competition from the likes of Vodafone, BT and O2.
It’s a ridiculous story and largely down to Dorset Council being a forward-looking and ambitious organisation willing to invest and trust in its employees. That and working in a fantastic team.
5G RuralDorset is a ground-breaking research and development project aimed at understanding how next generation connectivity can help people live better, safer and more prosperous lives in rural communities. We aim to show how 5G can make Dorset a better place to live, work and visit.
The £8m DCMS-backed project comprises five separate research areas; Future of Food, Innovation Accelerator, Connected Coast, Rural Community Accelerator and Coastal Cliff Monitoring.
The overall project was designed with community input and sustainability at its heart. Considerable planning and care has been taken to deploy infrastructure sensitively or, in some cases, reuse existing assets.
With just five months left the two-year project has already been a huge success, achieving our goal to develop Dorset’s national reputation as a place where digital innovation is thriving. Our use cases have proved the difference 5G can make to rural and coastal communities and economies across the UK.
Leading telecommunications R&D is a departure for a local authority. But the pandemic has shown that top-class connectivity and digital services are essential if we are to continue to provide social and economic opportunities and deliver the services local people expect against a background of increasing budgetary pressure.
More about the project:
Web: www.5gruraldorset.org
Twitter: @5GRuralDorset
E-news: Sign up
Connect with Colin:
Twitter: @colindigitaldorset
LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/colin-wood-33843b83
