 "Nokia to enter the race to provide solutions for smart cities")
Finnish communications and information technology company Nokia is going all out to showcase its Internet of Things (IoT)-based products, so it can be seen as a serious contender once the government starts the tendering process for its smart city projects.
The company plans to come out with a host of solutions for smart cities such as smart metering, active waste management, smart parking and various other sensor technology-enabled products.
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Nokia is at present working in four non-telecom areas which includes providing various technology-based solutions for transportation (highways, railways, Metros), energy (oil and gas, mining, utilities), public sector (defence, public safety, smart government) and large enterprises. It also helps them with cloud-based initiatives.
"IoT is the next big thing happening globally. We will see a lot of man-to-machine and vice-versa type of technology coming in. For us smart city is a great opportunity as every time the basic infrastructure needs to be built, it is a chance for us to come in," said Osvaldo H Di Campli, president, global enterprise and public sector.
He added that though the Indian government had the basic framework in place, companies such as Nokia would be looking for some more in-depth answers to certain questions.
"What would be the business model, how would these projects would be funded, these are the key questions few of us are trying to find answers for," Di Campli said.
The company showcased as many as 19 IoT-based products at the recent Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Some of these would fit in a smart city environment. "Any IoT architecture, connectivity management through device management solutions and analytics on top… we are looking at all these spaces in the smart city initiative," said Sandeep Girotra, vice-president and region head, India.
The company has been in talks with various state and central government and might soon bid for various projects. "We are in continuous dialogue with the government in various projects. We continue to engage on all opportunities as and when they emerge," Girotra added.
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In an effort to have a steady revenue stream, Nokia has been working in areas such as 5G networking, cloud and IoT.
Many other companies have been working round the clock to be ready for smart city projects. After acquiring a controlling stake in Italian design firm Pininfarina, Tech Mahindra plans to branch out into designing smart cities as well as providing different design solutions in various sectors.
On the back of a Pininfarina buy, the leading provider of IT, networks, engineering solutions and BPO services is keen to make a dent is providing design ideas and concepts in the housing and construction space. Also, in India, the company would focus on providing design ideas for the upcoming smart city projects.
The Union Cabinet had in April 2015 cleared a proposal for a Rs 50,000-crore investment by the Centre into the 100 smart city project.
According to the plan, Rs 500 crore per city would be spent by the Centre, and that would have to be equally matched by a consortia of state governments and city municipalities. While the Centre would fund Rs 200 crore per city in the first phase, it would subsequently pump in Rs 100 crore a year for three years.
