Sunderland City Council (SCC) and BAI Communications are proud to announce that they have won the prestigious ‘Social Impact Award’ at the SCF Small Cell Awards 2022.
Awarded on 24th May at the Small Cells World Summit in London, the Social Impact Award recognises the promotion of small cells for social, economic and environmental development in Sunderland – an ambition which is core to the partnership’s implementation of a 5G-powered smart city infrastructure.
Delivering an extensive range of socio-economic benefits to not only drive further inward investment and stimulate the local economy, but to prioritise the enhancement of public service delivery and offer life-enriching opportunities for residents, businesses and visitors.
Liz St. Louis, Assistant Director of Smart Cities at Sunderland City Council said: “Working alongside BAI Communications, we are taking huge strides to embrace data and connectivity to inform decisions, improve services and ensure that people and places can thrive in the future, leaving no one and nowhere behind.
“Winning this award is representative of our collective keen eye on the future of connectivity – together, we are continuously investing in and improving our smart city. It is a very proud moment to once again place Sunderland in the spotlight as a digitally connected city, ripe with opportunities.”
Billy D’Arcy, CEO at BAI Communications UK, said: “This award feels very special to BAI who is very proud to be in this strategic partnership with Sunderland, a city that is ambitious, inclusive and digitally-minded for the success of residents, businesses and public service providers alike.”
SCC and BAI’s unique long-term partnership is already extending opportunities for digital innovation – boosting digital inclusion and confidence, whilst creating jobs, increasing working productivity and maintaining industrial competitiveness.
Sunderland’s smart city networks include deployment of approximately 50 5G small cells in the city centre connected to a 5G core via dark fibre and an outdoor, secure and ultrafast Wi-Fi network to benefit the city’s residents, businesses and visitors.
The panel of judges commented praised BAI and SCC’s submitted evidence showcasing an ambitious smart city programme that uses 5G small cells as a key part of its supporting infrastructure. The judges were impressed by BAI’s integrated application of a range of technologies to support the Council’s goals of furthering economic development and social inclusion, along with improvements to health, education and other services.
The awards were open to the whole industry and judged by an independent panel of industry experts. Entries spanned the globe with submissions from mobile operators and vendors, and the full spectrum of the mobile value chain.