IoT and AI data revolution: 40+ experts to lay out how organisations can accelerate productivity and sustainability at IoT Impact in Sydney

Through the energy it generates and uses, the materials it consumes and the services it enables, infrastructure directly or indirectly contributes up to 70 percent of Australia’s carbon emissions. Assets built today will still be operating in 2050 when many countries (including Australia) are expected to reach net zero under the Paris Climate Agreement.

From left: Energy Efficiency Council's Luke Menzel; Infrastructure Net Zero's Nicole Lockwood; Future Edge Consulting's Patrick Bossert, NatCap+'s Rayne van den Berg

Nicole Lockwood is chair of both Infrastructure WA and Infrastructure Net Zero—an organisation that brings together key stakeholders across all sectors and asset classes to co-ordinate, collaborate and report on infrastructure’s pathway to net zero—so is well-qualified to speak on Tracking to net zero for infrastructure and construction at IoT Impact 2024.

She is just one of more than 40  high profile industry experts at IoT Impact 2024 who will highlight the latest developments in the use of IoT and AI by organisations to achieve sustainability targets and improve productivity.

IoT Impact, now in its fifth year, brings together those involved in asset management, remote monitoring, energy management, industrial automation, safety and wellbeing, logistics, transport, digital twins, supply chains, utilities, smart sensing, cybersecurity, manufacturing, facility management, construction and civil infrastructure with others who can make use of real time or near-real time data to monitor, manage and optimise operations for productivity, safety and environmental sustainability. IoT Impact 2024 will be held at UTS Sydney on 13 June.

This is IoT Alliance Australia's conference and the event media partner is CRN Australia's sister publication IoT Hub.

Tracking to net zero for infrastructure and construction 

Following her talk, Nicole will be joined in a panel session by Max Girault, chief commercial officer, Inauro and Sam Nelson, CEO, Pleiades. The session will be moderated by Darren Hungerford, general manager, xDNA.

Inauro uses untapped real time asset data to make industrial operations safer, more efficient and environmentally responsible. Pleiades has developed a cloud-based sustainability accounting platform for infrastructure projects. xDNA is Downer’s digital business that helps Downer’s customers and partners transform through the use of emerging technologies.

Meet the net zero data elephant

It’s no good having targets if you can’t measure progress towards their achievement, and a panel session, Data driving the net zero transition, at IoT Impact will argue that data for Scope 3 emissions (those resulting from assets not owned or controlled by the reporting organisation) needed to drive the transition to net zero, support business decisions and unlock finance is not yet adequate. This data is the elephant in the room.

IoTAA chair Judy Anderson will moderate a panel comprising: Sam Sneddon, CEO and co-founder, WollemiAI; Kurt Winter, director corporate transition at the Carbon Market Institute; and Jerome Bowen, Director, Adaptus.

WollomiAI is an organisation committed to building climate resilience in the land and agricultural sector. The Carbon Market Institute is a member-based organisation dedicated to accelerating the transition to net zero emissions. Adaptus is a boutique consulting firm that helps organisations improve ESG performance, navigate the energy transition and increase resilience to climate change.

Living digital twins: it's all about the data

Digital twins, enabled by IoT, can be the ultimate digital realisation of any physical object or operational system. However, they are only as good as the data they rely on, and their usefulness is determined by the intelligence applied to their outputs.

Patrick Bossert, founder and managing director, Future Edge Consulting will give a talk at IoT Impact entitled Living digital twins: it's all about the data. Future Edge helps organisations make more effective use of their assets through data and insights.

Patrick will then be joined for a panel session by David Cleminson, CEO, StratosQuo and Genene Kleppe, CEO, Digital Twinning Australia: both companies specialising in the development, deployment and use of digital twins.

2023–2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy

Security is paramount for IoT, but is only one facet of a vast, complex and ever-evolving IT security landscape. Dominating that landscape is the 2023–2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy. It carries major implications for trusted digital products and services for businesses and consumers. An expert panel at IoT Impact will unpack what it means now and over the next few years.

Trusted data for nature positive 

Future ecological damage must be greatly reduced and natural systems restored and regenerated. To achieve these goals we must transform the way we interact with our environment. A panel session at IoT Impact, Trusted data for nature positive, will examine how data is emerging as a powerful tool in guiding these efforts.

It will comprise Dr Eliza Middleton, biodiversity management officer, University of Sydney; Rayne van den Berg, principal, NatCap+ and Swaroop Tulsidas, head of product, CSIRO and will be moderated by Derryn Heilbuth, executive chair of sustainability consultancy BWD Strategic.

Rayne van den Berg is globally recognised as a pioneer in corporate sustainability and natural capital reporting. With a background in corporate finance and former Chief Financial Officer for Forico, Rayne has helped put nature on a Balance Sheet and to transform corporate decision making to incorporate the value of Natural Capital and cost externalities.

Rayne is assisting the Business Council of Sustainable Development to promote Nature Positive and food system transformations in Australia; sits on the Sustainability Management Advisory Group for the Chartered Accountants of Australia and New Zealand and is a State Councillor for the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Derryn Heilbuth is the Executive Chair of sustainability consultancy BWD Strategic. The company helps major corporates in Australia, Asia and the US, build organisational resilience and long-term value by helping them: assess their risks and opportunities; develop sustainability strategies that measure their impact; and disclose their progress through reporting that is aligned with the latest global standards and frameworks.

Swaroop Tulsidas is the Head of Product for Nature IQ, a CSIRO SaaS offering built on environmental science and data. Nature IQ supports organisations to make better decisions about how they impact nature.

AI and IoT - the good and the bad

AI and IoT are inextricably entwined. They can improve operational effectiveness, but how careful do we need to be and should we be worried?

This session will be moderated by Ian Oppermann, co-founder ServiceGen, which helps governments accelerate digital service delivery, and industry professor, UTS. The session will comprise Peter Leonard, principal, Data Synergies and Jannat Maqbool, chair - Trusted Technology and Data Steering Panel, IoTAA.

Ian Oppermann is considered a thought leader in the area of the Data, AI and the Digital Economy. ServiceGen helps governments accelerate digital service delivery and from 2015 to 2023, was the NSW Government’s Chief Data Scientist.

Peter Leonard is a business consultant and lawyer advising data-driven businesses and government agencies. Peter is also serves on the OECD Expert Group on AI, Data, and Privacy; the Australian National Data Advisory Council; the NSW Government’s AI Review Committee; the IoTAA’s Trusted Technology and Data Program Panel, among other roles.

Smart data and technology integration & real-time for energy transition

This session, Realising the Impact - data and technology integration, moderated by Catherine Caruana-McManus, co-founder and director sales and strategy with IoT wireless network operator Meshed, will look at how smart data can be leveraged to improve workflow and automate a wide range of processes.

To achieve a sustainable future, energy must be produced as efficiently as possible. Real-time data will be essential to achieving this. This panel session, Energy productivity and efficiency: the keys to affordable clean energy transition, will look at how businesses can get the real-time data they need to make this transition.

A panel comprising Luke Menzel, CEO, Energy Efficiency Council and Dani Alexander, CEO, UNSW Energy Institute, will be moderated by Mark Atkinson, domain lead Industrial IoT, Telstra.

Cutting edge IoT lab tours

There will be much more than talks and panel sessions at IoT Impact 2024. Delegates will have a rare chance to see some innovative applications of IoT with the rare chance to get a glimpse into the following cutting edge UTS research projects and labs:

• UTS Data Arena
• NTT DOCOMO Greenwall project
• UTS Radio Frequency and Communication Technologies (RFCT) Laboratory
• UTS Vault
• Infrastructure Robotics Lab

Places on these tours are limited, so book your tickets now.

The UTS Data Arena is a facility that enables researchers to immerse themselves in, observe and interact with their data on a massive scale. Data is visualised and projected onto a large cylindrical screen, four metres high and ten metres in diameter using a high performance computer graphics system that drives six 3D-stereo video projectors, edge-blended to create a seamless three-dimensional panorama.

The NTT DOCOMO Greenwall is a seven-metre square vertical garden on the outside of UTS Building 1. Sensors gather data on moisture, temperature, nutrients and plant health. The aim is to streamline urban green infrastructure management, reduce maintenance costs and gain a deeper understanding of green infrastructure health and operations.

The RFCT Lab is looking to advance next-generation RF devices and supporting technologies across the spectrum of IoT applications. It is working on everything from low-level electronics and RF circuits to high-level wireless communication and the integration of AI and ML into RF and communication technologies.

Surviving the skill crisis

Australia is facing its worst skills shortage in 60 years, and nowhere is the shortage worse than in digital and data skills—vital for IoT. The Filling your data and digital skills gap session will provide practical advice to help businesses and organisations deal with this issue today.

The IoT Impact conference will be held in Sydney on 13 June 2024 at the Great Hall, UTS. Places on the lab tours are limited, so book your conference tickets now. See the IoT Impact Conference agenda here.