CONTENTS
04 NEWS & EVENTS
News, events and happenings in the Cambridge business community
07 WHERE NEXT FOR THE IOT?
We speak to Cambridge companies at the cutting edge of the internet of things 13 ASK NOT WHAT THE IOT CAN DO FOR YOU TTP’s Steve Baker looks at some of the industrial IoT’s most successful applications 15 A SMART STRATEGY Appleyard Lee’s Parminder Lally looks at IoT innovation and intellectual property 16 THE BIG THREE Prepped founder Simon Crosbie talks meal kits and management styles 19 PITCH PERFECT Orca Scan’s founder gives Catalyst the elevator pitch for his barcode scanning app 21 REBOOTING COMPUTING How can we best prepare kids for our digital world? Local schools have their say 28 ECO COMMUNITIES It’s not easy being green, but local housing developments are leading by example 32 CATALYST GIFT GUIDE Blitz your Christmas list at these innovative independent retailers 34 OUT & ABOUT A new Thai restaurant, a virtual film festival and more on the local scene this month
When you hear the phrase “internet of things”, what comes to mind? Your Amazon Alexa, or your Fitbit perhaps? Maybe your brain goes straight to some of the more gimmicky gadgets that this technology has birthed – my favourite example being a pair of connected flip-flops that alerted the wearer to the brand’s footwear sales. What a great example of a product that’s the answer to a question nobody asked! Setting aside the smart salt shakers, IoT hairbrushes and other bafflingly pointless connected devices the consumer market has seen, where things get really interesting is on an industrial level , within the so-called IIoT, as TTP’s Steve Baker explains in this issue. From Rolls Royce to Rentokil , big companies are harnessing the power of the IIoT and saving money, manpower and logistical headaches by taking the guesswork out of their operations – find out more on page 13. Of course, the capabilities that the IoT is built on – sensors, software and AI – are the bread and butter of the Cambridge Cluster, so it’s no surprise that our city has plenty of companies doing exciting things in the space, as Matthew Gooding discovers in his feature about what’s next for the IoT. Device Pilot, Camnexus and other Cambridge firms look at how IoT is impacting our lives today and consider what the future might hold for the market on page 7. In the hot seat for this month’s Pitch Perfect is Orca Scan, a company that helps businesses track everything from medicine to machinery, instantly, accurately and affordably, with their barcode scanner app. Born of an all-night father-son coding session, Orca Scan is now used by 25% of the Fortune 500 list of America’s biggest companies, including Facebook, Apple, Amazon and Nasa. Find out how they got there on page 19. Another story of start-up success this issue comes from meal kit company Prepped: turn to page 16 to read about founder Simon Crosbie’s career so far, and the people who helped him on his way. Elsewhere in the issue, Cambridge schools consider how best to prepare young people for today’s digital world on page 21, and we take a tour of some of the area’s most sustainable new communities on page 28. Enjoy the issue and keep an eye out for number 9, out in December.
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NICOLA FOLEY EDITOR IN CHIEF
EDITORIAL EDITOR IN CHIEF Nicola Foley 01223 499459 nicolafoley@bright-publ ishing.com EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Frances McNaughton 01223 499469 francesmcnaughton@bright-publ ishing.com CHIEF SUB EDITOR Beth Fletcher SUB EDITOR El isha Young JUNIOR SUB EDITOR Jack Nason
CONTRIBUTORS Steve Baker, Simon Crosbie, Matthew Gooding, Parminder Lally
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ISSUE 01 I 8
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