Unified IoT network to power smart city services for six councils

Six councils across South Essex in the UK have deployed a unified LoRaWan network to deliver comprehensive coverage across 98 per cent of the region and to power their smart city services.

Network solutions provider, Abzorb, has designed and delivered a resilient, region-wide network for the councils of Basildon, Brentwood, Castle Point, Rochford, Southend-on-Sea, Thurrock, and Essex County.

Shared, scalable platform

The network gives the six councils and county a shared, scalable platform for deploying Internet of Things (IoT) services quickly, cost-effectively, and without the need to build separate infrastructure for every new use case.

According to Abzorb, the project was delivered £40,000 under budget, reducing the required number of gateways from an initial estimate of 60 to just 44 through advanced radio frequency (RF) planning and detailed network mapping.

The councils recognised the potential of IoT technologies to improve operational efficiency, reduce costs, and provide better visibility across public assets and services.

Deploying IoT projects in isolation was difficult to justify financially because each new initiative would require its own dedicated network infrastructure. By partnering with Abzorb to build a unified LoRaWan network leveraging the councils’ existing dark fibre investment, the councils have created a long-term digital foundation that lowers the barrier to innovation for all councils in the collaboration.

“The councils get more for less through a platform that will keep delivering value for years to come as new services are added. We believe this model works and we want every council in the UK to benefit from it”

The six councils report that the network is already enabling them to deploy a broad range of smart services including footfall counters in libraries and public spaces, occupancy and damp monitoring in buildings, flood and temperature sensors, bin monitoring, carbon monoxide detection, Legionella compliance monitoring, and vehicle and people counting.

Designed as an open platform, the network allows councils to procure and deploy sensors from any supplier, further reducing costs and preventing vendor lock-in.

“What impressed us most about Abzorb was the way they approached this as a genuine partnership. They took the time to understand what we were trying to achieve across six different councils, each with their own priorities and pressures, and came back with a solution that is smart and future-proof,” said Carol Thomas, director digital and ICT and senior information risk owner (Siro), Southend-on-Sea City Council.