Getting the ‘Sky Blues’ city engaged in blue sky thinking on ultra fast broadband was the theme of a business seminar aimed at making Coventry one of only a handful of ‘SuperConnected Cities’ in the UK.
Coventry is now open for businesses and firms in the city have until the end of March 2015 to apply for vouchers from a Government pot of £2.4 million under its SuperConnected Cities initiative.
Around 60 companies attended the event at St Mary’s Guildhall, Coventry, to learn more about the benefits of the scheme, or to offer their services as providers of business-class broadband.
Eligible companies can now apply for vouchers through the city council and the providers backing the scheme will carry out the connection work.
John Norton, business development advisor for Coventry City Council, said: “The development of Coventry as a SuperConnected City is viewed by many as essential in maintaining its economic strength in the region, and in the UK as a whole. The development of ultrafast broadband means that the Internet can be used for far more than just the transferring of files and the sending of emails. This project is Coventry’s opportunity to be at the forefront of the developments as one of 23 Super Connected Cities around the UK.
“Some businesses really do depend upon new technology, so the SuperConnected Coventry project means we can create whole new business sectors that can be the new leaders of our economic strength,” he added.
WarwickNet, the region’s fastest growing provider of business speed broadband, is keenly supporting the project and is urging small to medium sized Coventry businesses to apply for up to £3000 worth of financial support to help them get connected – before the Government’s funding deadline expires on March 31 next year.
Ben King, managing director of WarwickNet, said: “We have been involved in providing high-speed broadband to Coventry’s business parks, many of which were crying out for superfast connectivity, so we are ideally positioned to be of assistance to businesses that want to get involved in this excellent initiative.
“Recipients of the vouchers will get more than a financial token – they will get a one-way ticket to increased efficiency and productivity and the ability to compete on a level playing field on the world stage. There are many strong case studies on the city council’s website where businesses that want to invest in new and imaginative initiatives are thwarted by their lack of bandwidth – this should not be allowed to happen,” said Earsldon-based Ben.
“So, it is important to visit the city council’s website to learn more because the money from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport is only available for the next 11 months. During that time, we want to help as many businesses as we can,” he added.
Companies as diverse as advanced engineering NUM (UK) Ltd, Middlemarch Environmental and C4 Logistics all received funding to install high speed broadband services from WarwickNet.
Steve Moore, General Manager at NUM (UK) Ltd said: “As a part of the advanced engineering sector in the UK, it is essential that we can work efficiently with our clients and partners. That means we need to be able to use the modern communication techniques – not just email, but video conferencing and file transfer. We also have a critical remote diagnostic tool for our customers around the world. Connectivity in the past was very intermittent, to the point where we would have difficulty in using our systems properly. The funding has allowed us to use new fibre optic broadband to deliver the ultrafast connectivity that is essential for us to continue to compete effectively.”
Susanna Saari at Middlemarch Environmental added: “We carry out a range of ecological surveys and the field staff need remote access to data on the go. Equally, the main office needs to have a reliable and fast connection with our seven regional offices. We also need to keep all our data safely stored and backed up, and to be able to communicate effectively with our clients. Effective broadband is essential for any business with remote offices/workers and cloud data solutions such as ours.”
For more information about Super-Connected Coventry visit www.coventry.gov.uk/broadband
