Close up of a man and woman shaking hands

At the heart of our Smart Belfast framework is the understanding that innovation is much more powerful if commercial, academic and public bodies can find ways to work together to develop new ideas, products and services.

Late in 2016, working with Invest NI, we established the ‘Smart Belfast Collaborative Challenge’ which provides funding to SMEs to work together to explore innovative opportunities in the areas of Active Living, Tourism and Transport.

Participating companies receive support to engage with experts to jointly develop ideas, explore the art of the possible, and work towards new commercial ventures.

In our current programme 68 SMEs submitted 17 scoping proposals to the programme.

We are now working with five successful SME networks each of which will receive up to £25,000 worth of support.

Three networks are focus on the tourist sector to better understand visitor behaviour to plan and manage tourism in the city.

If successful networks will be able to apply in Phase 2 for up to £170,000 (per network) to develop a commercial proposition.

You can find out more about Invest NI’s Collaborative Growth programme here.

Electric vehicle

Belfast unveils new electric vehicles for city parks

Belfast City Council is reviewing its vehicle fleet, with long-term ambitions set for transition to low carbon transport options in the future.

ParkUnload app

Belfast’s ‘smart’ loading zones proving popular with drivers

Belfast is trialling innovative solutions to help manage loading bays and electric vehicle charging points at two sites in the city as part of the Last Mile Delivery challenge.

Daytime harbour and docklands Belfast

Phase two of Last Mile Delivery challenge

Smart, low cost solutions to optimise freight and cargo deliveries in urban centres, and improve traffic management, air quality, noise pollution and road safety.