The title of this week’s ‘View from the Top’ is a theme that I have been thinking about when putting together one of our new additions at this year’s Innovation and Learning Festival. We have introduced lots of new features this year, several of which have already been announced such as:
- National Highways Innovation Team will be coming to the Festival to share what they are doing, both in talks and with an exhibition stand.
- The first of its kind prototype (and featured in BBC and national press) autonomous pothole filling machine will be showcased.
- Several of our University members will be exhibiting with their latest ideas and prototypes.
- Our Partner, Primary Engineer will be bringing a gallery of this year’s ideas from young school children, from the national “If you were an Engineer what would you do?” competition.
- CPD accredited and curated Technical Training sessions for Exhibitors
- Featured demonstration sessions.
- DfT Zone and talks.
There is more to announce over the next few weeks, but I want to return to the sentence I have become very fond of saying “It starts with an idea, then a conversation” and this is what has helped inspire the new for this year, “Innovation Think Pavilion.”
The Innovation Think Pavilion will not have a formal stage, the sessions in this pavilion are more interactive and they will be about bringing people together to discuss ideas, themes, innovation hacks, but also to start a conversation that LCRIG can help move forward. There have been ideas suggested by our Regional Groups and Boards. Some sessions will be closed to create a space for councils to think; we are planning a future innovation challenge as a call to arms for the sector, other sessions include panel debates and some will be open sessions about innovations to come and the infrastructure we will need to consider how we truly embrace the new technologies coming over the next five years.
Each of the sessions in this pavilion will feed into the new (and annual) LCRIG Innovation Report, that I hope to see discussed at this year’s Strictly Highways. The sessions and the interviews we have underway will all add up to what I believe will be the biggest report we have ever undertaken on Innovation. I am excited about the new additions; they reflect the type of learning organisation we are, one that keeps improving our not-for-profit events and the services we offer to all our members both council and supply chain.
But most of all, the new additions signal the start of something new for us, more insight, more intelligence-led, but also more ideas driven to support innovation in our sector within councils and for supply chain members.
“It starts with an idea, then a conversation”, and that too is what I hope will be provoked by universities being at the Festival, and by ideas created by primary school children on display, with new learning and CPD opportunities, networking breaks, but also with stories around innovation that we are planning with creative innovators.
Finally, if you are not coming, why not? Be part of the ideas and the conversation. But most of all, be part of the LCRIG Community.
Paula Claytonsmith, CEO