Tech From the Heart
Cultivating Sustainable Communities
It’s no secret that Artificial Intelligence (AI) has taken the world by storm. But with it comes the question: Is technology really being used to better our communities?
At Insight, ‘technology for good’ goes beyond just empowering our clients’ creative minds to turn great ideas into real outcomes. It also aims to harness the power of people and technology, leave a light footprint on the environment and better connect technology in our communities.
We’ve been working extensively to apply Microsoft Azure technologies to cultivate robust, integrated and sustainable communities. The past year has seen the rollout of tens of thousands of smart sensors to manage water resources and improve food distribution.We’re also helping people understand the possibilities with generative AI. We will continue this work across industries with our unique OpenAI workshops, as well as with educators and the next generation of the workforce at an upcoming AI Immersion Day in collaboration with Auckland University.
Here are some examples:
Smart water managementA public water management agency in Australia provides safe drinking water and manages wastewater and stormwater to protect rivers and beaches. Insight helped the agency establish an industrial IoT backbone for smarter water management, reducing public health risk and environmental damage. This included distribution and telemetry from upstream devices, which now provides safer drinking water. The digital transformation connected 26,000 devices to help un-silo data. It was the first Azure IoT use-case implemented for water overflow management and wastewater monitoring, providing advanced analytics and real-time alerts for issues like water overflow and sewer blockages.
Improved logistics A national grain distributor with over 100 distribution centres and the capacity to store 20 million tons of grain was seeking to optimise their network. The goal was to improve operations to solve challenges like maintaining grain stocks to meet forecast demand. They needed help to transform their IT infrastructure to automate, optimise and standardise how the supply was distributed to domestic and international customers. Insight’s automated solution simplified the management of these precious resources — building a pathway to a more efficient and optimised distribution model — and provided data insights supporting environmental, social and governance reporting.
Recently, Microsoft recognised both Insight Australia and Insight Hong Kong with global Partner of the Year Awards for 2023, for our combination of client focus and technical excellence. Vanessa Sorenson, chief partner officer for Microsoft A/NZ, described [Insight] as “an excellent example of what the partner of the future looked like.”
“[Insight is] an excellent example of what the partner of the future looked like."
“Insight has delivered incredible client outcomes this year including overhauling Australia’s largest water network’s infrastructure through an Azure IoT wastewater management solution, reducing public health risk and environmental damage, as well as an enterprise data platform for Transport for NSW, which utilises real-time analytics and alerts to provide commuters with more reliable journeys,” Sorenson said.
Insight also represented the best of “partnering for purpose” and had built a genuinely inclusive workplace.
“It has made a significant commitment to the Champions of Change and Women Rising programs for their internal development, and externally it’s partnered within SheCodes, Dress for Success and the Indigenous Literacy Foundation to help bridge the diversity and inclusion gap.”
Making a big impact can start with something small. And ambitious solutions can start with the basics: reduce, reuse and recycle.Insight Australia has taken this last point to a simple next step by creating a recycled and reconditioned laptop plan. An example of this is where we donate reconditioned devices (with Windows 11) to schools, colleges and community groups within one of our Partnerships That Make a Difference networks. While this program is new, it has been wonderful to read how these donations to students lead to learning opportunities.
We believe that technology should be used as a source for making the world a better place, and Insight supports the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Since its inception in 2015, governments and international and local organisations have taken innovative steps to support the SDG charter. This charter serves as “a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all people and the world by 2030.”
We strive to implement our own good practices through our solutions. We do this by establishing greater harmony in our workplace, as well as collaborating with our partners and clients. You can read more about Insight’s commitment in our Global Citizenship Report.
We’re passionate about using our creativity to make a positive change for our clients and communities. Our goal is to reduce negative environmental impacts and promote ecologically responsible practices, while improving overall ESG outcomes. With the help of cutting-edge technology like modern work, data and AI, and responsible asset distribution, we offer diverse approaches to enhance sustainability.
In particular, we recommend implementing energy-efficient data infrastructure, which helps to reduce carbon emissions. We’re also committed to partnering with professionals who specialise in zero-landfill recycling of end-of-life devices and IT components.
By integrating smart technology and edge computing, we can deliver innovative solutions. These solutions are ready to optimise energy consumption and make a significant contribution toward reducing environmental impact.
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