Government Technology: Texas Alliance Offers Regional Path for Tech Implementation
The North Texas Innovation Alliance brings together public and private organizations in the region, offering a coordinated approach for technology implementations — such as drones and robotics.
July 18, 2023 • Julia Edinger
The North Texas Innovation Alliance (NTXIA) recently hosted a Drone & Robotics Demo Day as part of the alliance’s broader work to help make Dallas County a smart county.
The event last month saw the launch of a program to advance the use of unmanned aircraft systems and robotics technology, though the group’s work at large involves collaboration across sectors and technologies.
Jen Sanders, cofounder and executive director of NTXIA, explained that the 501C3 that exists today builds on work that really started in 2015 with the Dallas Innovation Allianceand has since evolved to bring partners from the entire region of North Texas.
Sanders explained that in a region in which people regularly cross county lines for work and life, a regional approach made sense — especially with regards to cost efficiencies and scaling.
Dallas County Assistant Administrator Jonathon Bazan, who has been a part of the consortium’s work dating back to its Living Lab initiative days, said the alliance helps empower innovation on a larger scale because it is closely connected to an array of sources dedicated to implementing the latest technology and best practices.
“For Dallas County, and the city of Dallas, it’s a great treasure to have in our backyard,” Bazan said.
SMARTER COUNTY, SMARTER REGION
The recent demo day gave county officials the opportunity to be introduced to technologies that can help achieve its smart goals — drones and robotics in this case.
For Dallas County, the alliance and the UAS and drone program helps build on goals outlined in the Smart County Blueprint, released in 2021. According to Bazan, the plan helps keep the county organized and helps ensure work aligns with goals: “Overall, I think the big picture was to be a more connected, responsive and sustainable government organization.”
“One of those [goals] had to do with drones, and really exploring drone usage and how Dallas County can improve its operations and enhance service delivery by use of drones,” said Bazan.
To make this event effective, representatives from numerous departments — ranging from the Sheriff Department to the Public Works Department — were involved in the planning for this event, sharing problems that could potentially be different use case applications for these emerging technologies.
On the drone side, Bazan underlined potential use cases to enhance security in the county, in locations ranging from jail facilities to parking garages. Surveillance applications could also include managing fire activity and illegal dumping. The county is also exploring how drones can be used to capture data more efficiently.
On the robotics side, Bazan said potential applications for this tech were obvious to county stakeholders immediately, such as how the advanced cleaning robotics could help in facilities where it is difficult or not cost effective to have humans do it — for example, in a jail facility. Concierge robotics could also help supplement human workers in a customer service capacity.
He said prior to the gathering, officials were not aware of all the potential applications of these emerging technologies, particularly where robotics were concerned. Bringing stakeholders together to learn from one another helps spur ideas and conversations that may not have happened otherwise.
Sanders also underlined that county stakeholders have the mindset of how technologies can help in the short, mid and long term.
“The response was, ‘What’s next?’” Sanders said, adding that it was as fun as it was productive.
Bazan noted that the event prompted the scheduling of a meeting among department leaders to discuss some of the pilot projects that will come out of this event as a result of this regional collaboration.