Putrajaya Smart City Takes Shape With First Municipal Operated IoT Infrastructure Powered By Vectolabs

Business Today – May 6, 2021

Perbadanan Putrajaya (PPj) has entered into a collaborative agreement with Internet of Things (IoT) solutions provider Vectolabs Technologies Sdn Bhd (Vectolabs) to set up the first municipal operated IoT infrastructure in the country.

The infrastructure will be using LoRa technology in Putrajaya to boost initiatives under the Putrajaya Smart City Blueprint.

“We are still only at the early stages of IoT development. As this technology and its adoption advances further, there will be more creativity with its uses, and a greater understanding of its potential. The IoT impact is one of the things that everyone is talking about nowadays which is part of the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” said Muhammad Azmi Bin Mohd Zain, President of Perbadanan Putrajaya.

The project is funded by the National Technology and Innovation Sandbox (NTIS) and is implemented in partnership with PPj, Vectolabs and the Wireless and Photonics Networks Research Centre (WiPNET) of Universiti Putra Malaysia within the Single Site Innovation Sandbox Category.

The agreement signed is set to formalise the collaboration to set up the municipal operated LoRa infrastructure in Presint 15 Putrajaya with the first application of smart street lightning.

The system is designed to manage all types of street lighting assets, which includes feeder pillars and all types of street lighting, from the smart-ready LEDs to the conventional High Pressure Sodium (HPS) luminaires.

The system helps PPj to resolve faulty street lighting proactively with the automated notification system, and quickly using the information provided, such as possible faulty components, exact location of the luminaire, and the feeder pillar, circuit and phase the luminaire is connected to.

Faizal Ali, Chief Executive Officer of Vectolabs said, “The unavailability of a municipal operated IoT network is a major barrier to build smart cities because every pilot project requires its own network infrastructure without any interoperability which drives up costs.”