Black & Veatch, ReThink Advisors Partner to Improv

CLEVELAND, Oct. 23, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Black & Veatch, a smart cities market leader, and strategic planning consultancy ReThink Advisors today announced a partnership to improve community well-being with a data-driven tool for city planning and performance.

Using CityGauge, the partners work with cities to assess current performance and set future targets against an interconnected set of metrics that relate to community livability, prosperity, health and well-being, connectivity and mobility, ecosystem stewardship and resource regeneration. The tool also is used to guide programs by mapping the integrated impacts of different scenarios to determine which ones will lead to the best outcomes. Interactive dashboards enable city leaders and community members to review and productively engage around program priorities, plans and progress.

The tool follows the EcoDistricts Protocol, a process-based framework and certification standard that empowers equitable, resilient, and sustainable neighborhoods and is powered by Black & Veatch’s cloud-based analytics platform, ASSET360 ®.  ASSET360 captures, integrates and analyzes disparate data sets from community systems and services to inform decisions and actions.

“Cities face massively complex challenges that were previously impossible to solve in an integrated way. Advances in data analytics and computing power now enable us to connect the dots between systems to create critical insights and solutions that would otherwise be missed,” said Jennifer James, Smart City Solutions Leader at Black & Veatch.

For instance, rather than approaching energy, health and mobility in silos, CityGauge can assess how installing solar panels atop parking garages can power charging stations for electric vehicles while advancing greener transportation – and determine the combined impact on emissions, asthma attacks, job growth and quality of life.

“Just as important as being data-centric is being people-centric,” said Irwin Lowenstein, President of ReThink Advisors. “Through this partnership we are helping cities like Lakewood, Ohio, seek citizen input on priorities and plans and be transparent about how well they are performing against key metrics over time. This approach builds trust and a stronger sense of community.”

  Editor’s Note:

• Black & Veatch and ReThink Advisors will demonstrate the CityGauge tool at Black & Veatch’s booth at the “Meeting of the Minds Annual Summit ” Monday through Wednesday at the Global Center for Health Innovation at the Huntington Convention Center in Cleveland.

About Black & Veatch   Black & Veatch is an employee-owned, global leader in building critical human infrastructure in Energy, Water, Telecommunications and Government Services. Since 1915, we have helped our clients improve the lives of people in over 100 countries through consulting, engineering, construction, operations and program management. Our revenues in 2016 were US$3.2 billion. Follow us on  www.bv.com  and in social media.

About ReThink Advisors   ReThink Advisors is a planning and strategy consultancy that lives at the intersection of purpose-driven planning, urban design, architecture, sustainability and resilience offering integrated, holistic, systems thinking at the neighborhood, district, community or regional scale. ReThink Advisors seeks to foster EcoDistricts Certified districts following the EcoDistricts Protocol to underpin engagement, planning and strategy work for clients seeking to create thriving, prosperous neighborhoods and cities. Check us out at www.rethinkadvisors.com.

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