Periodic Reporting for period 1 - SOCRATIC (SOCRATIC: A real-time effluent management software based on artificial intelligence and industrial automation, specific for the prevention of combined sewage overflow)
Período documentado: 2019-08-01 hasta 2019-11-30
Aiming to tackle this challenge, we present SOCRATIC, a real time effluent management solution that, based on artificial intelligence and industrial automation, provides a fast, automated and reliable solution for the prevention of CSOs. SOCRATIC is affordable solution that reduces by 80% the number of CSO events and provides savings up to 90% traditional solutions.
We have planned several activities to bring SOCRATIC to its TRL9 and to ensure a successful commercialization by Q3 2022. Technical objectives include the enhancement and packetization of the artificial intelligence algorithms (according to customers’ size, climate conditions, main issues, etc.) for obtaining a full range of SOCRATIC commercial products, the seamless integration of SOCRATIC with standard IT technologies to ensure its scalability, and the validation of SOCRATIC in real environments. Commercial activities involve a revision of the business strategy, commercialization agreements and distribution agreements. Communication objectives focus on the development of commercial materials, website and newsletters and presence in trade fairs.
This project has had as main goals to assess the technical feasibility of the objectives listed above, the commercial viability of our value proposition and the financial requirements of adjusting our current SOCRATIC solution to better serve the needs of our customers.
Technically, we analysed how we are going the enhance our current SOCRATIC solution according to customers’ needs and market trends, to offer an innovative game-changing effluent management solution. We established the roadmap to reach TRL9 and to keep improving our solution implementing the best features to truly empower our customers.
Our market research aimed to analyse the solutions on the market that solve the problem of CSO (mainly grouped into retention structures, rain waters harvesting, and dynamic management of the sewage network) and the needs of our target customers (mainly municipalities). We thoroughly analysed our target markets and identified key market drivers that will fuel the adoption of our solution. We analysed key market barriers and risks and established their mitigation actions. We studied our competition landscape and our freedom-to-operate analysis validated that our technology does not infringe any existing patent. To speed-up post-project sales, we fine-tuned our commercialization strategy and established agreements and plans with a carefully thought commercial partners. Finally, we shaped our projected sales revenues from Q3-2022 to Q3-2028.
CSOs contain chemical and microbiological pollution, hazardous substances and plastic litter, which can pose a health risk to humans, animals and the environment. The magnitude of the impacts of polluted CSOs depends on the frequency, duration and severity of CSO events, as well the quality of the excess water that is being discharged. The environmental impact of a CSO event is defined by the conditions of the receiving water body. Water bodies that are most at risk for CSO are water bodies that have one or more of the following characteristics: rivers with good or high ecological status and good or high chemical status, small or seasonal streams and stagnant waters. In addition, the risk to human health is higher where people are exposed to the polluted water, e.g. through bathing or other water-related leisure. Moreover, reducing CSO events means also reduce the hazard, i.e. illness in new-born infants, waterborne disease, toxicities, death of fishes.