Olivia PowellInnovate East was hosted by Anglian Water in partnership with Essex & Suffolk Water, and held in Ipswich, Suffolk. The event took place over three days, and saw more than 1,800 delegates.
Innovate East aimed to combine both company’s efforts to find solutions to some of the most urgent issues facing the water industry, both in the eastern region and as a whole.
12 of the structures provided by Evolution Dome housed design sprints, hackathons and daily dashes over three days. Each was sponsored by a relevant organisation that wanted to help solve the problem it was trying to address.
Guests at the event came from nearly 300 organisations, and encompassed a range of professions from councillors and data scientists to third sector specialists and construction experts.
Director for Evolution Dome Ash Austin, said: “It was amazing to see so many of our structures in use at Innovate East – they were all installed and finished with floor and carpet in just one day, which just shows how quick our temporary structure solutions can be rolled out! The event itself was fantastic, the team where amazing to work with and we look forward to working with them again in the near future.”
Gemma Woods, event executive for Anglian Water, said: “Innovate East was a resounding success. As Anglian Water’s biggest event to date, we lent heavily on our suppliers, this included Ash and the team at Evolution Dome. Their futuristic infrastructure looked incredible and enabled blue-sky, creative and innovative thinking. It certainly set a precedent for delegates as soon as they walked onto site. The setup, close down and three event days went without a hitch. The legacy of the event is long continuing and the impact will benefit both the water industry and the East of England as a whole.”