Challenges

TURIN: TERNA INNOVATION STARTS HERE

9/4/2019 2 minutes

The first Innovation Hub, an innovation think tank for the electric grid, was inaugurated in the piedmontese capital.

A space where ideas and innovation go hand in hand, where cooperation between institutions, universities and companies creates fertile ground for technological development. The first Innovation Hub was inaugurated in Terna’s offices in Turin, in the presence of CEO and General Manager Luigi Ferraris, Chairwoman Catia Bastioli and Mayor Chiara Appendino.

What is it? It is a laboratory where new projects can be created, developed, and tested in a concrete manner, bringing together a community of people with different experiences and professions, integrating their skill sets and developing industrial solutions which can be applied on a larger scale. The aim is to strengthen the synergy between Terna and the local area, focusing its research on the sharing of innovation applied to system operator activities.

We are proud to start out right here in Piedmont, and particularly in Turin, on a journey of innovation that holds the objective of creating synergies between Terna’s people and professional knowledge and local excellence, to develop ideas and innovative paths that benefit an increasingly modern, efficient, flexible and sustainable electricity grid. We intend to invest over € 700 million in innovation and digitalisation in Italy over the next five years.

Luigi Ferraris, CEO and General Manager of Terna

More specifically, the Turin Innovation Hub will be focused on IoT (Internet of things) and advanced monitoring processes for energy transmission systems, developing four project areas (satellites, drones, robots and advanced sensor technologies) aimed at increasingly dynamic and innovative grid management, ensuring the efficiency and security of the system.

Thanks to centralised data management, it will also be possible to perform preventive maintenance on assets, enabling a reduction in costs and increased reliability of the transmission grid.

“We are proud that Terna believes in our community of startups, universities, and businesses - all those who contribute to making us attractive - focusing on innovation. We, as a city, believe that the greatest challenge for a local administrator is to understand what the next 10-15 years will bring and to facilitate the journey towards our future alongside companies such as Terna”, declared Appendino.

“We must work along two main lines: tangible infrastructure, with investments in 5G, the use of drones, etc. and intangible infrastructure, the cultural aspect which can be created only if all the players in a community understand the sense of innovation and face the challenge without fear. We are doing our part, Terna is doing its part, and I thank the company for this important investment. We will be by your side, always striving to enhance our connectivity” concluded the Mayor.