Smart Cities and Communities – Hampered by Public Procurement Rules?

A contribution on the European Commission’s website on retrofitting public buildings: where public procurement and innovation have to shake hands – is worth a read this week. “The EU’s Energy Efficiency Directive states that ‘EU countries must make energy efficient renovations to at least 3% of buildings owned and occupied by central government.’ The spirit of course applies to all echelons of government, right down to towns and the smallest of villages. So what are the specific challenges of retrofitting public buildings?” Governments and local authorities are keen to promote smart cities, it says, but public procurement rules and lengthy decision-making processes make this no easy task. Read it here.