During the days of September 19, 20, and 21 of last month, Arantec Enginheria S.L. participated as a stakeholder in the 2nd AnywhereH2020 meeting and workshop at the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI) in Helsinki, Finland.
The main objective of Anywhere is to enable society as a whole and the main European civil protection agencies to respond more rapidly to extreme weather and climate phenomena and to cope with the high social, environmental, and economic impacts related to these extreme natural phenomena.
There are 13 European countries participating in this project, led in Spain by UPC (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya) along with private R&D companies. Arantec is one of them.
The project presented by Arantec was the Early Warning System for the Sió River (Segarra) using the Smarty River solution.
The Smarty River Early Warning Flood Risk Control System (SAPI), installed a few months ago by Arantec on the Sió River, through the installation of 2 river level sensors and 3 pluviometers with temperature and relative humidity, allows the officials of the municipality of Agramunt to coordinate prevention and alert tasks to inform the population about the real-time situation of the river and to take preventive measures against possible sudden increases in the river’s flow.
We interviewed Mario Losañez, Business Development Director of Arantec, about their participation in Anywhere.
Q- Is this the first time that Arantec has attended this conference?
A-Yes, it is the first time. Well, I have to say that it’s not really a conference but a workshop where advances on the Anywhere project are discussed. We were invited by UPC to the first edition in Genoa last year, but we couldn’t attend due to preparations for the Meteorological Technology World Expo. We are very pleased to have been able to attend the Helsinki meeting for its second edition.
Q-Question: What has been Arantec’s contribution in this edition? How has your success story been received?
A- Arantec’s contribution, as a stakeholder, has been based on two fundamental aspects. One is the networking relationship with UPC and other countries to integrate the prediction solutions developed by the Anywhere project with SmartyPlanet’s real-time data collection and early warning systems. The other fundamental aspect has been the opportunity to present our success story through a poster in the town of Agramunt, where SmartyRiver solutions allowed us to alert the population in 2016 with enough advance notice to prevent a repeat of the previous year’s tragedy.
Q- The Anywhere Project, in which 13 European countries participate, is led in Spain by UPC in collaboration with R&D companies. What role does Arantec play?
A- As mentioned earlier, Arantec is part of the group of stakeholders or companies responsible for commercializing the solutions developed in the Anywhere project and integrating them into the market along with what we already offer (Smarty Planet), either as a combined prediction and alert product or as separate modules, depending on the needs of future clients.
Q- How do you evaluate the experience and your participation?
A- The experience has been very satisfying, and we will definitely participate in the next edition, which will be held in Barcelona, as it has allowed us to strengthen our relationships with the different companies and organizations we have been working with, as well as to showcase our solutions to the various countries and working groups involved in the project.
Q- What solutions can Arantec’s work contribute in terms of the project’s proposals?
A- Arantec’s work within this project serves as a link between its development and the market launch of the prediction solution, along with the early warning system, both at a general and local level.
Q- In your opinion, where do preventive projects in Europe and the world need to focus, given the increasingly frequent environmental phenomena such as hurricanes, typhoons, earthquakes, and the effects of climate change in flood risk prevention?
A- In this case, the Anywhere project precisely addresses these aspects by bringing together numerous countries with the goal of having a tool for disaster prediction and integrating it with various emergency warning and management solutions to ultimately save lives.
