A.CRE AT SMART CITY EXPO BOGOTA 2023!
From May 31 to June 2 of this year, the Smart City Expo was held in Bogota, Colombia, and focused on implementing sustainable and smart development in cities.
The event recognized cities as spaces that concentrate people, capital, and creativity, where the encounter between different economic and technological sectors generates a process of innovation as well as economic activity. It also provided a look at the challenges and opportunities for the technological construction of real estate developments in Latin America.
The Smart City Expo Bogota was attended by more than eleven thousand national and international visitors, and more than eighty exhibitors and expert companies from around the world, who shared ideas and solutions related to smart technologies, urban mobility, economic development, public innovation, energy, environment, sustainable territory, and safe cities.
Bogotá City
THE FIRST EVENT OF THIS KIND THAT WE ATTENDED IN LATIN AMERICA
Large cities in Latin America are adopting a comprehensive approach to a long-term sustainable development model, not in vain, the event’s motto was “Cities that care, cities that innovate”, where cities must promote the connection between the quality of life of citizens and urban modernization.
In this sense, being A.CRE a company dedicated to the real estate sector, the Smart City Expo Bogota represented a great window to visualize how things are being done in the great cities of Latin America in terms of urban planning.
The capital city of Bogota was a focus of the event, being a reference in the region in terms of territorial planning, smart mobility, energy, environment, and public innovation. Bogota showed its urban agenda and the moment it is currently living, with challenges and opportunities in terms of digital transformation and technological innovation.
So, through two of its financial analysts, Arturo and Emilio, A.CRE connected with different companies and institutions in Latin America dedicated to the sustainable development of cities. We let them know who we are and our main functions of academic and professional training in the real estate sector, mainly through offering our Accelerator program to individuals and professionals at top universities and real estate companies throughout the world.
Additionally, we shared what we have been doing in the last months regarding Latin America through the creation of content in Spanish dedicated to commercial real estate, covering financial models, tutorials, video clips, blog posts, glossary of terms, etc.
I invite you to visit this link:
https://www.adventuresincre.com/espanol/
Our financial analysts, Arturo Parada and Emilio Tovar (From left to right in the picture) were present at the event.
SMART TECHNOLOGIES IN THE TOP 5 REAL ESTATE TYPES
The event was attended by numerous companies that offer IoT, software, devices, sensors, cloud services, etc., responsible for generating a complete integrated network to collect, store and process any variable type that needs to be monitored in a real estate property.
The monitoring of water, energy, and gas consumption, as well as air quality, noise inside buildings, temperature, motion control systems, and lighting, are some of the services offered by these technologies in residential and office buildings, hotels, shopping centers, and industries.
Undoubtedly, new technologies and innovations are transforming cities and the way of managing urban development in Latin America.
REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENTS AND CONTECH LATIN AMERICA 2023 REPORT
First, the term Contech means the new technologies that contribute to all phases of a construction process, from planning and design to construction and installation of technological components in real estate developments.
In this sense, the Smart City Expo Bogota 2023 was the venue for the presentation of the First Contech Latin America 2023 Report.
This report was developed by “Digital Bricks” an innovation platform that provides support in the implementation of technology focused on the digital transformation of the infrastructure and construction sectors, under the sponsorship of “Leonard” an innovation platform belonging to the VINCI group, which aims to bring together a community of stakeholders to build the city of the future.
The report addresses the context for the Contech solutions development, the Contech growth landscape, and the future of the Contech ecosystem in Latin America.
Modular and industrialized construction, new materials and construction methods, the marketplace for services and products, the development of software for construction projects, the use of IoT, data analytics, etc., are some of the Contechs used in Latin America and which, according to the report, reflect growth.
Construction companies, start-ups, academia, Contech investors, laboratories, and research and innovation centers, in short, the entire Latin American Contech ecosystem were involved in the report.
The Contech Latin America 2023 report is available for public access at the following link:
https://leonard.vinci.com/en/leonard-presents-the-first-study-on-contech-in-latin-america/
ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL REAL ESTATE TRAINING
After visiting the various stands of academic and research institutions, companies linked to the construction sector, and even the science, technology, and innovation district project of the city of Bogota, we were able to perceive that the community working for urban development in Latin America is interested in learning by competencies, which allows them to immediately use the knowledge in the reality that surrounds them.
This is where A.CRE sees an opportunity with our Real Estate Financial Modeling Accelerator program. Understanding that the real estate sector is a fundamental pillar in the economy of each country, we have the vision of contributing to the economic development of Latin America through the training of real estate professionals, which allows us to bring institutional-level real estate analysis to Latin America.
PUBLIC AND DIGITAL INNOVATION IN URBAN DEVELOPMENT
The event reflected the challenges and opportunities offered by trends in public innovation, with lectures and discussions on urban planning and citizen participation in digital transformation.
Public innovation focused on the best practices and tools to offer quality services and help different sectors of society understand the context of the city in which they live.
Undoubtedly, the use of technologies such as IoT, big data, Artificial Intelligence, etc., offer many opportunities for improvement for the public management of the city and generate challenges such as the digital divide, education, personal data protection, and cybersecurity, among others.
In this sense, we met different companies that develop data analytics projects together with the public sector. For example, the mayor’s office of Bogota works hand in hand with data analytics companies, which allow it to attack problems in the best way, evolve as a city, and even generate a database of open or available data for citizens in terms of habitat.
The presence of these companies in Latin America and the generation of public data represents a fundamental basis for feeding with appropriate inputs into real estate financial models, and real estate offering memorandums.
Data such as population growth, accessibility, average age, job growth, insecurity levels, cost of living, average salary, housing shortage, budget spent on education, rental demand, demographics, real estate developments, hospitality institutions, transportation infrastructure and investments, shopping and entertainment centers, unemployment levels, among many others, are valuable when constructing an offering memorandum for a real estate property in Latin America.
Final Thoughts
The Smart City Expo, based in the beautiful city of Bogota, allowed us to understand the context that large Latin American cities are currently experiencing in terms of urban planning, with its great potential, and at the same time, challenges.
Listening each day to the diverse ideas, knowledge, and solutions offered by various experts worldwide on how to bring sustainable and intelligent development to Latin American cities, undoubtedly made us enjoy this great event.
We look forward to attending events like this in the future, which also allows us to continue to raise awareness of A.CRE’s role and how we can contribute to the economic development of the region.
Frequently Asked Questions about A.CRE at Smart City Expo Bogota 2023
Why did A.CRE attend the Smart City Expo in Bogota?
This was the first event of its kind A.CRE attended in Latin America. It offered a “great window to visualize how things are being done in the great cities of Latin America in terms of urban planning.” A.CRE aimed to connect with organizations involved in sustainable urban development and introduce their real estate financial training programs to new markets.
What is the significance of Bogota in the Smart City conversation?
Bogota was highlighted as a regional leader in “territorial planning, smart mobility, energy, environment, and public innovation.” The city showcased its urban agenda and ongoing digital transformation, making it a fitting host for the event.
How did A.CRE present its value at the event?
A.CRE’s analysts, Arturo and Emilio, introduced attendees to A.CRE’s mission in academic and professional training, particularly the Accelerator program. They also promoted A.CRE’s growing library of Spanish-language content for Latin American CRE professionals.
What technologies were emphasized in relation to real estate?
Technologies discussed included IoT, sensors, cloud services, motion control systems, and data analytics. These are used for monitoring “water, energy, and gas consumption, as well as air quality, noise… temperature, motion, and lighting” in key real estate types like residential, office, hotel, retail, and industrial properties.
What is Contech and what role did it play at the expo?
Contech refers to “new technologies that contribute to all phases of a construction process.” The First Contech Latin America 2023 Report was launched at the event, showcasing trends in modular construction, new materials, marketplaces, and digital tools used across Latin America.
What trends in academic training were observed by A.CRE?
A.CRE noted high demand for “learning by competencies,” allowing professionals to immediately apply skills in real-world scenarios. This aligns with the practical, case-based structure of A.CRE’s Accelerator, making it a strong fit for Latin American CRE professionals.
How is public innovation being used in urban development?
Public innovation focuses on tools and services that improve quality of life and foster citizen understanding. Bogotá’s government, for example, partners with data analytics firms to “attack problems in the best way” and support public access to real estate-relevant data.
What types of public data are useful for real estate modeling?
Key data includes: “population growth, accessibility, average age, job growth, insecurity levels, cost of living, average salary, housing shortage, rental demand, transportation infrastructure, unemployment levels,” and more. These inform offering memorandums and financial models.
What future steps does A.CRE plan after attending this event?
A.CRE plans to continue attending similar events and expanding its presence in Latin America. The goal is to “raise awareness of A.CRE’s role and how we can contribute to the economic development of the region” through professional education and partnerships.
