A New Partnership

Version 1 is delighted to announce a new partnership between the Innovation Labs and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) to implement Smart Data Capture, an intelligent data recognition tool developed by the Innovation Labs.

The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) works with citizens, communities, business, public bodies, and Government to help achieve Ireland’s clean energy ambitions. Funded by the Government, through the Department of Environment, Climate, and Communications, SEAI is responsible for implementing large parts of Ireland’s Climate Action Plan.

SEAI manages the grant application process for 18 different support schemes ranging from solar panels to clean energy research. Currently, all applications for grants to SEAI must be reviewed and verified manually before any payments are approved. With over 50,000 applications per year, this manual review process is highly resource-intensive.

The Version 1 Innovation Labs and the SEAI are teaming up to explore a new technology solution to help automate this application review process. For an initial proof of value, the Innovation Labs will work on the PV Solar Scheme, which processes up to 40,000 documents annually. Smart Data Capture will be deployed to automatically review and attempt to verify each application.

Smart Data Capture can deliver several benefits such as:

  • Reduced costs in form processing
  • Operational efficiencies as staff are able to focus on higher-value initiatives
  • Being able to sit on top of existing IT systems without a need to rearchitect
  • The production of clear codified rules to handle a business process

Intelligent Data Recognition will be employed in the Proof of Value being developed by Version 1 for the SEAI in the form of Optical Character Recognition (OCR), Handwriting Recognition and other knowledge mining techniques to build a Form Review Tool for the SEAI team. The deployment of Smart Data Capture will aim to drastically reduce the manual effort and time needed to process each application.

Smart Data Capture is part of the Innovation Lab’s “Smart Action Suite, a set of enterprise-ready productivity apps focused on addressing common challenges many organisations face, using innovative technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Robotic Process Automation. The Smart Action Suite has been developed using the latest, cutting edge technology, with a clear focus on increasing productivity for enterprises. Using both Cloud and Open Source technology, the Smart Action Suite can be delivered and tailored to your organisation’s needs.

Version 1 is delighted to work with SEAI in their crucial role to bringing about a low carbon economy through measures and activities focused on the transition to a smarter and more sustainable energy future.

About SEAI

SEAI’s vision is for Ireland’s energy to be sustainable, secure, affordable, and clean. To achieve this, Ireland must use less energy, move to clean energy, and innovate to create new solutions to meet our energy needs. Leading the transition to smarter and more sustainable energy activities is central to what SEAI does.

Innovation at Version 1

Set up in 2018, Version 1’s Innovation Labs develop innovative solutions and proof of value projects for customers to ensure Version 1 (and our customers) remain at the forefront of disruptive technologies. Version 1 uses innovation to drive customer success, delivering tangible business benefits to public sector organisations and commercial businesses across the UK and Ireland. The Innovation Labs explore cutting-edge technology to showcase the value and impact it can have on our customer’s businesses. As technology emerges, Version 1 is committed to, and actively investing in exploring the most valuable applications of innovation in a repeatable and relevant manner for our customers