Over a whirlwind three days, participants in the inaugural Sunshine Coast Hackfest have created apps that help solve common council problems.
Throughout Hackfest 2015, hackers were granted access to open data information available from the Council, State and Federal governments, to develop solutions for identified problems on the Sunshine Coast.
First prize went to an app aimed at helping motorists to find a parking space and then remind them when to move their car.
Designed by local duo Sean Bannister and Jordan Josic, ‘Sunshine Coast Parking’ will use sensors installed in car parks across the Coast, or other information, to help turn car parks into smart car parks.
“Whenever someone leaves a car park, we’ll know that they’ve lefand then be able to alert other people looking for a park that one has become available,” Bannister said.
The runner-up, ‘Bin There Done That’, was a team effort that aimed to provide an innovative way to help Sunshine Coast Council reduce landfill, as well as assisting residents by providing information about household waste.
Winner of the business category, and third overall, was Adam Roth’s ‘GeoPDO’ – a tool that allows the community to see all of council’s Planning and Development assessment applications on a map based on an address search or location search.
‘Bin Days’, an application that reminds you when to put out your waste, recycling or green bin, was judged best community entry, while SICOOR, an easy to use tool that allows open data information to be embedded on a business or personal websites won the prize for best use of open data.
New and Emerging Industries Portfolio Councillor Steve Robinson said the quality of entries for the inaugural Hackfest was above and beyond expectation and demonstrated the quality of talent available on the Coast.
“Hackfest has been a wonderful opportunity to take our Sunshine Coast’s Smart City Framework forward and to help our region become one of the most innovative and modern in the world,” Cr Robinson said.
“Our entrants embrace that vision and produced some remarkable work in just a couple of days.
“We are progressing towards the Coast having the latest in global technologies for lighting, waste, parking, assets and other infrastructure and services to enhance the lives of our residents and visitors.
“Council will now work with the teams associated with the best of Hackfest with the desire to provide real value, sustainable solutions to help our community, and explore potential new business opportunities.”
