British mapping organisation Ordnance Survey (OS) has announced the creation of 189 new jobs and has helped to raise £19.5m in funding for new digital projects following the success of its programme supporting innovation.
The Geovation Hub in London and accompany programme, introduced three years ago, was designed to further energise innovation in the UK geospatial industry by attracting new players, new visions, new thinking and new markets, and offering these start-ups the best possible support through the Geovation Programme.
Twelve months ago, it widened scope of the Programme to include PropTech start-ups. Geovation and OS partnered with HM Land Registry to help the UK become a global leader in the land and property market.
The Geovation Hub has been so popular with the start-up community that this summer it relocated its office to accommodate the increased demand in its services.
The Geospatial Commission has also noted the impact made by the Geovation Hub and is currently assessing the value of opening other hubs outside of London.
This could be in regions where GeoTech and PropTech start-ups would benefit from their proximity to industry. It also feeds into the government’s industrial strategy.
“We have built on the outstanding work of the Geovation Challenge and carried its ethos forward to offer start-ups a founder-friendly environment,” said Head of Geovation, Alex Wrottesley.
“We’re trying to help new businesses start-up and there is great evidence that the most value created for the national economy is by helping companies go from 0 to 5 people.”
Projects backed by the programme include Pocket Pals, an app that uses AR to reconnect young people to British wildlife, Trik, an award-winning drone mapping and 3D reporting software and OpenPlay, a platform to connect sports facilities to their users.