At our third NIMBUS advisory group meeting on Tuesday March 5th, we kicked off as we often do by asking an Icebreaking question: ‘What are the key data sharing challenges around asset data as it relates to critical national infrastructure concerns’?

Below is a high level summary of the responses to this question:

  • Data quality plays a critical role in infrastructure projects. Lack of accurate and reliable data can lead to inefficiencies.
  • Given that historical weather data is a key driver behind the NIMBUS project, a crucial barrier is that weather isn’t collected at the same granularity as asset level data. Asset data is accurate to the metre but the same cannot be said for weather data.
  • Standardisation is crucial to streamline data exchange. Without it, complexities can arise from varying data formats.
  • When it comes to the criticality of assets and the risks associated with national infrastructure it can be hard to strike a balance between security and transparency. More specifically, if the wrong actor has visibility of where national infrastructure is, this could lead to serious consequences.
  • There remains a lingering scepticism amongst stakeholders in the energy sector when it comes to embracing data sharing. This underscores the need for a cultural shift and ongoing advocacy efforts that demonstrate the value of data sharing and data governance.

You can catch up on our previous advisory group meetings below: