Health, transport, energy and communications are vital services we rely on in our everyday lives.
While it can be easy to take them for granted, there is a constant need for maintenance and investment to ensure they are efficient and continue to benefit society.
Over the last few years, digital transformation has swiftly shifted from being a strategic advantage to a fundamental necessity across modern business. This is no exception for the public sector and organisations tasked with managing critical infrastructure, such as the essential facilities, systems and processes needed to support daily life. The demand for efficiency, agility, and resilience in the public sector in particular is greater than ever.
Embracing new technology is often associated with protecting organisations from potential cyber threats and planning for worst case scenarios. In early September, Transport for London suffered a damaging cyber attack that led to customers’ details being hacked. However, digital transformation in critical infrastructure goes beyond security. It is important that the organisations supporting our most essential systems drive efficiencies, improve service delivery and optimise the allocation of resources.
In an era of tightening budgets, public sector bodies and organisations supporting critical infrastructure are under mounting pressure to do more with less. In July, the UK government revealed the forecast overspend on departmental spending is expected to reach £21.9 billion above what had been set by the treasury in the 2024 spring budget. Digital transformation offers a convincing solution to this challenge by leveraging a range of advanced tools, from big data analytics to automation driven by artificial intelligence (AI). Emerging technologies, such as cloud computing, machine learning, and the Internet of Things (IoT), are already influencing how these bodies operate, enabling them to achieve their goals with greater speed and accuracy.
Data analysis enables public sector bodies to make more informed decisions, allocate resources more strategically, and better understand the needs of citizens. Similarly, intelligent monitoring systems can help foresee and mitigate risks in real-time, whether it’s detecting potential hazards on highways or predicting the failure of essential utilities, leading to smarter, purposeful, management of critical infrastructure.
However, delivering these efficiencies is not without its challenges. As wholesale costs continue to rise, the need for large-scale investment in digital infrastructure grows. The sheer scale of critical infrastructure projects only compounds the difficulty. Recent analysis reveals that the UK Government’s central departments spend around £400 billion each year on the day-to-day running costs of public services, grants and administration. It is imperative for organisations and public sector bodies to embrace the evolving role of digital transformation in critical infrastructure, as they learn how to improve efficiencies through the adoption of new technologies – all while supporting their stakeholders, including staff and most importantly, their end users.
Finding efficiencies to overcome rising costs
It cannot be ignored that developing effective public sector services and critical infrastructure that meet growing demand comes with significant financial challenges. As costs continue to rise, such as creating and maintaining essential infrastructure like railway lines, highways and energy grids, organisations are under increasing pressure to improve services while reducing their spending.
Traditional methods of delivering these services are becoming less sustainable as the financial burden intensifies. Rising inflation, supply chain disruptions, and the growing complexity of large-scale infrastructure projects only add to this strain.
As a result, there is a heightened urgency for public sector bodies and critical infrastructure organisations to embrace digital transformation to optimise processes, enhance operations and drive efficiencies. This will allow them to continue delivering high-quality services within tighter budgets.
The UK Government is taking steps to support organisations and make these desired efficiencies a reality. One recent development is its commitment of new funding, of up to £32 million, to 98 firms working on AI tools to help boost productivity in public sector services. These projects are aimed at helping public facing institutions like the NHS and railway operators create tangible, measurable efficiencies. For instance, there will be investment in AI applications that reduce train delays by optimising scheduling or managing traffic flows. This intervention can directly cut costs associated with disruptions, improving overall network performance. Moreover, the integration of AI in infrastructure planning can significantly enhance decision-making, allowing public bodies to plan future projects more accurately, avoid unnecessary expenditures, and better meet the needs of the communities they support.
Modernising for long-term stability
As well as making the most of government initiatives, critical infrastructure organisations are also making their own investments to implement digital transformation and take advantage of the latest solutions. Behind every train ride or doctor’s appointment is a team of people and a host of back-office processes that play an important role in the digital transformation journey. The introduction of modernised HR systems across large-scale organisations reduces administrative tasks, while also offering a much more comprehensive solution to improving employee engagement and satisfaction. Digital transformation not only streamlines processes, but it also creates safer environments across critical infrastructure.
One of the key ways digital transformation is helping organisations modernise is by enabling the deployment of AI, automation, and data analytics. These technologies not only help streamline operations but also empower organisations to predict and prevent costly issues before they occur. For instance, AI-driven predictive maintenance can monitor infrastructure like energy and utilities, roads, bridges, and railway lines in real-time, allowing authorities to address wear and tear before it escalates into major, expensive repairs. Similarly, IoT sensors embedded in critical infrastructure can provide continuous data, alerting operators to potential issues and enabling them to allocate resources more efficiently. This proactive approach significantly reduces downtime and extends the lifespan of critical assets, saving money while improving service delivery.
More than that, implementing new technology can actually save lives. Train line operators, for example, are utilising the latest surveillance systems, equipped with smart cameras, to detect when people are approaching railway lines. These solutions send alerts to trains drivers, who are then instructed to slow trains down to avoid an accident with a pedestrian. In the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, such a system that harnesses AI has been adopted to prevent elephant deaths on local railway tracks.
Transforming operations through technology
The financial pressures currently faced by public sector bodies and organisations involved in delivering critical infrastructure are unlikely to abate anytime soon. As these bodies adopt new technologies, it is essential to understand the evolving role that digital transformation is now playing in delivering efficiencies. It supports the long-term sustainability and resilience of these bodies’ operations.
This shift to digital solutions is vital for serving key stakeholders, empowering staff, and, most importantly, improving outcomes for end users – the citizens who rely on these services daily. The rapid pace of technological advancements presents unprecedented opportunities to not only streamline existing processes but completely reinvent them.
Strategic digital transformation allows public sector bodies to navigate the complexities of modern governance and infrastructure management, creating more robust and efficient systems that benefit society as a whole. Whether through incremental improvements or wholesale digital overhauls, public sector bodies are now equipped with innovative solutions that allow them to modernise operations, enhance transparency, and improve the overall quality of public services.
About the Author
Ger O’Sullivan is Head of Public Sector for Ireland at Version 1. Version 1 is a leader in digital transformation, partnering strategically with global organisations to transform and adopt technology and drive innovation in a responsible way. With an end-to-end offer designed to address the most difficult challenges faced by customers, and supported by the latest cutting-edge technologies, Version 1 is focused on delivering successful customer outcomes through the power of world-class teams. This pledge is underscored by the key principles of the organisation, a triangle of balanced priorities comprising customer success, empowered people, and a strong organisation. Version 1 is made up of a fast-growing team of 3,400+ people across 4 continents, all innovating differently to drive value through sustainable transformation.
