NewcastleGateshead powers the Great Exhibition of the North: MG 1593

24 Aug 2018

NewcastleGateshead powers the Great Exhibition of the North

From a waltzing 80 year old man, to nimble young gymnasts, the people of Newcastle walked, danced and jumped across the Siemens Ingenious Energy Challenge, in intu Eldon Square and at the Family Expo as part of the Great Exhibition of the North creating enough energy to power a car for half a mile.

  • 346,000 joules of electricity created by people of Newcastle during Siemens Ingenious Energy Challenge
  • This is enough energy to talk on a smartphone for eight days, or to power a Nissan Leaf electric vehicle for 0.49 miles!
  • The overall challenge winner, who won a gaming PC is Marshal Siziba from South Shields.

From a waltzing 80 year old man, to nimble young gymnasts, the people of Newcastle walked, danced and jumped across the Siemens Ingenious Energy Challenge, in intu Eldon Square and at the Family Expo as part of the Great Exhibition of the North creating enough energy to power a car for half a mile.

The challenge which gave visitors seven seconds to use the intelligent flooring in the most creative way possible, was a hit with visitors, who generated around 28,000 joules of energy each day and 345,723 joules across its 12 days of operation.

The Challenge used innovative Pavegen smart flooring, which generated off-grid power and data from human contact. As people moved across the flooring, the weight from their footsteps created a small vertical movement of 5-10mm in the top surface – the more steps, the more energy.

Participants received an automatically generated gif, which they could share on social media. Those shared were judged each day, with the most ingenious of the day winning a £50 intu shopping voucher, with the winners being announced on social media. 

Despite fierce competition, the overall winner, who won a £600 gaming PC is Marshal Siziba, a student from South Shields. Commenting on the win, he said: “I couldn’t believe it when I got the message that I’d won the gaming PC. I love expressing myself through dance and winning on the day was a huge thrill. I’m really elated to have been judged the best overall for doing something I love.”

Carl Ennis, Managing Director of Siemens Energy Management, said: “The Ingenious Energy Challenge captured the imagination of all involved – and a few who didn’t take part too! Our volunteers answered many questions from people passing by the activity and were able to talk about the different methods of energy generation across the UK as well as the exiting work we’re doing right here in Newcastle.”

Carol Bell, Executive Director, Great Exhibition of The North, said: “The pop-up events at intu, Eldon Square and St. James’ Park were both a brilliant success and it was fantastic to see engaged, excited audiences with people of all ages and abilities taking part and sharing their ingenious moves! 

“It’s been a wonderful experience working with Siemens on this Energy Challenge as we feel it has been a great opportunity to showcase in an engaging and playful way some of the inspiring innovations taking place right here in the North.”

Great Exhibition of the North is an 80-day Exhibition, which takes place between 22 June and 9 September 2018 across NewcastleGateshead, celebrating great art and culture, design and innovation from across the North.

For more information on Great Exhibition of the North visit: www.getnorth2018.com

Ends

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Contact information

Sara Crane

PR Consultant

Siemens Energy Ltd

+44 (0)7921 847640

sara.crane@siemens.com
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Notes to editors

Picture L-R 

Steve Blanks, Newcastle Gateshead Initiative, Marshal Siziba, Lynsey Gray, Siemens

The Ingenious Energy Challenge winners

Monday 23 July -  @richardmelissap on Instagram (note they haven’t yet claimed their prize)

Tuesday 24 July  -  @maaarshal on Instagram (also the overall winner)

Wednesday 25 July  - @annaella1 on Instagram

Thursday 26 July  - @kofficefma on Twitter

Friday 27 July  - @CharlieRyan63 on Twitter

Saturday 28 July  - @jessoakesx on Instagram

Sunday 29 July  - @jesscullen_spamx

Monday 30 July  - @timeladysong on Instagram

Tuesday 31 July  - @hannah_carter_ on Instagram

Wednesday 1 August - @ShahsterUK on Twitter

Saturday 4 August – no shares

Sunday 5 August  - @geordiebird on Twitter

Energy generated

345,723 joules generated / 3 joules for each step = 115,241 steps

144 steps = 1 meter drive in a Nissan Leaf

115,241 / 144 = 800 meters

1 mile is equal to 1609 meters

800 / 1609 = 0.49 miles.

About Siemens

Siemens AG (Berlin and Munich) is a global technology powerhouse that has stood for engineering excellence, innovation, quality, reliability and internationality for 170 years. The company is active around the globe, focusing on the areas of electrification, automation and digitalization. One of the world’s largest producers of energy-efficient, resource-saving technologies, Siemens is a leading supplier of efficient power generation and power transmission solutions and a pioneer in infrastructure solutions as well as automation, drive and software solutions for industry. With its publicly listed subsidiary Siemens Healthineers AG, the company is also a leading provider of medical imaging equipment – such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging systems – and a leader in laboratory diagnostics as well as clinical IT. In fiscal 2017, which ended on September 30, 2017, Siemens generated revenue of €83.0 billion and net income of €6.2 billion. At the end of September 2017, the company had around 377,000 employees worldwide.

Further information is available on the internet at www.siemens.com @SiemensUKNews

About Pavegen                                                                               

Pavegen is the global leader in harvesting energy and data from footfall. Our mission is to make our technology available to all communities, empowering people for a better world. Our patented technology connects people to sustainability and smart cities, creating powerful experiences which convert footsteps into off-grid energy, rich data and rewards. We call this the internet of beings, making cities smarter with every step.

Pavegen supplies both permanent installations and experiential activations and we power off-grid applications such as games, lighting, and environmental monitoring. With embedded Low-Power Bluetooth connectivity, we can register the footsteps of individuals via our apps. When we combine this real-time footfall data with analytics, we create powerful insights into the behaviours of people interacting with our systems.

Founded in 2009 by Laurence Kemball-Cook, Pavegen has delivered 200 projects in 30 countries, working with iconic brands including adidas, Coca-Cola, Heathrow Airport, Shell and Westfield. Our latest projects including working with Transport for London and New West End Company to create the world’s first smart street and partnering Google to create the world’s largest energy and data harvesting array in Berlin. Our latest model, the V3, won the 2017 Smart Cities Interactive Innovation award at South by Southwest.

www.pavegen.com @Pavegen

About Great Exhibition of the North:

  • For more information on Great Exhibition of the North click here: https://getnorth2018.com/.
  • In October 2016, NewcastleGateshead was selected to host Great Exhibition of the North; NewcastleGateshead Initiative (NGI) led the bid and is the lead delivery partner for the Exhibition, working closely with colleagues at Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums, BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, Sage Gateshead, Newcastle City Council, Gateshead Council, The Great Run Company, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and a board chaired by Sir Gary Verity.
  • City Delivery Partners including Newcastle University, Northumbria University, Gateshead College and Newcastle United Football Club are also providing vital support for Great Exhibition of the North.
  • Towns and cities across the North of England are getting involved by being part of the ‘Inspired by’ programme of events, experiences and performances. People can submit details of their event at getnorth2018.com/inspiredby.
  • Great Exhibition of the North is encouraging schools to get involved, with content available on the website to both download teaching resources and upload their responses. Schools can do follow up work developed in the classroom by booking a tailored visit to the Exhibition during the final four weeks of the summer term.
  • Great Exhibition of the North will provide a range of exciting volunteer opportunities for individuals, groups and businesses. A team of over 1,000 volunteers will welcome visitors to NewcastleGateshead, interpreting themes of exhibition, lead school groups and provide event support at special one-off occasions.
  • On Tuesday 27 February the BBC announced a partnership to support Great Exhibition of the North.
  • Great Exhibition of the North is supported by Premier Partners Virgin Trains, Accenture and CISCO.
  • Funding has also been secured via Innovate UK, VisitEngland, Royal Commission for the Exhibition 1851, the Sir James Knott Trust and Reece Foundation and by England European Regional Development Fund as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020.
  • National Lottery players have supported the Great Exhibition of the North through £1.7m of funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund; Big Lottery Fund and Arts Council England.
  • Womble Bond Dickinson, Ward Hadaway, Siemens, Port of Tyne, Virgin Money, BT, Robertson and NewSubstance are proud partners of Great Exhibition of the North.Newcastle Airport, Greggs plc, Go North East, Tyne & Wear Metro and Northumbrian Water, Shout Digital, Stagecoach, PwC, Barbour Foundation, Northern Powergrid, HMS Calliope and Ubisoft are supporting partners.

About Siemens

Siemens AG (Berlin and Munich) is a leading technology company focused on industry, infrastructure, transport, and healthcare.

From more resource-efficient factories, resilient supply chains, and smarter buildings and grids, to cleaner and more comfortable transportation as well as advanced healthcare, the company creates technology with purpose adding real value for customers.

By combining the real and the digital worlds, Siemens empowers its customers to transform their industries and markets, helping them to transform the everyday for billions of people.

Siemens also owns a majority stake in the publicly listed company Siemens Healthineers, a globally leading medical technology provider shaping the future of healthcare.

In fiscal 2023, which ended on September 30, 2023, the Siemens Group generated revenue of €77.8 billion and net income of €8.5 billion.

As of September 30, 2023, the company had around 320,000 employees worldwide.

Further information is available on the Internet at www.siemens.com.