Cape Town, May 16: FuseForward, a provider of cloud and analytic solutions, is demonstrating the benefits real-time analytics can deliver to African utilities during the African Utility Week conference and exhibition.

Held from 14-16 May in Cape Town, South Africa, African Utility Week is the leading conference for African power, energy and water professionals. FuseForward’s Founder and CEO, Mark Damm, is excited about the opportunity to provide analytic solutions that shed light on the challenges faced by utilities in Sub-Saharan Africa.

“Utilities in Africa face a range of issues, many of which affect their ability to meet basic demands for water and electricity,” says Mark. “We know that the availability of reliable and complete data is critical in order for utilities to find solutions to their challenges.

Data from IoT devices and smart meters can help, but developing the technology required to ingest, store and make sense of this information is a barrier for many resource-strapped utilities.” FuseForward’s cloud platform provides a secure, reliable way for utilities to store, aggregate and analyze data from their IoT and smart devices, delivering the comprehensive performance information utilities need within a single interface.

Example utility challenges that FuseForward can address include:

• Demand management: Data from devices and external sources can be used to predict peak electricity or water usage times, enabling better management of resources.
• Preventative maintenance: Deteriorating infrastructure can often be the cause of outages in Sub-Saharan Africa.

By analyzing sensor data from equipment and infrastructure, utilities can obtain real-time maintenance alerts, preventing outages before they occur.

With the event set to close today, Mark is optimistic about the future for the industry, and the role FuseForward can play. “We’ve had a chance to hear first-hand about the challenges facing utilities and are looking forward to the opportunity to help solve them. Not only do analytic solutions in this sector have the ability to provide business improvements for utilities, they also play a role in improving the delivery of power and water across Sub-Saharan Africa—and that’s something our team is very enthusiastic about!”

About FuseForward
FuseForward is an AWS Advanced Technology Partner and Select Consulting Partner that provides secure cloud environments and analytic solutions for critical infrastructure providers and public agencies. Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, we serve customers around the world from our offices in South Africa, Europe and North America.

For more information visit www.fuseforward.com

Media Contact: Wendy Scott at +27 83 270 7765 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Innovation house RubiBlue has launched Data Sight. A new company to address the need for emerging market data and its analysis as brands, corporations and start-ups look to enter Africa and connect with the 1.1 billion people on the continent who will account for one-fifth of the world’s population by 2025. 

“Africa has its own nuances, and its complex cultures within its different countries hold a myriad of challenges for established businesses and start-ups looking to enter its new markets,” says RubiBlue MD and founder of Data Sight. “If you don’t understand consumers in the territory you’re entering, you’re setting yourself up to fail.”

With over ten years working in Africa and enabling financial institutions to access rural markets and give access to financial security for millions of Africans, RubiBlue is well positioned to aggregate and process vast amounts of consumer data in this sector.

“There are currently 293.8 million smartphone users across the continent,” adds Ogden. “And according to research firm Ovum, the smartphone penetration rate will grow at 52.9% year-on-year. It’s these smartphone users we will use to collect data from and create a picture of Africa’s consumers.” 

Data Sight subscribers will be surveyed and rewarded with data or airtime vouchers upon completion of question sets, as well as many other partnered value-added service (VAS) providers across Africa. “Creating and owning its data, and the ability to carry out surveys on demand from a uniquely dynamic platform, Data Sight will partner with organisations and entrepreneurs to furnish them with the insight they need,” adds Ogden. “Most businesses don’t have access or the expertise to collect and analyse vast amounts of data. Which is where our experience and expertise adds value.” 

To find out more, speak to the RubiBlue team on 011 326 37 94 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..