If it’s not, then why not?.

Our purpose is to demonstrate in a very real and everyday context how data can be made fair and open to the widest range of uses and users, while delivering a wealth of benefits, as a result of a digitised planning process, that are both immediate and long-lasting..The idea behind this concept is not to develop a single digital planning product.

This project can generate more benefit by remaining open and accessible to a range of collaborators.Nor is our aim to start from scratch or reinvent the wheel - we are using the data that is already created through the use of BIM, and existing formats for sharing it..The planning process in the UK touches all of our lives.

It is integral to the way in which the built environment develops around us; affecting where we live, where we work, where we eat, shop and play, how we walk, cycle and drive, how we produce, manufacture, generate, store, dispose and recycle.And yet the system we use has not changed since the 1940s.

It is arcane, complex, fragmented and hard to access and navigate – especially for the public who are, ultimately, its most important stakeholder.

It has not even adopted technology that is virtually standard in other areas.. As such, planning is an excellent example of a process ready for digitisation.Toyota, who are fantastic at lean manufacturing, welcome competitors to look at their processes.

They realise that it's not just about understanding the how, because what Toyota are doing requires a different mindset, a different set of ambitions.Without those things, understanding the process won’t help..

The bottom line with respect to our current situation is that the world isn’t going to become any less uncertain, any time soon.The pandemic has highlighted our ability to make large, successful shifts, and to do so very quickly.