[Athens, June 30, 2022] - Huawei and Nova - Wind presented a pilot technological solution for detecting forest fires in Greece, for the first time on Wednesday, June 29th, at the Sigrou Forest. The project is using technology based on 5G, as well as algorithms, AI and drone robotics.

The fire detection program uses an early warning system for the identification of extreme events, like fires, using sensors and drones to address the problem bringing severe social, environmental and economic impact.

The Sensors which are installed in strategic points in the park, interconnects with the incident management platform and the drone. The drone operates scheduled surveillance flights as well as emergency flights in case of the sensor indications. To detect smoke or fire, specific algorithms are used that analyze the image and send data to the Control Center indicating points of interest. In case of an emergency, the drone detects smoke or fire through the camera, and it sends an alert to the control center, and the drone, immediately rushes to where the smoke was detected to confirm the incident. Then the drone either returns to its base or records the progression of the fire.

The result is the immediate identification of the starting point of the fire, real-time monitoring of remote areas, early visual detection of smoke and fire, and in result protection of human life.

Through the Elevate Greece program, which is an initiative of the Ministry of Development and Investment, Elevate Greece, intended to identify promising startups and support their growth, Huawei teamed up with PROBOTEK and took over financing of the pilot project. In this project, Nova-Wind is the telecommunications provider of connectivity coverage, and the startup company PROBOTEK offers a solution to the early detection system.

The launch event was attended, among others, by Georgios Georgantas, Minister for Rural Development and Food, Christos Dimas, Deputy Minister for Research and Technology, Ministry of Development and Investment, George Marios Karagiannis, Deputy Secretary-General of Civil Protection, Radoslaw Kedzia, Vice President of Huawei CEE & Nordic Region, Nikolaos Lazaris, Managing Director Huawei Greece, Panagiotis Georgiopoulos, CEO of Nova-Wind, Georgios Delaportas, CEO/CIO of PROBOTEK, Georgios Tsaprounis, Corporate modelling rate at Nova-Wind, as well as Dionisis Aug. Kyriakopoulos, President of Institute of Agronomic Sciences.

In his welcome speech, the Minister for Rural Development and Food, Georgios Georgantas underlined: "It is an important project for our country, which, at pilot level, is implementing possibilities of new technologies in order to protect the environment, and in particular, to protect our national heritage. In order to save it we must protect the natural environment – the fauna and flora of our country. In these efforts, cutting-edge technologies have a significant role, as their contribution, not only for forest protection, but in general for tackling the climate crisis, can be crucial. I would like to thank Huawei Greece and Nova - Wind, as through their cooperation they are blazing the trails of the preventive fire detection solutions, and in general, also in the area of protecting the environment and primary production.”

At the same time, the Deputy Minister for Research and Technology, Christos Dimas stressed: "The partnership between Huawei and Nova - Wind with PROBOTEK presented an innovative pilot fire detection program using 5G technology, artificial intelligence, algorithms and state-of-the-art drones. This is an early warning and identification system of extreme events such as fires, which using sensors and drones is expected to help address phenomena with social, environmental and economic impacts. The business synergies of companies from the tech sector with the newly-born enterprises of Elevate Greece are a good example of how we can build on the talent, ideas and human resources that we have to meet the challenges of our time, as is the climate crisis. I warmly congratulate the creators and the participants of this initiative, who fill us with the confidence that the Greek innovation ecosystem now has the potential and tools to achieve cooperation and great results”.

Dionisis Kyriakopoulos, President of the Institute of Agronomic Sciences said: "The Institute of Agronomic Sciences manages the Syggrou Forest, which is one of the few green forests of the Attica region. It covers about 950 acres, being the only remaining natural forest of the wider region and the entire Attica. It has been identified as a landscape of particular natural beauty (GG 968/1991), as well as the detection site of archaeological findings, while being an area with a free access to the public. Having a 750 pine forest area, one of our main axes is the prevention of fires, which have affecting the country strongly in the recent years. In this context, and in addition to the other preventive measures we take each summer, we were delighted to work with Huawei, Nova-Wind and PROBOTEK to carry out a pilot fire detection project in our area, using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and drone technology, performed for the first time in Greece. We hope that this pilot project will be another important fire prevention tool after its completion."

Mr. Nikos Lazaris, Managing Director of Huawei highlighted: "In Huawei Greece we firmly believe that cutting-edge technologies can help better protect citizens and the environment. As official supporters of the Elevate Greece initiative of the Ministry of Development and Investment, we have already financially aided the startups operating in the technologies sector of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, and now we are supporting PROBOTEK with the funding of this pilot preventive fire detection programme. We look forward to future partnerships with startups in key technological sectors for the benefit of our country's society and natural wealth."

Panagiotis Georgiopoulos, CEO of Nova-Wind concluded by saying: "Climate change is a reality and protecting the country is an issue of national importance. Nova - Wind contributes to tackling the climate crisis with a thorough and diverse programme, the aspect of which is fire detection through technology. This initiative we are launching today at the Syggrou Forest is proof that through the 5G network and smart services, extreme events with economic, social and environmental impact can be prevented. Public and private organizations teamed up in this project, showing that it is necessary to work together to protect our country."