London, UK, 18 December 2020: London-based software and accreditation experts, Accredit Solutions, has been awarded a substantial grant by the UK’s Sustainable Innovation Fund to complete development of Accredit-GO; pandemic response and health tracking software that sports clubs, venues and live events can use to operate in closed door, limited capacity or business-as-usual scenarios in a safe and sustainable manner.
COVID-19 has had a devastating effect on the global sporting and major events industries, which has essentially stalled a $1.1 trillion industry in its tracks. With venues closed and events cancelled, postponed or running behind closed doors, millions of jobs are at risk globally, not only for events professionals, but for those in related industries including retail, tourism, infrastructure and hospitality.
A successful COVID-19 recovery must see the re-opening of events, but in re-starting organisers
and authorities face a multitude of challenges.
Accredit-GO has been developed as an extension of Accredit’s award-winning accreditation and facility management software, to help those responsible for major events comply with local COVID-19 regulations through the collection of health data and documents, in order to get back to hosting live events in a safe, efficient and sustainable manner.
Those using the software can now ensure their staff and contractors are safe to be in their workspace. They can invite their workforce to securely provide medical and travel information before they attend shifts; submit health passports or vaccination certificates; implement dynamic rules to assess risk, automate entry permissions and e-passes; manage capacities by controlling access; and implement track and trace by recording exactly who, where and when, someone has been in their space.
Peder Berg, CEO of Accredit Solutions explains further: “In the past, data on those workers needing access to a venue may have been collected on excel spreadsheets or via emails. Unnamed access passes or wrist bands may have been issued for access. For events and venues to re-open, this is no longer an option. Organisers need an electronic audit trail to know who is in their space, and they need to know they are not a health risk.”
“So our motivation is clear – Accredit-GO is being built to support the safe return of major sporting and live events, and is being driven by our consultations with clients around the world and their requirements to play fixtures behind closed doors, to create biosecure bubbles, and to get fans and visitors back into venues.”
Delivered through Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency, funding from the £134 million Fund is set to benefit 1,069 of the UK’s greenest, most innovative businesses, who’s ideas can help the country ‘build back better’ by creating new jobs, driving productivity and tackling climate change
“With Innovate UK’s support, we can develop the software, build the client support team and deliver this project at the scale, quality and timeframe needed by our customers right around the world. Development began in October 2020, and phase 1 functionality has already been successfully rolled out to many of our Premier League and EFL football clients, as well as cricket, rugby and basketball clients across the Globe” Berg adds.
The platform also helps organisations reduce the carbon footprint of their accreditation process and meet sustainability goals by replacing physical passes, printers, passholders and lanyards with digital credentials.
Phase 2 of the project will be delivered in January, with the final stage of Accredit-GO expected to be completed by the end of February 2021.
