Overview
Shoalhaven Water has 50,091 assessments and issues accounts on a quarterly basis on a rolling weekly cycle and larger commercial account are issued monthly. Shoalhaven Water required a software application to assist in the water meter reading process, enhance quality control and provide statistical reports on water usage recorded.
The water meter reading service is provided by a contractor and reading data is transferred on a data out, data in basis. The contractor is given a data file with the meter reads required and upon completion the Contractor returns the completed data file. This data is uploaded to the water billing system for further account creation.
The Challenge
Shoalhaven Water needed a system that would:
- Monitor the progress of the reading cycle. (Routes to be done, Routes In progress, Routes Completed).
- Allow for the upload of:
- o Data reads required from Water billing system
- o Completed meter reading data from the Contractor
- Allow for the export of completed meter reading data and edited data in the format required for the water billing system.
- Identify erroneous readings prior to data being loaded into the billing system
- Allow editing of meter readings
- Run data accuracy and consistency reports
- Hold up to 2 years ( 8 quarters) of meter read data
- Provide a range of statistical reports, include charts, graphs and detailed reports.
The Solution
The solution was simple, use the CASys meter reading system after the meter reads are completed from the contractor and before the data is loaded into the billing system. This approach allows Shoalhaven Water to analyse and modify data before uploading to the billing system and allows CASys to capture the data for monitoring and reporting purposes.
CASYS provided graphical monitors to track the progress of the water meter reads and to highlight errors in the data prior to billing. In addition, all of the standard meter reading reports are available.
A major addition the system was statistical database to allow Shoalhaven Water to monitor and compare consumptions on a route by route, month by month basis going back 2 years. The statistical database also acts as an additional quality control tool by highlighting gross errors in data and allows staff to drill down from graphs to summary, to raw data for corrections.
The Results
The new system was commissioned in January 2012 and fined tuned during the first quarter. Shoalhaven Water had outlined the following benefits:
- Easy to use system – resulting time efficiencies.
- Improve reporting of metering accuracy and easily identify problem reads.
- Easy reporting for KPIs.
- Identify errors prior to data being loaded into billing system.
- Streamlines meter checking process.
- Allows an easy monitoring system of the progress of meter reading process.
- Statistical reports in an easy to read format to allow identification of water usage trends.
Update
Since this case study Shoalhaven Water have displaced the contractor’s meter reading system to streamline processes and introduce new technology including:
- Android App to provide real time meter reading and monitoring.
- Incorporation of data collection business rules and mandatory fields.
- The use of photos to validate performance.
- GPS location of meters.
- Provide meter reading performance tools for contract supervisors and managers.
The meter reading process was simplified and improved, while providing greater control for Shoalhaven staff.
- Data is now allocated, collected and returned in real time
- Provides the ability to react instantly to issues found in the field.
- Performance monitors and data reporting have been refined for:
Improved quality control…
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