A team member from Master Meter approached Amanda Selph, Business Manager at Belforest Water System, with a problem; the meters in the system were rapidly nearing the end of their life span and Belforest’s growth rate was exceeding staff’s capacity to keep up.

Gwinnett County is located 30 miles northeast of Atlanta. The County is investigating methods to improve its strategic program for water meters. These improvements include updated testing equipment, a wider selection of approved metering technologies, and increased employee training. The goal is to install the most appropriate meter for each specific use, and to enhance the county’s excellent customer service.

The City of San Juan Bautista, California, also known as the City of History, is a mission town nestled in the San Juan Valley. Some of the city’s infrastructure is over 100 years old. The city’s water meters were an aging mix of units from various manufacturers. The meters were losing accuracy and becoming unreliable, leading to a loss of billing revenue. In addition, manually reading the meters was a very inefficient way for the city’s small staff to spend their time. Also, like most California cities, water conservation in San Juan Bautista is a top priority. Helping customers find leaks and understand how much water they really use is an important step towards conservation.

When several years of drought subsided and water restrictions were lifted this spring for the city of Round Rock, Texas, residents quickly returned to their pre-drought usage patterns—and as they watered their lawns, filled their pools and used water the way they had before the drought, their monthly bills began to rise. The utility billing office started getting calls from a number of the 33,000 homes and businesses throughout Round Rock.

Sensors everywhere - not just water - but streets - garbage - everywhere. And everything is getting smarter. With sensors comes measurement, data, and the ability to visualize, understand and manage more effectively. Whether you’re new to the water utility industry or you’re a seasoned veteran, you have to admit there’s a ton of jargon, buzzwords and acronyms to navigate. Like any field, water has its shorthand, and there’s a lot to absorb. Granted, much of it is actual terminology used by utilities and engineers, but some is commonly used marketing lingo. After all, the industry is saturated with emerging technologies.

Water utilities are struggling to secure funding for maintenance and repair. This is due in large part to the fact that their customer base has no sense of the true cost of water. The average person doesn't think about the incredible amount of time, resources, and people it takes to deliver clean drinking water and treat wastewater. Can technology help convey this value? We know technology can help us reach more people, and amplify our messages but can technology help customers recognize the value of water?

Got water? Sure, most of us in the United States do. But do we ever stop to smell the roses of odorless fresh potable water? Do we reflect on what reliable water means for the economic life of our community? Texas’s harsh deep freeze earlier this year reminded us Texans of our vulnerability, and after $200B in damages, it gave us a glimpse of how life looks without the core services that we take for granted daily.

As a meter technology company, we understand the importance of approaching challenges with smart solutions and proactive communication. Ultimately, our technology is all about helping customers and utilities to feel empowered, connected, and capable of taking on problems. Master Meter, Inc. created a list of the top 12 communication hacks found to be most successful in 2020. Implement these tactics and watch your utility connect with your customers and build trust with your community.

If you’re a water utility, you know about the Consumer Confidence Report (CCR). It is the key element of the Safe Drinking Water Act’s public right-to know provisions, and often a missed opportunity for utilities to engage with the consumer. 

Our industry’s experienced veterans have decades of knowledge that isn’t learned in the classroom but in the field. Master Meter, Inc. interviewed members of field operation crews across several water utilities in Texas. They gave us these Top 10 Hacks from the Field you can share with your own staff. See which ones your crews have heard before.

MasterMeter is intent in providing new and innovative ways to manage the vast amount of data flooding into Smart Cities and Utilites. We're a high service solutions provider specializing in advanced metering, data delivery and Utility Intelligence Software and our portfolio of new and innovative technology continues to grow.

Cities must gain the buy-in and support from the public and elected officials to secure necessary funding for smart water tech. Optimizing the initial costs of deploying smart water tech are going to vary, mainly depending on the size of the utility. Buy-in and support will only occur when utilities effectively make people understand, what’s in it for the customer. Water utilities need to communicate the value of AMI through the lens of what matters most to the end user—your customer, the consumer of your product, the ratepayer.

Last month Master Meter, Inc. presented at the Smart Water Summit at the PGA Resort & Spa in Palm Beach, FL. Since 2014, the Agora Smart Water Summit has brought together vendor partners and water utilities to create an intimate environment for in-depth discussions about updating technology and improving infrastructure. Technology and infrastructure improvements come with a price tag, one which requires the financial buy-in of the public stakeholders.

Smart water technology has evolved the water utility’s role within municipalities to have a seat at the proverbial Smart City table, participate in the IoT plan, and drive water stewardship. There are many benefits to replacing your meter system with AMI (Advanced Meter Infrastructure) technology. For the utility, the game-changer is when you couple it with meter data management software which streamlines and prioritizes data so you can make timely, informed decisions.

Water services are no doubt essential, especially during a pandemic when more people are staying home, and cleanliness is a top priority. Ease your customers’ minds during these uncertain times by keeping communications flowing. A customer portal is a perfect way to stay in touch. Here are some ways to use this tool to help your community through this uncertain time.

Much has been speculated already about how emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence can help out many sectors, including the water sector. It might seem like a far-fetched idea for some utilities; however, as we are well into 2020 now, some companies are already helping to forge this into reality.

WE’VE HEARD IT FOR YEARS…“What’s measured is what matters.” This is true for many organizations, especially as data drives more and more of the business — and it’s often how executives make decisions. Even when data seems to contradict our beliefs, as humans, we tend to cling to certain biases and make decisions based on gut feelings. Perhaps you can relate to this, especially if you’ve been in the water industry for a long period of time. Some decisions begin to feel like muscle memory.