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With utilities under pressure to modernize their grid operations and transform their business models, they are finding that meters are taking center stage in their plans to meet energy goals, save money, and improve overall operations.
Why Metering?
Modern meter devices can provide significantly more tools and data to support utilities in efficiently operating the grid, reducing outage durations, achieving energy transition targets, and making better informed energy usage decisions.
Keeping Up with Technology
With sweeping changes in the industry, utilities are faced with planning the best approach for updating their meter reading equipment. Depending on immediate and future expansion goals, the metering journey for each utility can look very different.
During the meter transition planning stage, utilities often have a number of factors that influence their overall decision-making process when considering AMR/AMI systems:
• Budget availability, operations, and long-term maintenance costs
• Compliance to federal, state, or local laws or mandates
• Adding smart grid capabilities
• Meeting customer expectations
For a variety of reasons, there are utilities that cannot justify the expense of upgrading to newer metering technologies. Utilities with no availability of older technologies will install electromechanical meters until a time when an alternative option can be introduced.
Upgrading traditional meters to AMR/AMI offers utilities many benefits, but these systems can be complex and require a large physical network. Let’s discuss viable paths to a modern AMR/AMI solution.
Automated Meter Reading – AMR
This technology uses a one-way connection that sends readings to the utility via one-way communication with a hand-held or mobile collection device. For smaller operators, where a major upgrade is not economically feasible, AMR is a practical, cost-effective option that can be utilized as a steppingstone to a more advanced and complex AMI system in the future.
Advanced Metering Infrastructure – AMI
AMI technology is an integrated system of meters, communications networks, and data management systems that provide real-time two-way communications between the meter and the utility. Many utilities are turning to AMI technology as a key building block for smart grid.
Alternatives to Rip and Replace
Upgrade
Often, upgrading your current system can be an economical alternative to the rip and replace option.
The latest generation of meters and networks often offer backwards compatibility. Upgrading specific network components gives the utility the ability to read older meters that are still within their lifecycle of functionality. This allows the utility to target meters that are in need of being upgraded. With the cost of setup and integrations being a significant expense, upgrading can help add functionality to a metering system while reducing CapEx.
Once a new network is in place, meters can be added to bring additional functionalities where needed.
Repurpose
Utilizing an enhanced network overlay solution provides an economical AMR to AMI technology bridge by replacing a small number of previously deployed meters with this new technology. The new meters are strategically placed throughout the system and deliver data to the network, while simultaneously reading the legacy ERTs still in use.
Phased Replacement
Phased replacements allow a utility to strategically deploy meters over a period of time according to need and available funding.
MaaS/Muti-tenancy
Metering-as-a-service lets a utility outsource the traditional upfront capital investment of a large-scale metering project to a specialized third-party service provider in an effective meter-to-cash process.
Multi-tenancy is a software application that enables third-party providers to manage multiple utilities through the same network management system and server resources. This delivers cost efficiencies without comprising data security and privacy.
Wesco’s Expertise – Another Tool in Your Toolbox
Whether you are thinking about upgrading a traditional metering system, or are looking at a complete AMI solution, having a trusted partner with specialized metering experience can help you unlock the full potential of your metering investments. With turnkey, scalable meter infrastructure solutions, Wesco supports your entire meter transition with a holistic approach to solve your most complex metering challenges.
For more information on Wesco Utility Technology, please visit www.wesco.com or reach out to utilitytech@wescodist.com.
