Walker, LA

ABOUT THE PROJECT

The City of Walker, LA needed to address its issues with water loss and billing accuracy caused by its mix of meter technology solutions in operation. The City had been slowly using its internal resources to upgrade its meters to drive-by technology, but daily demands and costs proved not financially or operationally sound.

The City of Walker initially engaged UMS to install new drive-by meters, but the netAMP program quickly emerged as an expedited path to advanced metering infrastructure (AMI). In a single efficient process, netAMP also provided a comprehensive program to enable accurate billing, identify non-revenue water loss, and improve customer service. UMS wholly had the risk and responsibility to ensure the AMI was deployed successfully and performed optimally, even after the upgrade was complete.

SERVICES PROVIDED

netAMP^®, the industry's first Metering-as-a-Service (MaaS) Program:

• AMI Equipment
• AMI Software
• AMI Services, including planning and readiness, installation, integration, training, maintenance, and support.

RESULTS

• Provided more transparency into water usage and more flexibility to manage that usage remotely
• Ensured data integration was tested and validated, resulting in accurate billing
• Identified many small leaks throughout the network that were adding up to massive amounts of water loss
• Empowered the City to collect accurate revenues
• Encouraged customers to use less water, resulting in lower chemical, electricity, and delivery costs