Albert J Carbon III, PE

Public Works Director

Issue Statement

Staff will provide an update to City Commission on the installation of SMART water meters in the City’s water service area.

BACKGROUND/HISTORY

On November 15, 2017, City Commission approved the City’s contract with Energy System Group (ESG), a state-qualified energy savings company (ESCO) (Report Attached). 

An ESCO is defined as a project developer that provides energy solutions, including designs and implementation, of energy savings projects. The savings in energy costs are used to fund the capital investments over the term of the contract. The ESCO guarantees the savings and becomes responsible for anticipated shortfalls. Any excess in savings remain the property of the City.

This $6.5M ESCO is focused on the implementation of advanced water metering infrastructure, or "SMART water meters." Benefits of the project include:

• Replacement of existing meters with new smart meters providing real time, remote data usage with two-way communication
• Improved billing accuracy
• Enhanced operational efficiency, reducing manual reading costs
• Reduced risk by way of check valves to prevent water and foreign materials from infiltrating the city lines
• Water conservation through real-time data providing leak detection alerts

As of October 19, 2018, the installation of the SMART meters is just over 97% complete.

The November 2017 Commission Report estimated some 8,500 meters in the City water system.  The ESCO is now anticipating the replacement of 9,141 meters.  The increased number of water meters is due to new developments that had not been placed in service at the time the ESCO contactor was reviewed, such as Eastside Village and Pointe of Middle River.

In the November 2017 City Commission Report, staff noted it was estimated the system would take 18 to 24 months to be fully operational, including software testing an dual reading of meters (physical and electronic).  At the current rate of installation and integration, the system should be fully operational by the end of the 2018 calendar year; well ahead of schedule.

The ESCO project has been implemented largely without major issues.  Approximately 20 customer experienced higher than normal water usage after replacement of the meter; staff has worked with ESG to identify and remediate any problems related to the installation. 

During the week of October 22, utilizing new reporting capabilities, staff compiled a list of all locations showing a continuous water use for a 24-hour period after the meter installation.  The minimum hour usage ranged from 1.2 gallons/hour to 520 gallons/hour.  The ESCO contractor and City staff visited each of these meters to determine if the leak was at the meter (installation error) or in the customers system.  The contractor and City staff contacted the customers to inform them of the water leaks and are working with these customers to determine the source of the leak, so the customer can make the necessary repairs.

When all meters have been installed, an informational flier will be included in all utility bills providing customers with instructions on how to access their utility account online and view their hourly water usage.