Designed with durability and ease of use in mind, the ORION® Trimble® Ranger™ Handheld device enables meter readers to gather data via a radio signal when driving or walking by a meter that is equipped with a transmitter.Jackson estimated that, once fully deployed, the new system will reduce reading time from three days to one day or less. Moreover, the increased accuracy and ease of meter data collection is projected to generate more revenue for the town.
Workers will be able to do both walk-up and drive-by reads in dangerous and/or hard-to-read locations.
"This will help keep workers safer on busy roads, rough terrain or in inclement weather because they won't have to leave their vehicles," Wood said. It's also expected to be much quicker and more accurate since there's no need to key in information.
They city's main goals are to see a revenue increase and a drop in maintenance, labor and fuel costs.
"Right now, we don't have radio reads. Everything is manual, which means our workers have to go to each meter and punch in the numbers," Jackson said. It's time-consuming and requires a lot of fuel to power the trucks they use.
The new system will work together with data analytics software to assist in billing, tracking and overall water use analysis, which will help utility staff when customers have questions about water usage. The improved accuracy and analysis will also help the Water and Sewer Department detect potential leaks. If there are issues, the department can alert the homeowner that repairs may need to be made.
Jackson recommended these particular products because of their accuracy, quality and ease of maintenance, he said.