Smart Metering: Save Money, Save Resources
Water utilities, managing systems and multi-unit owners are facing intensified pressure to decrease water wastage. The government is urging the installation of more water friendly meters and managing system. One of the possible solutions is smart metering. In Europe, it is increasingly popular, generating growing investment in the technology and its application. While the market in the United States is still lagging, recent figures indicate that this system, involving AMI (advanced metering infrastructure) is continuing to gain ground.
Smart Water Metering: A Brief History
The development and application of smart water solutions such as smart meters are a relatively new technological advance. Electric meters are currently in use by various companies. Smart meters, however, lag behind. They began to be viewed as a serious option in the early 2000s. The turn towards such devices grew out of several combined factors. These included:
- The realization that water is a finite resource
- The increased cost of water
- To be more proactive in reducing water usage
- Providing economic benefits to multi-unit and individual home-owners by providing them real time data combined with the analytics to help them reduce the growing cost of water
- To be better able to predict usage and delivery
A major supportive system to smart metering is AMI technology. Its development has resulted in a faster, easier and smarter way of delivering water and monitoring water usage. In this system, communication is a two-way street. This is one of the advantages of smart meters when teamed with AMI.
Advantages of Smart Meter Systems
Essentially, whether you are a tenant, an owner or a management system, such as those of us at ABI Water Management, smart meter systems save water and costs. These systems offer a number of benefits. While some are specifically designed to address the concerns of business and multi-unit owners, others make it easier for tenants and utility companies. Among the advantages or benefits often cited for smart metering are the following:
- Improved leakage and pressure management – for owners, tenants and management and utility companies
- Ability to know the precise amount of water the household of a consumer uses not only annually but per day, week and month
- Streamlined maintenance
- Communication amongst all concerned parties influences the amount of water usage, therefore reducing water abuse while lowering costs
Overall, smart meter systems act to provide everyone with the chance to save both money and water.
Smart Metering
Smart meters are becoming a growing interest among utility companies as well as multi-unit apartment owners. At ABT Water Management, we know how this system can help benefit both tenants and owners. As an option, smart metering may prove to be the most beneficial system you can install in your home or large unit complex.