Public Power - November/December 2007 - (Page 22)

Connecting with the Customer through Automation SMUD was ramping up the installation of its AMR system when the board asked: Has anything changed since you developed the business case? “We spent four months updating our business case, and found that a more sophisticated system was justified,” said Krause. “We told the board that there are a lot more benefits in a network-based AMI system.” SMUD is now developing the long-term requirements for such a system. Some 200,000 meters have been installed as part of the AMR system, and they would be part of the new network, capturing data on an interval basis, said Krause. This is the way to develop a business case for an automated system, says KCP&L’s Herdegen. “Many utilities haven’t been able to find a business case just for meter reading. It needs to be done as a package type deal, with the utility getting additional benefits. You have to ask: How else can we use the system to improve operations and customer interaction? You have to look at the bigger picture if you’re creating a business case. The bounds are probably limitless.” SMUD expects to complete a detailed requirements study by October this year, and could have an AMI system in acceptance testing by spring of next year. The business case is built on a five-year implementation plan. Krause observed that utilities sometimes suffer from “analysis paralysis,” which can constrain decision-making. “We have new information, so we decided to look at new opportunities.” But sometimes, delay can pay off. “We’re fortunate that we waited this long to decide on a metering system,” said Seattle’s Lockwood. “We don’t have to go through the agony of those who have an AMR infrastructure in place.” The city has decided to go straight to AMI. The transition to AMI comes at a price. At the customer’s end point, an installed AMI meter runs between $80 and $200, said Ralph Abbott, president of Plexus Research, a unit of R.W. Beck. The company has developed a toolkit— which includes project guidelines, business case templates, technology assessment tools, risk assessment, and sample system specifications—to help utilities implement an AMI project. An AMR system is in the $50-$100 range. An “I can do anything” meter costs about $200, noted KCP&L’s Herdegen. But, he added, “somewhere down the road you will be able to piggyback onto a wireless system. That will drive the cost of both AMR and AMI systems down much faster, so more companies that don’t have an automated system will find ways to justify installing one.” Nonetheless, the transition to AMI systems is likely to occur slowly, because utilities that have AMR systems will be reluctant to replace those systems before they reach the end of their economic—and technical—life. While more than a quarter of the nation’s public power utilities are using AMR systems, far fewer have installed AMI systems. According to a Federal Energy 22 NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2007 PUBLIC POWER http://www.metersmart.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Public Power - November/December 2007

Public Power - November/December 2007 Contents Washington Focus 10 Questions Connecting with the Customer Through Automation AMR or AMI? The High Court’s Antitrust Thunderbolts California’s Push for Demand-Response Plug-In Partners Get Plugged In Wiring Up for Double-Digit Growth For Engineers Safety Community Broadband For Governing Boards DEED Customer Service Hometown Connections Index to Advertisers Parting shot

Public Power - November/December 2007

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