AUTOMATED METER READING PILOT PROJECT IN CAPE TOWN

Transcription

1 Smart power choices for Africa AUTOMATED METER READING PILOT PROJECT IN CAPE TOWN Jaco de Bruyn Head: Development Planning Water & Sanitation Department City of Cape Town, South Africa May 2009 CTICC, Cape Town, SOUTH AFRICA

2 CONTENT Cape Town Context Rationale for Project Automation, Monitoring & Control Strategy How Pilot System works Pilot Areas Tender process Project Plan and Actual Timeline Challenges

3 CAPE TOWN CONTEXT ~ Metered connections Population ~3.5M people ~ hh Area ~ 2 500km M kl/a Water supplied 2007/08 Monthly billing from SAP Legacy devices, varying standards 26 municipalities become 7 became 1 (Dec 2000) Meter types, Flange standards 75% estimated Non-pulse meters Meter age range 7 Meter reading platforms

4 RATIONALE FOR PROJECT Test suitability - Zonal Water balance Consumption profile analysis frequent readings Elimination of billing estimates 85% readings soft barrier Customer confidence, less disputes Reading inaccessible meters More reliable monthly consumption data Leakage detection Simultaneous midnight month-end reading Replace 7 MR platforms with 1 Part of larger technology-based Automation, Monitoring & Control strategy

5 AUTOMATION, MONITORING & CONTROL STRATEGY Automate routine mundane tasks Integration of information Make data readily available Efficient operations by use of technology Real-time knowledge of service status Reliable Reporting and KPI s

6 HOW PILOT SYSTEM WORKS License-free radioband Not susceptible to interference Few GSM modems

7 PILOT AREAS A wide range of city environments Sunset Beach N2 Gateway Epping

8 PILOT AREAS: SUNSET BEACH 15 yr old residential area, large erven: 735 meters, 15 50, mostly 20, 25 dia

9 PILOT AREAS: EPPING INDUSTRIA Old area: 421 meters, , mostly 50, 100 dia

10 PILOT AREAS: N2 GATEWAY Council apartment block indigent households, one main meter, shared water account: 704 flats

11 TENDER PROCESS Two-stage: 1) Functional qualification >70% 2) Price submission Price 90% HDI Status 10% SCORE 100% 6 tenderered, 3 qualified in stage 1 Tender contained Pilot areas Rollout extension phase until 2009/10

12 PROJECT PLAN WORK STAGE TIME LINE (Weeks) Formalize Coontract PHASE 1: AUDIT AND REPORT 1. Audit Notices 2. Audit 3. Training 4. Audit Report PHASE 2: METER REPLACEMENT 1. Meter Procurement 2. Meter Replacement 3. Training PHASE 3: INSTALL SYSTEM 1. Installation of Waveflows 2. Installation of WaveTalks 3. Installation of WaveCells 4. Develop and Install Software 5. Training 6. Evaluation Period

13 ACTUAL TIMELINE WORK STAGE Formalize Coontract PHASE 1: AUDIT AND REPORT 1. Audit Notices 2. Audit 3. Training 4. Audit Report PHASE 2: METER REPLACEMENT 1. Meter Procurement 2. Meter Replacement 3. Training PHASE 3: INSTALL SYSTEM 1. Installation of Waveflows 2. Installation of WaveTalks 3. Installation of WaveCells 4. Develop and Install Software 5. Training 6. Evaluation Period TIME LINE (Months) Started Jan 08

14 PROJECT CHALLENGES Anticipated completion after Evaluation period: Sep 09 Timeline grew: 19 weeks to 19 months! Mainly due to Meter purchasing Procurement process Unsuitable 3-year meter purchase tender no attention to pulse output, reed switches Optical reed switch vs magnetic, brand-specific 12x price premium makes AMR non-viable Change resistance, scepticism of roleplayers Also due to state of Database and Meters in ground Unexpected 70% non-pulse (previous samples 30%) Bad condition of meter boxes: broken, filled, covered

15 Sunset Beach: AUDIT RESULTS Most filled with sand boxes installed without base plate Municipal data fairly good Meter ages <= 15 yrs Some incorrect street numbers Unknown: covered (trees or concrete), totally buried Epping Industria: Meters often inaccessible 90% rubbish dump in chambers Many damaged chambers Municipal data not good (serial numbers, sizes, types) Meter ages <= 30 yrs Older types non-sabs

16 AUDIT RESULTS 2 SUBURB ERVEN INCOMPAT -IBLE METERS COMPAT -IBLE METERS UN- KNOWN Sunset Beach (62%) 187 (24%) 32 (4%) Epping Industria (74%) 87 (21%) 22 (5%)

17 AUDIT RESULTS 3

18 PRELIMINARY EVALUATION: N2 GATEWAY Installation on outside walls 577 flats evaluated over 2 day period 55 flats > 1kl/day 6 flats > 5 kl/day (must be tap or toilet running full) Maximum kl/day! Monthly water and sanitation bill R5 972 incl VAT Directly-detected leaks 943 kl/month (10% of total) Dealing with few water wasters could result in saving of 43% of total complex consumption or kl/month 100% continual coverage over last 3 weeks

19 RECOMMENDATIONS Pro-active Audit and maintenance programme essential Not just for AMR but also to protect income and reduce water losses Follow up all unknowns, fix all data errors found Meter purchase tender Consider pulse output part of price Sufficient stock in store Data capture & maintenance Capture correct meter serial numbers to start GPS capture all AMR installations Should staff go to meters less than before?

20 RECOMMENDATIONS 2 One functionally-qualified contractor for replacement and AMR Or 2 different functions but at different times! Upskilling plan for meter reading staff AMR System maintenance, operation Meter audit & maintenance Ensure compatibility of water flow management or other devices Power supply pass-through on pulse output Best pricing if > meters in tender

21 LONG-TERM PLANNING NO OF METERS IN CITY (2004 BASE) in 2004 grew to meters in Count kl DIAMETER

22 LONG-TERM PLANNING 2 ITEM AMR System Meters purchase (70%) Meter box clean & repair Meter replacement TOTAL Phased over 20 years APPROX COSTING R450 M R550 M R100 M R450 M R1 550 M R77.5 M

23 NEXT STEPS Complete installation (July) Evaluation period in parallel with manual reading (3 months to September) Test data import protocol into SAP Convince others: staff, management, politicians Secure long-term budget Acceptance of staff Up-skilling Implement recommendations

24 Thank you! Berg River testing of radial gate, June 2008