Customer Connection

A Note From Colin Sabol: An Update on the Three C’s

Earlier this year, you heard me touch on our three Cs: Customer First, Continuous Improvement and Compelling Solutions. As we approach the end of 2018, I want to reflect on all that we have accomplished to deliver on our areas of focus.

At our annual Reach Conference in October, we achieved several milestones. We had a record number of attendees join our largest number of sessions to date, providing them with valuable content and opportunities to learn from their peers. Next year, we will welcome Reach attendees to take part in our citizenship and social investment program by attending a Watermark volunteer activity. We hope that you will join us for this trailblazing event.

I again want to congratulate the Sensus Partner and Advisor Network (SPAN) for celebrating their 10th anniversary this year at Reach. I am excited about the ideas I heard for the future of this partnership.

I also want to recognize all of our Reach Award winners. There were many incredible nominees this year who were all dedicated to serving their utilities, communities, customers and peers. Thank you and congratulations to all the winners, especially those who have demonstrated their commitment to Customer First and Compelling Solutions.

Some of our greatest compelling solutions achievements this year are the new products we have introduced, including the FlexNet EasyLink Mobile Communication solution and the Power Line Carrier (PLC) to AMI migration path. On behalf of Xylem Measurement & Control Solutions, we thank you for your partnership and look forward to our continued shared success in 2019.

Colin R. Sabol
Senior Vice President and President
Xylem Measurement & Control Solutions

Eagle Mountain utility workers recognized the need to update their water utility system to support their rapidly-growing city in Utah.

Eagle Mountain was looking for a simple cost-effective way to upgrade its water meters and mobile metering reading solution. To achieve greater accuracy and reduce truck rolls, the city is now using the FlexNet EasyLink™ Mobile Communications solution, which allows technicians to easily acquire data from meters through a portable, long-range radio device. Data is gathered through a single mobile reading device that collects data from both FlexNet SmartPoints and ERTS simultaneously.

The utility department was so satisfied with the solution that it began a full deployment before the initial testing was completed. Along with using the FlexNet EasyLink system across all of its water meters, the utility is implementing a meter replacement program with iPERL® residential and OMNI™ commercial smart water meters.

The new solutions have allowed Eagle Mountain to be more efficient and proactive in serving its customers. Read the press release to learn more.

The next customer spotlight could be you. Contact Lindsay Hill to share your story.

South Central Power provides electricity to more than 118,000 customers within 24 counties in central and southern Ohio. After years of successfully capturing billing reads through Power Line Carrier (PLC), their aging system became hard to maintain and prevented them from keeping pace with the benefits available in newer communication systems.

The legacy PLC system required a lot of electrical switching from substation to substation, which often resulted in reduced meter reading capability. The cooperative also relied on customer calls to understand when outages occurred, rarely getting a full picture of the outage until they sent a technician to investigate. South Central Power’s team determined that it was the right time to upgrade to a next-generation advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) solution.

The team opted to upgrade to the Sensus AMI solution, powered by FlexNet® communication network, a robust system that would enable the team to collect, deliver, manage and analyze meter data remotely in near-real-time over a secure two-way communication network. South Central will also utilize the system for Distribution Automation, automating their distribution system to give them greater visibility and control to greatly improve overall customer satisfaction.

The entire deployment is expected to be completed in less than three years. Read the press release to learn more.

In October, we held our annual Reach Conference in Hollywood, Florida. More than 1,200 attendees joined us for our biggest and most in-depth conference to date.

Stories of solutions

This year, we held more than 220 sessions, including presentations by partners, distributors, and customers – the most we’ve ever had. We heard your experience with implementing Sensus solutions and your customer service success stories.

We also held our first-ever Learning Labs, providing hands-on training to attendees who learned how to perform specific tasks with Sensus solutions.

Recognizing stellar individuals

The Sensus Reach Awards recognized six of our customers, distributors and employees for innovation, problem-solving and results. These recipients were selected from an impressive pool of nominees – the most we’ve ever had. Congratulations to all of our winners.

Make your plans

Pre-registration has opened for Reach 2019. Please mark your calendars and join us November 3-6, 2019 in Anaheim, California.

— David Duke

Sensus employees David Duke and Tom Galuska were recognized as two of our Reach Award winners.

David Duke, our employee winner in the Customer First category, currently serves as Senior Manager, Sensus Customer Solutions Lab.

As the man behind the curtain, David helps enable about 500 live demos a year for audiences across the world, at the Solutions Lab and online.

David says “it’s the best job in the building”, because he gets to play with all of our products. Send David an email if you’d like to set up a demo with him.

— Tom Galuska

This year, we celebrated 10 great years of the Sensus Partner and Advisor Network (SPAN). SPAN, which is open to all Sensus customers, was created as an opportunity for member utilities to share best practices and exchange ideas through collaboration.

“For the last decade SPAN has provided an invaluable opportunity for our members to connect with other utility leaders while working directly with Sensus to respond to changing industry needs,” said Jeff Parish, chairman of SPAN and metering services supervisor at Georgia Power Company. “The organization stands as a testament to the value Sensus places on their customers and their willingness to help us improve our own customers’ experiences.”

The group meets annually at the Sensus Reach Conference, where attendees can speak with SPAN leaders about the benefits of membership. Since the Reach Conference, SPAN has added 34 new member utilities – surpassing the 200-member mark!

Not a member yet? Become a part of the next 10 years of SPAN.

• NRECA CEO Close-Up
  January 9-12, 2019
  Marco Island, FL


• DistribuTECH
  February 5-7, 2019
  New Orleans, LA


• TechAdvantage
  March 10-19, 2019
  Orlando, FL

• SGA Spring Conference & Expo
  March 18-20, 2019
  Columbia, SC

• Weber Basin Promotes Water Conservation with the Sensus AMI Solution
  (September 25, 2018)
  
  
• Sensus Reach Conference Empowers Attendees to Connect, Learn and Grow
  (October 2, 2018)
  
  
• South Central Power in Ohio Moves from PLC to Sensus AMI Solution
  (November 13, 2018)
  
  
• NV Energy Delivers Reliable Power Distribution with Sensus
  (November 27, 2018)
  
  

• iPERL® (North America) Residential Water Meters
  (Water Online, September 2, 2018)
  
  
• How To Boost Water System Efficiency With A Smart Utility Network
  (Water Online, September 5, 2018)
  
  
• Non-Revenue Water: Let's Talk Real And Apparent Losses
  (Water Online, September 6, 2018)
  
  
• Beyond Traditional AMI – The Smart Utility Network (SUN) Sheds Light Across The Entire Utility Water Cycle
  (Water Online, September 7, 2018)
  
  
• Choosing The Right Metrology For The Right Application
  (Water Online, September 7, 2018)
  
  
• Sound the Alarm
  (Water & Wastes Digest, September 10, 2018)
  
  
• Florida Utility Deploys Smart Solutions to Monitor Lake Levels
  (WaterWorld, September 11, 2018)
  
  
• Dixon maps out water meter replacement
  (Saukvalley.com, September 11, 2018)
  
  
• Craig City Council makes a splash with water improvement projects
  (Craig Press, September 12, 2018)
  
  
• Silver Lake Town Council Members Look Into New Water Meters
  (inkFreeNews, September 13, 2018)
  
  
• Utah Water Conservancy District Reduces Water Use with Sensus AMI
  (WaterWorld, September 27, 2018)
  
  
• Water, Gas, Electric, Lighting – Smart Connections for Tomorrow’s Smart Cities
  (Tech HQ, October 1, 2018)
  
  
• Smart Utilities Think Sensus
  (Tech HQ, October 1, 2018)
  
  
• 3 Features Critical to an Optimal Utility Communication Network
  (Water Online, October 1, 2018)
  
  
• Utah Water Conservancy District Reduces Water Usage with AMI
  (Water Finance & Management, October 1, 2018)
  
  
• Sensus Reach Conference Empowers Attendees to Connect, Learn and Grow
  (Oil & Gas Journal, October 2, 2018)
  
  
• Sensus Reach Conference Empowers Attendees to Connect, Learn and Grow
  (Electric Light & Power, October 2, 2018)
  
  
• Sensus Reach Conference Empowers Attendees to Connect, Learn And Grow
  (Water Online, October 2, 2018)
  
  
• Village to Complete Water Meter Replacement by End of Year
  (The McDonough County Voice, October 4, 2018)
  
  
• Silver Lake Town Council Approves Purchase of New Water Meters
  (inkFreeNews, October 11, 2018)
  
  
• Georgia Utility Reduces Non-Revenue Water with Advanced Meters
  (WorldWater, September/October 2018 digital print edition, pg. 31)
  
  
• Georgia Utility Addresses Non-Revenue Water with Advanced Meters
  (Water Innovations, November 8, 2018)
  
  
• Caught Red Handed: Using AMI to Address Power Theft Wherever it Occurs
  (Electric Light & Power, November 9, 2018)
  
  
• South Central Power in Ohio moves to Sensus AMI solution
  (Electric Light & Power, November 13, 2018)
  
  
• South Central Power in Ohio Moves from PLC to Sensus AMI Solution
  (Electric Energy Online, November 14, 2018)
  
  
• Ohio utility employs Sensus AMI solution
  (Utility Products, November 16, 2018)
  
  
• The Transition from Power-Line Carrier
  (T&D World, November 26, 2018)
  
  

• Utah Water Conservancy District Reduces Outdoor Water Use with Sensus Solution
  (September 25, 2018)
  
  
• NV Energy Delivers Reliable Power Distribution with Sensus
  (November 27, 2018)