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Advanced Metering System Project
Overview
Concord Municipal Light Department (CMLP) and Concord Public Works (CPW) are replacing their existing obsolescing meter systems with a system that will allow two-way communication with customers for improved reliability, efficiency, billing, and customer service. The new metering system will also support Town-wide conservation goals.
CMLP expects the new system will:
- Reduce the frequency and duration of outages by allowing CMLP to isolate outages faster, dispatch repair crews more precisely, and detect equipment in need of repair or replacement.
- Improve operational efficiency by 1) reducing meter reading costs from a mixed system spanning software and support; 2) ensuring accurate meter readings especially for water meters by replacing older, end-of-life meters in the field; 3) reducing labor and vehicle costs for meter reconnects, meter checks, move in and out for final billing; 4) improving detection of tampering and theft to capture unbilled revenue; 5) reducing the need for estimated bills due to inaccessible meters; 6) avoiding expensive power purchases during peak pricing periods by expanding energy management and rate programs to all customers; 7) reducing the cost of vegetation management by targeting areas with voltage issues using voltage alerts; and 8) improving safety for employees at risk with on-site premise visits.
- Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1) decreasing distribution losses (energy waste) through the rightsizing of transformers and voltage management; 2) promoting solar by enabling net metering; 3) promoting electric vehicles with the option to charge at off-peak rates; 4) reducing the use of non-electric company vehicles with fewer visits to customers; and 5) enhancing the value of customer-sited battery storage from Time-of-Use rates.
- Improve customer service by 1) providing a self-service portal to customers containing detailed electric and water usage data for better insight to manage bills, 2) offering Customer Alert Services such as a high bill alert, high usage alert, water leak alerts or usage exceeding a customer set threshold; 3) enabling customers to schedule start and stop service at customer-directed dates and times since a service visit from a technician will not be needed; 4) delivering better outage services by getting targeted notifications from all meters and providing up-to-date outage information on a web portal or mobile application
- Enable Direct Load Control, automated load control, and customer-driven load control of heating systems, hot water heaters and electric vehicles to lower customer bills and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
- Enable time-of-use rates that will: lower customer bills through the improved utilization of infrastructure; promote fairness in revenue recovery; enhance the economics of battery installations; and encourage the charging of electric vehicles during low cost time periods.
For a general update on the AMS project status, read more. For information about opting out of the AMS meter, go to Meter Opt Out Policy and Meter Opt Out Form.