PLANO , Texas — September
9, 2011 – The City of Portsmouth, New Hampshire has
begun a project to install remote shut off valves (RSV) as part
of a strategic initiative. The RSV integrates seamlessly into
the Mosaic™ Mesh Network provided by Datamatic, Ltd.
The City now has the ability to turn on and turn off service to
enabled customers. Datamatic has been a leading utility technology
partner since 1980 and supports 535 customers worldwide.
“We installed 1,200 units in Phase I and started
seeing results immediately.” said Deputy Public
Works Director David Allen. “Our most recent rate
study recommended that we move to billing monthly rather
than every four months to smooth out cash flow, better
manage our water, detect leaks quicker and deliver more
manageable bills to our customers. But we also knew
we’d need an advanced automation tool to make
the transition.
“MOSAIC is delivering on its promises. Having
access to usage details is transforming the way we take
care of our customers. Within the first few days, the
system spotted a leak and we were able to notify the
customer before they even knew there was a problem.
Without MOSAIC, the leak wouldn’t have been found
until the customer got their next four-month bill, if
at all. So, we saved our customer money and saved our
City a lot of wasted water.”
MOSAIC is a “mesh” network. This means
that all Meter Interface Units (FIREFLYs) also function
as repeaters for the transmissions of other neighboring
FIREFLYs. Data is transmitted, or “hopped”,
from FIREFLY to FIREFLY toward a Gateway, similar to
the way someone might jump from rock to rock to cross
a river. Transmissions follow any path necessary to
efficiently navigate the network; circumventing environmental
obstacles along the way.
From the Gateway, data travels to the office via Ethernet,
GPRS or Wi-Fi backhauls. Once in the office, MOSAIC’s
web-based interface makes data available to address
billing, customer service and operational issues.
Allen continued, “MOSAIC has allowed us to be
much more responsive to our customers. Now, when we
get calls about high bills, we have hard data that can
help them understand their usage. We can clearly see
and explain their consumption patterns. It’s been
extremely helpful in quickly settling customer concerns
- without sending someone out to re-read the meter.
We can now handle issues on the first call.
“We’ve developed an aggressive plan to
automate the remaining 6,800 customers by late Spring
2009. We can’t wait to get the rest of the City
up and running.” Allen concluded.
Rich Sanders, Datamatic Vice President of Sales and
Business Development said, “I always get excited
when I see our technology deliver measurable results
and provide solutions to real-world problems. We know
we’re succeeding when our customers can better
serve their customers and be better managers of the
resources entrusted to them.”
