Greenville Utilities Commission has officially begun the Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) project to upgrade its entire meter-related infrastructure and technology systems.
The kickoff meeting was held on April 27. Representatives from the selected AMI vendor, Sensus, and our integration contractor, TMG, were on hand to introduce the new infrastructure, as well as project structure and plans to GUC leaders who have key roles in its implementation.
This multi-year, multi-million-dollar project will replace the 77,394 electric Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) meters with AMI meters and swap out AMR radios on the existing 43,516 water and 26,677 gas meters with Smartpoint Flexnet Radios.
AMR technology and infrastructure are aging out and are difficult to resupply and support, making the move to AMI necessary for GUC. GUC has been using AMR since 2004.
“We are modernizing.” said Director of Electric Systems Ken Wade during the kickoff session. “We utilized the AMR system for many years and have maximized the system to its fullest capacity.”
AMI is a system of smart meters, communication networks, and data management systems that allow for two-way communication between GUC and customers’ meters.
The project will modernize GUC’s metering infrastructure to support long-term operational transformation, enhance customer service through billing accuracy and usage visibility, and establish data analytics capabilities for future grid modernization initiatives. It will also provide information to help customers better understand and manage their utility usage.
“AMI is a significant investment,” said Assistant General Manager/Chief Operating Officer Chris Padgett during the meeting. “We must leverage its capabilities to better serve our customers and optimize operations.”
The AMI project includes installing an AMI specific wireless communications network and IT system, replacing AMR meters and radios, replacing or upgrading load management switches, and configuring existing impacted IT systems to interconnect with AMI.
AMI will be fully integrated into Oracle CCS, Cityworks, ESRI GIS, and the Meridian customer portal. The legacy system (Itron FCS/Itron MV-90) will still be operational as well during the installation of AMI. Full deployment of AMI is expected to be completed by 2032.
PHASED TIMELINE
The project will be implemented in three phases with no interruption for gas and water services, and an interruption of electric service only long enough to change out the meter. Extensive training on the new technology and platform will be provided for employees.
The first phase is technology implementation, which began in April and will last through the end of 2026. This phase includes installing 16 base stations and associated antennas, which provide two-way communication between meters and load control devices with the AMI headend, also known as the Sensus Regional Network Interface (RNI). The headend then interconnects with our existing IT systems. Lastly, as an initial test, 89 customers representing unique billing and meter configurations will be converted to AMI for testing and evaluation.
The second phase is a pilot program which will include roughly 1,300 customers, including employees. This phase will be a time for system monitoring and troubleshooting.
The third and final phase is full deployment where all the remaining meters will be converted to AMI across the entire GUC system.
ELECTRIC METERING
AMI can provide real-time usage data to customers and GUC, allowing for more accurate and on-demand billing. It allows for disconnection and reconnection of service to be completed automatically through the two-way communication network instead of sending a technician out to pull or restore meters.
AMI electric meters will also relay outage and restoration notifications quicker, monitor for high temperatures to improve fire safety at the meter, and have safeguards and detection to prevent meter tampering and theft of services.
The AMI project includes replacing or upgrading the existing load management devices that support Beat the Peak.
GAS & WATER SMARTPOINTS
The new Sensus Smartpoint FlexNet Radios will be fitted to water and gas meters while keeping the existing meters in operation. The Water Smartpoint FlexNet Radio offers standard alarms for leaks, high flow, reverse flow, meter communication failure, non-numeric read, and a low battery. Data is collected every hour and transferred to the database every four hours, except in the case of alarms. Gas Smartpoint FlexNet Radios are similar to the water meter upgrades with the commercial meter upgrades including hourly or daily reporting options.
The disconnect and reconnect services for Water and Gas will continue to be performed on-site.
We’ll provide regular updates on the Spotlight newsfeed, but if you have any questions about the project and how it may affect you, please ask your supervisor.
