Trenton City Administrator and Utility Director Ron Urton reports Trenton currently has water and electric meters that are at least 20 years old. He says it is “pretty easy” for electric meters to transfer data by radio read.
The city is switching to advanced metering infrastructure. Urton explains that technology allows meters to talk to each other and city hall, and it gives more options and benefits for customers. For instance, when someone comes in to close out an account, the city can get instant readings and change information while the customer is there.
Urton notes that, in the future, customers will be able to log onto a website and see electric and water usage throughout the month.
AMI also has leak detection on water meters, and a leak can be detected in about 24 hours.
Urton says that when there is a power outage, utility crews will be notified by text to know where there is an outage, how many houses are involved, and the area of town to look for the problem. He comments that will speed up response to outages.