Page 198 - Water Loss Control

172 Cha pte r T w e l v e

water supply efficiency and these should be reviewed to ensure that inappropriate
meters are not installed inadvertently due to policy shortcomings. The benefits of
accurate customer metering, however, continue to evolve as consumption data is rec-
ognized as critical to evaluate conservation programs, loss control efforts, and eco-
nomic efficiency.
Many highly accurate brands of meters are available to the drinking water industry.
Installation and upkeep of meters should be included as part of the ongoing functions
of the water utility, therefore funds should be budgeted to accommodate regular testing
and rotation of customer meters. Implementing a program that routinely tests groups
of customer meters is an efficient and economical way to keep a meter population cur-
rent, and provides essential data to develop a rational long-term meter change-out plan
for the customer meter population.

12.2 Customer Meter Demographics and Consumption Record
Water utilities that employ best management practices for meter management usually
have a thorough understanding of their customer meter demographics and the accu-
racy of the different meter types in their system. Many water utilities, however, are not
current with the status of their meter population. It is not uncommon for an incoming
water utility manager to inherit a meter population that was installed 15, 20, or 25 years
ago but hasn’t experienced ongoing meter testing, rotation, or right-sizing. In many
such cases, the size, type, make, and performance of the meter population are poorly
documented. The important first step in this case is to compile existing customer
account and meter data to establish the basic demographics and accuracy levels of the
meter population.
Meter demographics: If the customer meter population characteristics are not well
known, the auditor can conduct research using purchase and installation records, bill-
ing records, customer complaint histories, and meter accuracy test results to compile
information on the sizes, types, brands, ages, and cumulative consumption levels of
customer meters. Additionally, new procedures can be instituted to require customer
service and/or meter service workers to gather specific meter and account information
at customer sites as they conduct their work assignments; this information can be input
into the data archival system. Table 12.1 is a summary table displaying the customer
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meter demographics for the fictitious County Water Company (CWC). Reports can be
generated in a manner similar to this table to display the characteristic of the meter
population.
Since meter technology is always improving, new types and models of meters are
frequently introduced to the water market. Many water utilities purchase meters in lots
in a competitive bidding process and, over long periods of time, gradually install a
variety of makes and models in their system, particularly in the large customer meter
classes. It is important that the auditor have a reasonable sense of the meter population
demographics in order to formulate a sound meter testing, right-sizing, and rotation
strategy.
In addition to the meter demographics shown in Table 12.1, consumption summa-
ries are a useful management tool to track metering trends and note any unusual pat-
terns. Table 12.2 gives the summary of consumption for County Water Company for
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calendar year 2006. The total consumption in each customer class is tallied and shown
in a monthly breakdown. It is important that water utility managers monitor consumption