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Contr olling Appar ent Losses—Data Transfer Err ors 205

13.1.2 Automatic Meter Reading
Because of the many difficulties encountered in manual meter reading programs, meter
reading success rates have declined in recent years in many water utilities and a rapidly
growing number of these systems have installed AMR systems, which are usually more
accurate, less labor intensive, safer, and typically more cost-effective than manual meter
reading. AMR has greatly reduced the accessibility and safety problems that have
plagued manual meter reading programs. Many water utilities have achieved great
success in moving from manual meter reading to AMR, such as the account described
in Figs. 13.4 and 13.5. AMR has a successful history in the gas and electric utility indus-
tries, with implementation in the water industry growing rapidly since the mid-1990s.
AMR market penetration in the U.S. water sector stood at greater than 25% of customer
2
accounts in 2007 and is expected to reach over 40% by 2012. This is a good trend for the
drinking water industry as AMR offers advantages of improved accuracy, efficiency,
and cost-effectiveness.
AMR systems consist of a device that is mounted to the customer water meter. This
endpoint device has the ability to obtain a reading from the meter register and transmit
it via one of the variety of communication mechanisms offered by manufacturers. The
first generation of water utility ARM systems communicated the reading signal to a
meter reader walking by the property, either wirelessly or by plugging in a handheld
device to a port on the exterior of the customer building. Such handheld readings elimi-
nate the need to gain access inside the customer building; yet this method still requires
the labor of the manual meter reader patrolling a fixed route. In this approach, meter
reading success rate and efficiency is increased while labor costs are little changed or
only slightly improved.
A second common form of AMR is the drive-by method of communication, whereby
meter readers patrol the service area in vehicles to collect meter readings. Meter readers
need not leave their vehicle in order to collect readings. Dozens of readings can be
quickly collected, virtually at the same time, as the patrol vehicle drives slowly down a
street. Equipment in the vehicle sends out signals to awaken the AMR endpoint devices
attached to the meters and obtain the current meter reading. This drive-by method

The Benefits of Automatic Meter Reading Systems
Prior to the start of AMR installation in 1997, Philadelphia’s Water Department
and Water Revenue Bureau encountered such poor meter reading success that
only one out of every seven water bills issued was based upon an actual meter
reading; six were based upon estimates. With the installation of over 425,000
residential AMR units by 2000, the city witnessed a meter reading success rate
of over 98% in its monthly billing process using a mobile drive-by system. A
system of mostly estimates was replaced with a system of mostly actual meter
readings. This has greatly improved the confidence of customer consumption
data, lessened the number of customer billing complaints and aided the detec-
tion of systematic data handling error and unauthorized consumption in the City
of Philadelphia. Meter readers were assigned to new duties: no layoffs or termi-
nations occurred, and the project has been highly cost-effective. Philadelphia
envisions moving to fixed network AMR as its next generation system.

FIGURE 13.4 The benefi ts of automatic meter reading systems. (Source: American Water Works
Association. “Water Audits and Loss Control Programs.” Manual of Water Supply Practices M36,
3rd ed., Denuer, Colorado.: AWWA, 2008.)