 Comprehensive Meter Data Management Minimizes Changes to Key Utility Systems - By Patti Harper-Slaboszewicz Daily IssueAlert 2/3/2006 Free The spotlight on advanced or smart metering is no longer focused only on the technologies of advanced metering. Whereas utilities in the past may have chosen one AMR technology for the leading role in their deployments, now the call has expanded to first set the scene with meter data management to allow utilities to use multiple AMR technologies and to smooth the transition to leveraging the massive amounts of data throughout the utility operations. The key is to recognize that meter data management is not about the managing of any particular AMR network or only the management of billing data. Rather, meter data management plays the role of allowing other key utility IT systems to act as if there were only one AMR technology in the field by providing the information required by each IT system in that system's required format, as well as providing the necessary business process management for effective, low-cost operations. The billing system can then focus on billing, rather than worrying whether the meter data comes in as hourly or 30 minute interval data. This allows the utility to start out with a variety of AMR technologies and implementations, and to change over time what data is collected without requiring any further changes to the billing system. If it is decided to change from collecting hourly data to 30 minute data for some or all of the customer meters, only the meter data management system sees a change; the billing system continues to receive the same billing determinants calculated by the meter data management system. It may be useful to provide customer service representatives a stream of daily usage information in addition to billing determinants as the first set of tools available to discuss billing inquiries from customers. The most recent meter read could also be provided for move-in or -out customer calls. The customer service system would not need to be concerned with how that latest read was obtained. Perhaps for some meters, the meter data management system requests the AMR system to poll the meters every day to collect a reading for this purpose. For other meters, the meter data management system requests an on-demand read when the customer service rep first pulls up a particular customer account. It could even be set up in the meter data management system to vary how the latest meter reading is obtained based on the credit history of the customer, recent weather, or the current status of the particular AMR network. During an outage, the meter data management system can provide useful information to the outage management system without sending too little or too much information. Utilities without adequate meter data management systems have been known to shut off the flow of information from AMR systems that provide automatic notification of potential outages for large outages because the amount of data provided far exceeds what is useful to the mapping and identification of possible equipment failures in the field contributing to an outage. A comprehensive meter data management system will adapt to the need for information as the outage progresses without burdening the outage management system with how the information is obtained. One AMR system might require polling whereas another may provide automatic notification of outage and restoration. The key is to place the functionality of dealing with particular AMR systems in the meter data management system, and provide consistent information to the other utility IT systems regardless of the source of the data. This is important for information provided to other utility IT systems on a batch process basis as well as for responding to requests for information on an ad-hoc basis. One way to determine where the functionality should reside for any particular task is to consider what changes are required if any aspect of the task should change. The proper place for the functionality to reside is where the cost and risk of change are minimized.
Scattered Across Utility IT Systems
 Let's take an example. Much discussion has focused on how finely the AMR system should support measuring energy use. Let's suppose we start with hourly data, and that the customer is billed on a critical peak rate with each pricing period beginning and ending on the hour. After a few years, the forecasting team decides it could achieve far better forecasts using five minute data for customers in climate zones with more volatile weather. Subsequently, the utility changes the data collection for 50 percent of its customers to collect five minute data. It is determined that no other business unit needs the five minute data initially, but that engineering and planning may want their data changed to five minute data for a subset of the five-minute customers. Billing, customer service, outage management, and customer data presentment have no interest in the finer interval data. Bill calculations will be affected, of course, because now the billing determinants must be calculated for some customers by summing five-minute interval data rather than hourly interval data. However, summing the five-minute interval data to hourly data will be required also for customer service and for now, engineering and planning. Therefore, this functionality should reside in the meter data management system where the change will only be made in one system, rather than in several. When the engineering and planning department decides to use the five-minute data, they can specify which customers they want the finer data for based on markers important to the engineering and planning department rather than the forecasting team.
With an early investment in meter data management and with a careful design of where to place functionality, utilities can develop a workable and flexible IT system for using the meter data provided by advanced or smart metering systems. Each utility business unit will have the capability of specifying their view of the data based on parameters specific to their interests, and across the utility, different teams will be using consistent data to provide information to manage the utility business.
This article was originally published in the inaugural issue of the AMI MDM Newsletter. For additional infomration, please visit the new AMI MDM website at www.amimdm.com
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