by Nicole Bradford
Pearland water customers should be able to see their water use, get alerts about leaks, and compare their use with averages with a new toolset to launch this year.
The “customer experience portal” will display hourly and daily water use, notifications of possible leaks, bill pay options, and a “water score” for individuals, comparing it with average users. Users can also set up alerts if they go over a certain number of gallons used per day.
For several years, the city has been transitioning to Advanced Metering Infrastructure, or AMI.
“While we want to turn on the customer experience portal as quickly as possible, we also want to get it right, instead of fast.”
– City manager Trent Epperson
Approximately 40,000 older water meters were replaced in 2021 with “smart meters,” which are integrated with software that collects and stores detailed information about use.
The next step is the customer portal, allowing instant access to detailed water-use information and history.
“The idea is on any platform you are on, you’ll get an optimized user experience,” said Josh Lee, equipment operations manager for Itron, the contractor implementing the system.
A marketing campaign ahead of the launch will include user-friendly videos “that walk people through how to use the platform and how to sign up for it,” Lee said.
A date to launch the portal has yet to be announced.
“While we want to turn on the customer experience portal as quickly as possible, we also want to get it right, instead of fast,” City Manager Trent Epperson said.
Implementation of the system has experienced delays for three years.
“We will continue to be here until we get it done,” said Brad Balzer, solutions delivery manager for Itron North America.
