Connect or Disconnect at the Push of a Button
With eMeter’s Remote Connect / Disconnect application the process of connecting and disconnecting customers can be done in minutes – even at the last minute. All without dispatching crews to the location. How do we do it? Simple.
Through the CIS interface, the Remote Connect / Disconnect application receives notice of a service disconnection or connect and determines whether a hard or soft (virtual) disconnect or connect is required.
Virtual Disconnect
A virtual disconnect does not actually disconnect the power flow to a SDP. The virtual disconnect identifies any inactive service point where metered usage exceeds a threshold (which you can configure by service type, customer class, etc.). The application records these events in EnergyIP and could also automatically generate a field meter investigation request through the utility’s work management system (WMS), or trigger a customer service activity such as phone call or mailing to the premise/account. Multiple commodity utilities can define business logic associated with usage thresholds on other metered accounts at the same service premise (e.g., water, gas) to determine how and when to dispatch meter investigations.
Hard Disconnect
If a hard disconnect is requested, the eMeter Connect/Disconnect application will determine if the customer premise equipment supports remote disconnect capability and, if so, which AMI system to use. The application will then send the appropriate disconnect order to the AMI system to initiate the disconnect operation. A meter reading is requested at the time of the disconnect operation to ensure that all of the data is there to complete an accurate billing. The requests and results from the AMI system are logged in the EnergyIP service history for audit and verification.
If the service is not equipped with remote disconnect capabilities, the Connect/Disconnect application can initiate a field order to the utility work management system to “boot” the meter, or if appropriate to “cut on pole”. EnergyIP maintains a record of which hard disconnect type was performed and whether the meter is energized or not (required for communications performance tracking and outage reporting).
Connect
Connecting service again to the SDP is just as simple as the disconnection process. When a notice of a service re-connection is sent out from the CIS, the Connect/Disconnect application will determine the status of the service point and remove any soft disconnect thresholds. It will then initiate a remote connect process (if supported by premise equipment), or initiate a field order to remove the “boot” or “cut on pole”.
Fastest ROI You’ve Ever Seen
Automating the execution of connect and disconnect services with eMeter saves CenterPoint an average of 1,100 truck rolls daily. That saves them millions of dollars in expense annually, conserves fuel and reduces unnecessary carbon emissions. How’s that for ROI?