CFOtech Australia - Technology news for CFOs & financial decision-makers
Story image
Smart Water Meters set to revolutionise Australian utilities
Tue, 16th Apr 2024

In a significant move towards water conservation and cost savings, an Australian water company has introduced smart water meters, marking a substantial step forward in their digital metering capabilities. This initiative, part of the company's Digital and Data transformation program, is set to transform the way water consumption is monitored and billed, paving the way for more sustainable water usage.

The main thrust of this innovation lies in the deployment of smart water meters. These advanced devices are designed to efficiently monitor water consumption, enabling the detection of consumption surges that could indicate a leak. This not only ensures service continuity but also plays a crucial role in water conservation. 

Amdocs, a leader in modernising data and analytics platform transformation, has played a pivotal role in the Digital and Data transformation. The company's contribution can be seen in two key areas: facilitating cloud modernisation and providing a state-of-the-art data and analytics platform. These interventions have been instrumental in bringing the water company's vision to fruition.

The need for an upgraded data and analytics platform was evident. The water company's requirements included a robust technological foundation built on cloud-native services capable of meeting current and future needs. A significant aspect of this requirement was data democratisation – creating business-ready data sets that promote self-service and enable machine learning. This approach would also involve the consolidation and rationalisation of reports and dashboards, ensuring data quality and governance, and maintaining control, privacy, security, and trust for all stakeholders. Importantly, the ability to use real-time insights and data for timely action was a priority.

From a cloud perspective, Amdocs' strategy involved progressively moving data from the customer's main systems to a cloud platform.

Amdoc's introduction of specialized data services demonstrates the move towards more sophisticated, data-driven solutions. 

The solution provided by Amdocs stands out for its seamless transition from legacy systems to cloud-native data platforms. This change was achieved with no disruption to services, leading to significant business results. The Data Analytics solution laid the groundwork for strategic initiatives like digital metering, IoT, and enhanced visualisations. This technological leap is not just about efficiency; it's a step towards improved customer experience and a commitment to a sustainable future.

The results of this modernisation are clear. The utility company is now much better equipped to make data-driven decisions and improve its internal efficiencies. By modernising its enterprise data platform and democratising data access with the help of Amdocs, the company is in a much stronger position to deliver enhanced and more affordable services to its customers. This initiative is a testament to the company's dedication to not just serving its customers better but also contributing to global water conservation efforts.