The smart way to track water usage is a step closer following a Toowoomba Regional Council (TRC) decision to award a contract to implement the technology.
At its October Ordinary Meeting on Tuesday, Council voted to award the AMI (Advanced Metering Infrastructure) Smart Water Meter contract to the preferred tenderer which is a consortium led by Optus Networks Australia, IOTA, ETS Electrical Services and GreenBe.
Water and Waste Committee Chair Cr Rebecca Vonhoff said the contract decision followed a rigorous assessment of tender proposals from commercial providers to ensure the technology chosen would meet Council’s requirements and provide the maximum benefits for the Toowoomba Region.
“Council will work with OPTUS, IOTA and GreenBe to develop the processes and logistics needed to implement this technology,” Cr Vonhoff said.
“The next steps involve integrating the new smart water meter technology with Council’s systems.
“The smart water meter technology will give Council accurate data and improve early detection of leaks and breaks.
“People will be able to monitor their water usage in close to real time.”
“The new technology will involve development of a web portal and app by GreenBe so that residents can use their devices to check their usage. Usual water meter readings will continue for those people without a computer or smart phone.
Water and Waste Committee Portfolio Leader Cr Nancy Sommerfield said the next stage involved the proof of concept and a series of milestones before Council would proceed to full implementation.
“Earlier this year Council put a call out for volunteers to be part of the initial rollout of smart water meters. There was an eager response from community members wanting to be early adopters of this technology,” Cr Sommerfield said.
“The volunteers come from a range of locations and include residential, industrial and commercial users. This will allow testing and fine-tuning of the system from end to end.
“While the back-of-house systems will take a while to set up, Council expects to be able to contact the initial group of volunteers in early 2022 to start the proof of concept.”
