Vattenfall AB Värme Nordic
Improved Efficiency in Billing and Customer Service
“As a frequent user of the WORKABOUT PRO handheld computer working comfort is important. We have found that reliability of the new solution goes hand in hand with precise and reliable reading – we are very pleased with the WORKABOUT PRO.” —Sven-Göran Andersson, Distribution Technician, Vattenfall AB Värme Nordic
Vattenfall is wholly owned by the Swedish state and is the fifth largest energy company in Europe. The utility has operations in the Nordic countries, Germany and Poland and is active in all stages of the electricity value chain – generation, transmission, distribution and sales. In the Nordic region, Vattenfall AB Värme Nordic is the fourth largest supplier of heat with 50 district heating plants servicing 1.3 million customers in the region including 900,000 in Sweden.
The Challenge:
- To enhance customer satisfaction, Vattenfall AB Värme launched a remote meter reading project for its 2, 030 heat utility meters with the main aim of providing all customers with billing based on actual consumption.
- To augment its remote meter reading solution and enhance its capabilities, Vattenfall sought to equip its field operations team with new mobile handheld computers.
- The solution would have to be ergonomic, robust and rugged enough to withstand the tough and changing environments of field work.
The Solution:
- Vattenfall AB Värme Nordic equipped its heat utility meter reading team reading with WORKABOUT PRO handheld computers fitted with a Kamstrup A/S radio card module. This enables the field operations team to read meters remotely so they no longer need to enter customers’ homes.
- Routes are stored in advance on the WORKABOUT PRO mobile handheld computers and the meter reader selects a predetermined route through the user friendly colour touch screen display.
- A Kamstrup A/S radio module is installed in both the meter and the WORKABOUT PRO to enable the transmission of meter data directly to the handheld computer.
- Once a meter is read, the consumption figures are transmitted to Vattenfall’s invoice system and customers are invoiced for actual consumption.
The Benefits:
Remote meter reading implementation offers Vattenfall many benefits:
- The utility always has an accurate snapshot of households’ consumption and is able to base billing on actual consumption instead of estimate consumption.
- Meter readings are fast, error free and accurate and billing is quick and involves simple processing of electronic data. This has resulted in increased customer satisfaction with regard to service, quality, efficiency, and customer care.
- Operational efficiency has improved as the field operations team no longer needs to enter customers’ homes to perform meter readings – workers are no longer dependent on whether household residents are home to provide access to meters.
- Carrying out meter maintenance is simple as Vattenfall can now update the date, time and customer number on the meter without knocking on a households’ door.
- From a regulatory point of view, Vattenfall is now better prepared for any requirements for remote meter reading of heat utility meters by regulators.
