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Client Name: City of Santa Ana I AMI FEASIBILITY REPORT 7 Staffing Considerations for Smart Metering Technologies The industry has realized that AMI project implementations are unlike any other project that the utility pursues. These projects impact every meter and, hence, every customer in the utility. They will impact organizations throughout the City, including metering, field service, IT, billing, customer service, engineering, etc. The project will also be a high visibility effort that will be viewed internally and externally as a transformational initiative. The importance of a successful implementation is critical to gaining the benefits as identified as well as preventing the potential significant risks of failure. Resources from multiple departments across the organization will be required for any AMI project to be successful. AMI solutions and more specifically, the MDMS system, provides many new reports and analytics capabilities to identify leaks, stopped or problem meters, tampering, etc. These capabilities have proven extremely valuable at other water utilities and are essential to gain the full benefits of the system. However, it requires dedicated resources to monitor the systems and achieve these benefits. 7.1 CURRENT STAFFING The implementation of an AMI system requires a transition from the current manual state of meter reading and associated business processes to the eventual automated state. This is expected to take a few years. During this period, there will be a gradual reduction in meter reader classifications as meters are replaced or upgraded and meter reading routes are automated. There is a delay in transitioning the meter reading resources (to other duties) following the meter installations by several months. This delay is due to the fact that meters are still read manually. But upon completion, the City will no longer need a focused meter reading workforce. Manual meter reads will still be required because of coverage, data processing, or equipment failure issues. However, it is anticipated that these will be minimal and will be handled by field crews performing water meter field work such as: installation, replacement, repair, relocation, etc. Most utilities do not automatically reduce their workforce as the meter reading duties are reduced but often redeploy them to other open positions that have been identified as similar in classifications or skill set. The identification of these potential roles and the method to allow displaced meter readers to move to these roles should be investigated before the initiation of the project to effectively communicate to the meter reader workforce and larger organization. In addition, there will be the need for resources to support the operation and maintenance of the AMI system that some of these displaced meter readers may be qualified to perform. 7.2 METER MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR The City will require resources to perform meter installation and maintenance activities. The implementation of the AMI solution and the replacement of a large number of currently installed water meters should remove older and problematic meters from the population. This will reduce the meter replacement and repair needs for few years after AMI deployment. However, as the installed meter population ages, the City will ramp back up to continue the replacement and monitoring of meter assets. BLACK & VEATCH I Staffing Considerations for Smart Metering Technologies 29 25G-147