In an industry first, Subeca is beginning a roll-out of its Amazon Sidewalk-based smart water metering system to utilities in the US in a bid to dramatically reduce costs associated with AMI. Its Explorer Program, due to run between September and November, will provide 100 utilities across the country with its smart meter register and associated software to enable customers to test Amazon’s Internet of Things network for managing meter data.

Subeca already counts several utilities among its user base, typically using LoRa networks to send and receive data from meters. The firm’s bet on the Sidewalk network brings a proposition of free backhaul telemetry to utilities, avoiding costs that small utilities in particular tend to struggle with. “All those costs of building towers for radio communications or cellular fees go away,” CEO Patrick Keaney told GWI. “This is a very inexpensive way for a utility to start building out an AMI platform.”

In the Explorer Program, Subeca will supply three of its Pin smart meter registers in each “kit” along with its engagement software for utilities and consumers. The Pin product – which is also Bluetooth and LoRaWAN enabled – can retrofit any positive displacement meter and activates rapidly once provisioned with a QR code through a mobile app.

“We really want to bring the Amazon experience to water,” Keaney told GWI. “We want it to be simple […] We’re making it like you would set up an Alexa device in your home.”

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Read the whole article here!!

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https://www.globalwaterintel.com/global-water-intelligence-magazine/24/7/smart-water-watch/subeca-aims-to-bring-amazon-experience-to-water-sector

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