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SAWNEE EMC TO DEPLOY AUTOMATED
METER READING PROGRAM Contact: Blake House Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation (Sawnee EMC) is dedicated to serving its membership through the delivery of highly reliable electric service under a wide range of conditions at competitive rates. To further this commitment, Sawnee EMC will soon begin the deployment of a state-of-the-art two way meter reading system that deploys a power line carrier concept to read meters and collect meter information called “Automated Meter Reading” or “AMR” AMR two way power line carrier technology is deemed as one of the most advanced meter reading systems of its kind in the electric utility industry. This three-year project will involve the installation of approximately 150,000 (50,000 per year) new and retrofitted electric meters at the homes and businesses of Sawnee EMC’s members across its seven (7) county service area. The project will also include the installation of communication equipment at over thirty five (35) electric distribution substations located throughout Sawnee EMC’s service territory. The AMR system functions by utilizing a digital watt-hour meter that collects, stores and sends meter usage data through Sawnee EMC’s power lines and substations utilizing a communication network that is connected to Sawnee’s headquarters, located in Cumming, Georgia. Once received at Sawnee EMC’s offices, the information is integrated with its computer systems for billing, outage notification, engineering studies, power interruption notification and other purposes. Sawnee EMC staff anticipates that the energy data will be readily available for review by Sawnee members through a secure and user friendly web site. “This system takes our members and the review of their electric energy usage data into the 21st century”, states Michael A. Goodroe, President and CEO. “Members will have access to the daily, and in some cases hourly, energy usage data for their account” he adds. “The system will be capable of collecting up to hourly information on our member’s accounts and give us operational flexibility that we have never had before”. The new AMR two way power line carrier system will replace the current meter reading system which requires a person visiting a majority of Sawnee’s 150,000 meter locations each month and manually placing a reading into a hand-held computer. This system will also eliminate the human errors that are inherent with this approach. In addition, it will provide many new and exciting features such as tamper notification, outage detection, and hourly energy usage data to name a few. During the project review phase, research indicated a net cost savings benefit within 4 years and will produce substantial savings over its fifteen (15) year useful life. “We are very excited about this project. The members and the cooperative will benefit in many ways.” Blake House, Vice President of Member Services, states, “The two way power line carrier AMR system will virtually eliminate estimated meter readings. It will also mean that meter readers will no longer have to come onto a member’s property each month to read the meter. This will save time and money while increasing the accuracy of meter information.” Mr. House further states, “Once the meter is operational, Sawnee EMC members will be able to access their meter reading data through a secure Web site.” The AMR project is scheduled to begin in March 2008 and is estimated to reach completion in approximately late 2011. Sawnee EMC members can find additional information and details regarding the AMR system online at www.sawnee.com/amr or by contacting the Customer Call Center at 770-887-2363 or via email at customerservice@sawnee.com. About Sawnee EMC Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation is a distribution electric cooperative headquartered in Cumming, Georgia. Sawnee serves electricity to over 147,000 accounts in seven counties of greater north Georgia. Sawnee’s assets exceed $368 million with annual energy sales of 2.90 billion kWh and revenue of $286 million. With over 300 dedicated employees, Sawnee’s team of professionals meet the needs of its member-owners through its complex network of over 9,600 miles of distribution facilities. Georgia’s 42 electric cooperatives now serve more customers than any other state network of EMCs in the nation.
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