Tamworth Regional Council's latest investment to enhance water sustainability across the local community involves the installation of new smart water meters.
The rollout begins early March in Manilla and Barraba and be installed throughout the region until late 2023. In total, over 21,000 mechanical water meters will either be replaced with new smart water meters or fitted with add on tags through a $6.5M investment by Council.
Smart water meters measure water usage and are fitted with low powered radio transmitters to provide accurate near real-time water usage readings, improving the accuracy of water bills, help to detect possible leaks, promote better water management and improve customer service.
Council currently uses a fleet of mechanical water meters which rely on manual readers to capture consumption data. This approach is manually intensive and relatively inefficient. Tamworth Region Mayor, Russell Webb said that Council is investing in water security for the region.
"Council is continuing with its efforts to increase water security for our community with new smart water meters. One of the biggest advantages to the smart meters is their near real-time usage readings and accuracy which helps to detect leaks. Smart meters can help us save many mega litres of water each year through leak detection."
Many other Councils have already upgraded to smart water meters because of these positive benefits. An online water portal will provide residents of the Tamworth region with easily accessible data to monitor water consumption and alerts for high consumption and leaks. Smart water meters will also help Council make faster and more informed water distribution decisions, improving the entire water network."
Council has contracted Taggle and their sub-contractor Data Right to install the new smart water meters through a formal tender process.
Taggle CEO, David Peters said that the Tamworth region is perfectly positioned to reap many of the benefits of smart water metering.
"We have installed hundreds of thousands of smart water meters across many Councils and the savings experienced are significant. Identifying leaks quickly is the big one, saving not only valuable water but reducing water bills and bill shock for larger leaks. The water portal will also help residents understand their water usage better and assist with customer service questions as the data can be referenced to resolve problems. This portal will be accessible from any device including mobile phones, tablets or desktop giving you near real-time water usage data direct to your fingertips."
The water portal will be available to residents of the Tamworth region from March/April 2023 onwards. The new meters also display usage readings on the devices themselves too.
Residents should expect water supply to be interrupted for only 10 to 20 minutes when the new meters are installed. Installers will knock on the door to confirm with the resident if it is ok to change the meter at that time.
Tamworth region residents are required to clear the area around their water meters including the removal of any covers or debris prior to their installation dates. Residents who own dogs or have meters behind locked gates can contact Data Right on 07 4968 3173 to arrange a suitable time for installation.
