CLEVEST Smart Grid Deployment and Support

  

Manage the smart grid lifecycle

Daily meter exchanges are increased, preventable data errors are eliminated, route optimization is achieved, worker safety and efficiency are  improved, and customer disputes are prevented – allowing you to deploy with fewer resources and in a shorter time frame

Clevest supports the complete smart grid replacement lifecycle, from planning and deployment to post-deployment support and troubleshooting. We are partnered with leading smart grid technology providers and deployment vendors and have exclusive relationships for to embed meter provisioning and troubleshooting tools directly into our software for use with a single handheld computer.

We have integrated all the tools necessary to streamline the advanced meter infrastructure (AMI) deployment process and support regulatory reporting. Every step of the meter exchange process is documented and the data collected is accurate and verified, providing a complete audit trail of all smart grid deployment activities.

Solution components

Better manage overall deployment program

Support this large and complex undertaking with a mobile field force solution that uses modern, standards-based, customizable tools, best practice templates and a comprehensive, well-established implementation methodology. With this solution, utilities (or the deployment vendors they engage) can verify that equipment is installed and operating as expected, that systems are capturing, validating and sharing data as defined, and that, fundamentally, services are being delivered. And, with already-prescribed business and workflow logic, utilities can use the same solution to support commercial, industrial and return-to-utility installations as well as ongoing maintenance in the field.

Benefits

  • Improve program control with a proven mobile solution built on industry best practices gained from over 50 deployments
  • Improve data currency with real-time integration to and from the field
  • Prevent errors in the field by capturing data through preconfigured and repeatable workflow processes
  • Leverage investment by implementing a ready-to-use mobile solution to support utility-specific deployment responsibilities and ongoing end point management
  • Avoid the expense of modifying legacy mobile apps that are not well-suited to manage this new type of work efficiently
  • Improve customer satisfaction by effectively managing customer interactions during the deployment

Simplify AMI diagnostics

Reduce risk during a deployment and take the complexity out of post-deployment diagnostics with one solution for one mobile device to manage service work and perform actual infrastructure diagnostics. Clevest embeds AMI technology from leading vendors into the workflow logic of its mobile application for a consolidated view of in field diagnostic activities. Crews use the integrated solution within the context of specific work orders to more accurately isolate where problems exist and avoid the typical response of expensive wholesale meter replacement that may in fact fail to address the actual nature of a given problem.

Benefits

  • Diagnose AMI problems in the field more accurately and efficiently
  • Simplify the user experience and reduce training costs for crews with a single, modern application for one mobile device
  • Identify specific meter or network equipment to repair or replace
  • Decrease mobile hardware investment by using one device for AMI diagnostics instead of two
  • Leverage Clevest's extensive AMI partner ecosystem and proven technology integration

Adapt applications for information exchange

A smart grid initiative is a catalyst for pervasive changes in technology and processes. Capitalize on the powerful opportunity these changes bring about for interoperability by configuring how multiple software systems interact with each other to exchange data. Create and modify interfaces that define the movement of data between the mobile field force solution and other enterprise systems (e.g., CIS, GIS, head end application, meter data management, outage management). Avoid the cost and time involved to retrofit legacy systems that are not architected to readily interface to new systems and support new business processes.

Benefits

  • Adapt the mobile field force solution to interact with different types of software systems as required
  • Share timely and accurate data across multiple software systems to optimize new business processes
  • Validate configuration as you go and reduce the lengthy QA cycles associated with programming and compiling
  • Avoid expensive custom programming to retrofit legacy apps

Improve planning to maximize deployment efficiency

As part of predeployment planning cycles, use the mobile field force solution to support site surveys that determine whether or not specific locations for network node collectors will function as expected. If locations are confirmed, data from the site survey cascades automatically into a new order to actually install collector hardware. If locations are not confirmed, alternate sites to evaluate are identified.

Benefits

  • Avoid the time and expense of reprogramming legacy apps that do not support new processes for field crews, such as site surveys
  • Reduce the predeployment planning timeframe by automating site survey process
  • Enhance the collection of meter data by optimizing the number and location of network nodes
  • Eliminate preventable errors with network node installations before they occur
  • Mitigate deployment risks with advanced planning capabilities

Validate new installations

Utilities and/or deployment vendors can ensure new meters are installed correctly by automatically generating service orders to audit work performed in the field. Double-check installations precisely to catch issues early and to address any procedural inaccuracies before they become chronic and more costly to correct. Utilities may require that new crews have all of their work audited. As installation proficiency increases, utilities can easily decrease audit rates to ensure that resources are deployed for auditing only when needed.

Benefits

  • Automate standard procedures for auditing new meter installations
  • Identify problems early during installation cycles and decrease error rates
  • Proactively diagnose and quickly correct any problems before they become costly
  • Monitor increases in proficiency and only audit work when needed
  • Improve safety by ensuring new meters are installed correctly

Improve diagnostic efficiency in the field

During and after a deployment, replace error-prone, paper-based checklists with mobile forms that automate the procedures for investigating, diagnosing and repairing problems. Identify, generate and complete orders created dynamically based on in field analysis of end point diagnostics. Prescribe workflow logic to investigate any type of meter, access point or relay issue by using a series of if/then screens that guide crews through the process of capturing specific data and resolving problems. Immediately update back office systems (e.g., meter data management, GIS, CIS, head end systems) with accurate, up-to-date data from field investigations.

Benefits

  • Convert checklists on paper to mobile order types
  • Implement repeatable procedures and standardize data collection for diagnosing problems in the field
  • Improve accuracy by eliminating lost paperwork and errors transcribing details onto paper
  • Reduce the operational costs of unnecessary truck rolls to identify and resolve problems
  • Update back office systems in real-time with information captured and validated in the field

Manage customer interactions effectively

Comply with regulatory requirements related to customer service by using an optional module that automatically triggers customer communications when meters cannot be accessed for exchange (e.g., inaccessible locations, roaming pets, no one home). Used by deployment vendors for residential contracts and by utilities for commercial, industrial and return-to-utility residential accounts, the solution records and demonstrates to regulators the incremental steps taken (e.g., door hangers, customer service calls) to contact a specific customer for an appointment to access and exchange the meter.

Benefits

  • Automate standardized customer service communications to arrange access for meter exchange
  • Prove compliance with regulatory requirements for frequency, time and type of customer communications
  • Improve customer satisfaction by scheduling convenient appointments
  • Lower the operational costs associated with missed calls
  • Proactively address meter accessibility obstacles for a faster return on AMI investment
  • Consolidated view of all interactions with your customers

Enhance warehouse operations

Improve control of and protect the investment in advanced metering devices with an optional inventory management module that is fully integrated with Clevest's mobile workforce solution. Automatically capture and store the attributes of meter equipment upon receipt, track inventory in multiple warehouses and in specific locations within a warehouse, assign inventory to crews for installation in the field, and manage warranties for serialized and non-serialized parts. Lock the system to perform audits as needed, and generate on-the-fly reports on inventory by part, status, transaction type, failure rate and more to better manage inventory throughout the deployment process.

Benefits

  • Track the status of meters from warehouse receiving to installation
  • Track the warranties of each smart meter component
  • Enhance the efficiency of daily check in/check out procedures for field crews
  • Improve accuracy of meter equipment information in the warehouse and reduce errors in the field
  • Balance inventory levels with deployment progress throughout implementation

 

Mobile workforce management | Automatic vehicle location  | Meter reading | Asset investment planning