As water companies prepare for a large-scale rollout of smart water meters, Calisen and Advizzo have joined forces to offer an innovative, integrated approach to this transformation. The UK water regulator, Ofwat, has emphasised the importance of smart metering in the 2025-2030 asset management plan period (AMP8), pushing water companies in England and Wales to make smart meters the standard for new installations.
The water regulator’s demand for the business plans for the PR24 period was that smart meters should deliver a “step change” in performance and investment “to drive improvements for the environment and customers”. In this blog we take a look at how Calisen and Advizzo are working together to provide more flexibility and an integrated approach to help accelerate the smart water meter deployment.
Ofwat’s PR24 smart meter rollout expectations
Ofwat’s recent Draft Determinations under Price Review 2024 (PR24) underscores its goal of accelerating smart meter deployment to drive improvements in environmental sustainability and customer service.
According to the PR24’s Draft Determinations, the smart meter rollout is expected to:
- Engage customers: Water companies are encouraged to educate consumers on the benefits of smart meters, including cost savings and improved water management.
- Maximise data utilisation: Beyond installation, data from smart meters should be leveraged to improve operational efficiency, enhance customer service, and enable more accurate demand forecasting.
- Reduce leakage: A key aim is to cut water leakage by 13%, achieving the lowest level since privatisation. Real-time data from smart meters enables quicker leak detection and repair, aligning with Ofwat’s broader environmental objectives.
- Support vulnerable customers: The rollout must include plans to protect vulnerable customers from any negative impacts.
Calisen and Advizzo: A powerful partnership for water utilities
In March 2023, Calisen – a leader in smart energy technology – acquired Advizzo, specialists in customer engagement and data insights for water and energy utilities. Together, they form a powerful team: Calisen brings expertise in deploying and maintaining large-scale metering systems, while Advizzo contributes a SaaS platform that leverages data analytics, behavioural science, and customer engagement to help consumers manage water and energy use effectively. Read more about the Advizzo acquisition.
Delivering an integrated smart water meter solution
By combining Calisen’s infrastructure management and Advizzo’s customer engagement technology, the partnership offers water utilities an end-to-end solution for smart meter deployment. The collaboration eliminates operational silos, ensuring that utilities can address both technological and customer experience needs simultaneously.
Together, Calisen and Advizzo offer a more flexible and integrated solution that benefits water utilities looking to deploy smart meters efficiently. Calisen’s infrastructure management ensures that meters are installed quickly and maintained effectively, while Advizzo’s SaaS platform enables the utilities to engage consumers immediately by turning data into easy-to-understand insights.
Key benefits of the Calisen-Advizzo partnership:
Data-driven decision making: Through Calisen’s extensive deployment capabilities and Advizzo’s real-time data processing, water companies can quickly identify inefficiencies, such as leaks or irregular consumption patterns, to reduce costs and prevent resource wastage.
Customer engagement as a priority: Advizzo’s platform enables utilities to communicate directly with consumers, providing real-time data on water usage, personalised conservation tips and behavioural nudges to encourage smarter water use.
Regulatory and environmental compliance: The partnership supports water utilities in meeting regulatory goals related to water conservation and environmental impact. By facilitating a faster, more scalable smart meter rollout, Calisen and Advizzo contribute to broader sustainability objectives.
Operational efficiency: The combined solution streamlines installation, improves data analytics, and boosts customer satisfaction and trust, all of which contribute to the more effective and quicker rollout of smart meters.
Flexibility and scalability: The combined strengths of Calisen and Advizzo offer water utilities flexibility in scaling up deployments, managing customer engagement and optimising meter maintenance.
Enhanced customer engagement: With Advizzo’s behavioural analytics, utilities can maintain high levels of customer engagement, engendering trust and ensuring that customers are active participants in water conservation efforts.
The partnership between Calisen and Advizzo offers water companies a unique opportunity to accelerate the deployment of smart meters while meeting regulatory, operational and customer engagement goals. By working together, Calisen and Advizzo are proud to be enabling a smarter, more sustainable water future for the UK.
Suggested further reading:
News – Calisen- Advizzo Acquisition announcement
Blog – How Advizzo is accelerating the deployment of smart meters to tackle the cost of living crisis
Blog – Advizzo – Empowering the water industry’s smart meter rollout