Metering as a Service fulfils all your requirements for a future-proof and sustainable water supply. The solution also lays the foundation for variable water tariffs and helps you to manage water management processes efficiently.
With MaaS, we confirm our commitment to sustainability, innovation and customer service by providing you with solutions that are both technologically advanced and economically advantageous.
The first step into
digital water management
National Water Strategy
On 15 March 2023, the German Federal Cabinet adopted the ‘National Water Strategy’ to accelerate the transformation in water management. The aim is to ensure a more conscious use of water as a resource. In addition to securing the drinking water supply and storing water, natural protection against flooding is also part of the action plan.
According to the BDEW, German drinking water suppliers invested around 3.5 billion euros in the construction and maintenance of their facilities and in the expansion and renewal of their infrastructure in 2022. About 17 percent of this was attributable to meters, measuring devices, IT or other investments.
Current Challenges in the water supply
The issues of sustainability and climate change are also increasingly affecting the water industry. Frequent periods of drought and the resulting water shortages pose new challenges for municipalities and municipal water suppliers in Central Europe. The aim is to protect natural water reserves and promote the sustainable use of water as a resource.
One of the most urgent tasks currently facing water suppliers is the nationwide switch to digital metering via radio, e.g. with LoRaWAN® or Wireless M-Bus (OMS). The conventional meter reading methods that are still used in many places require this changeover, as do the current requirements and guidelines.
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The challenges are well known:
- Customers are often unreachable during on-site appointments
- High personnel requirements
- Considerable effort required for preparation, follow-up and execution of meter readings
- Data quality varies due to manual collection
- Collected data can be partially incorrect
However, sustainable water management requires high frequency, high quality and high availability data. The first step in this direction is the installation of radio water meters or remotely readable water meters.
Our Solution:
Metering as a Service by ZENNER
Metering as a Service by ZENNER enables remote reading of (radio)water meters regardless of fixed times or access to the meters and ensures convenient and simple meter reading through automation. This reduces personnel requirements and resources can be optimally utilised.
Depending on requirements, the solution can be adapted to a combination of stationary radio and walk-by radio to achieve the highest read rates. The meter reading intervals can be individually selected – whether annually, monthly, daily or even hourly – and thus offer maximum flexibility for different requirements. The use of ZENNER Connect GmbH’s LoRaWAN® network, which is available throughout Europe, minimises your own investment in readout infrastructure.
„The innovative combination of our ultrasonic water meter, state-of-the-art meter reading technologies and Europe’s largest LoRaWAN® network significantly outperforms conventional meter reading technologies in terms of quality and costeffectiveness. Metering as a Service represents the most advanced solution currently available in the field of Advanced Metering Infrastructures (AMI) for the remote reading of your water meters.”
René Claussen, Head of Business Unit Metering Systems, IoT and Digital Solutions at ZENNER International
Metering as a Service
at a glance
Assembly
ZENNER offers you a complete installation and onboarding service for meters, sensors and software from a single source. This does not require any personnel expenditure on your part. In addition, digital documentation of the assemblies is available to you without media discontinuity.
Meter reading
Procurement of measured values is convenient and simple thanks to automation. By combining the two radio technologies LoRaWAN® and Wireless M-Bus (parallel radio function), you can achieve very high readout rates and maximise synergy and efficiency via the largest LoRaWAN® network in Europe operated by our subsidiary ZENNER Connect.
Data transfer and integration
With MaaS, all your data is available centrally in one platform. Billingrelevant meter readings are automatically provided in the solution and all common interfaces to billing or ERP systems are available to you.
Visualisation
The MaaS app developed by ZENNER can be used to visualise the most important key figures for the meter fleet, alarms and consumption. For example, you can directly see an evaluation of the current meter reading rates. Other value-added solutions, such as pipe network monitoring or the monitoring of pumping stations, are also possible with Metering as a Service.
IUWS Ulltrasonic-domestic water meter: our multi-talent
The IUWS ultrasonic water meter stands for maximum precision and guarantees reliable recording of meter data for individual consumption billing in the residential or domestic water sector.
The IUWS ultrasonic meter also brings an innovation to the world of metering technology: the meter is equipped with parallel radio technology (also known as ‘dual mode’), which makes it possible to use two radio technologies simultaneously – LoRaWAN® and Wireless M-Bus.
This unique combination offers water suppliers a flexible and efficient solution for digitising measurement data acquisition.
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Parallel radio makes remote reading smart
While a city-wide LoRaWAN® network guarantees comprehensive network coverage in most cases, there are always metering points that are difficult to access and cannot be read or can only be read with considerable effort. This is where the IUWS offers a smart solution: Wireless M-Bus allows data to be transmitted using the walk-by or drive-by method – without additional infrastructure and in compliance with the highest security standards.
This procedure is helpful, for example, in peripheral areas with insufficient LoRa network coverage. In some cases, there may be obstacles to remote reading via LoRaWAN®. The parallel radio function provides water suppliers with a reliable fallback level: the meters can also be read via wireless M-Bus using the walk-by/drive-by method – also without entering the property and under the highest security standards.
ZENNER Device Manager Basic: flexible configuration of radio water meters
The ZENNER Device Manager Basic sets new standards in the configuration and customisation of meters. This powerful app provides utilities with an indispensable tool for configuring ultrasonic water meters from the IUWS series efficiently and flexibly.
- Easy configuration: With a user-friendly interface, the app enables fast and precise customisation of ultrasonic water meters directly on site or remotely.
- NFC technology: Thanks to Near Field Communication (NFC), configuration is straightforward and requires no additional devices, which significantly reduces the workload.
- Parallel radio function: The latest version of the IUWS series supports parallel operation of LoRaWAN® and Wireless M-Bus. The app allows easy activation and customisation of these advanced features to ensure reliable data collection even in areas with limited LoRa network coverage.
Radio technologies
for remote readout
Advantages of
remote reading
Do you read your meters on site?
Then you know the challenges:
Customers are often not available
High costs for preparation, implementation and follow-up
High manpower requirements
Highly variable data quality
Do you read your meters
by meter reading card?
Then you know the challenges:
Shortcomings in the response rate
Data quality is not optimal
High effort for follow-up and customer service
High costs
Do you install your meters yourself or with service providers?
Then you know the challenges:
High labour requirements
Varying data quantity and quality
High effort for preparation, implementation and follow-up
High costs
Do you enter measured values manually into the billing system?
Then you know the challenges:
Incorrect meter readings
Incorrect billing
High customer service costs
High personnel requirements
The use of radio technology means that water meter data is transmitted automatically. The need to drive directly to the properties is eliminated. By eliminating meter reading appointments or self-reading, this also means a noticeable increase in convenience for citizens. Radio technology is particularly helpful for meters that are difficult to access and can now be conveniently recorded. It also enables remote reading at short intervals, with high data quality and significantly lower error rates. Leakages, burst pipes or malfunctions can also be detected at an early stage with the help of wireless technologies.
Data protection and Data Security
- BSI-compliant cryptography (acc. TR-02102)
- Confidentiality and authenticity of data transmissions according to the latest state of the art
- ZENNER Datahub: Operation in DIN EN ISO/IEC 27001-certified data centre with server location in Germany (Nuremberg, Ludwigshafen)
- ZENNER Connect is a telecommunications network operator (LoRaWAN® network) authorised by the German Federal Network Agency (BNetzA)
- Security concept acc. German Telecommunications Act (TKG)
ZENNER is continuously developing its technical systems in order to guarantee the security of processing in the future.
In Summary:
Metering as a Service by ZENNER
Less water loss thanks to accurate measurements and transparency
Less effort for annual billing
Smaller selection intervals will enable variable water tariffs in future
Greater convenience for citizens by eliminating meter reading appointments and cards
Contribution to environmental protection for water as a protected resource
Improved image for municipalities and suppliers through sustainable use of water
Digital Solutions for the water Industry contribute to the following SGDs:
We are happy to advise you
Are you interested in remotely readable water meters with MaaS and our digital solutions? We would be happy to advise you. You can contact our team here:
