The introduction of smart metering impacts every area of a utility's business. Energy supply, network operation, meter readings, customer service and billing are all affected. In order to maximize the benefits of the smart infrastructure, the overall IT architecture serving these adjacent processes should be carefully planned before rolling out AMI. IT plays a significant role also during the smart meter installation phase and can either slow down the rollout or, in the best case, drive it forward.

 I recently had the opportunity to review the “Electric Grid Managed Services Report – 2018” published by IHS Markit. There is no question that the report is excellent reading for anyone interested in service business in the energy industry. In their report, IHS Markit describes the key steps of AMI evolution, which inspired me to discuss the steps from the service business perspective.

When joining the Landis+Gyr EMEA organization years ago, I was joining a famous energy meter manufacturer known mainly for its high-quality smart meters and advanced software for collecting metering data. At the time, the term ‘service business’ was not a key word in the organization or in our industry in Europe, except in the Nordic countries where smart metering has been offered as a service since the early 2000's.

While retaining its market leadership in Europe, Landis+Gyr has been presiding over a rapidly changing marketplace. 

Landis+Gyr extends its portfolio to include a smart metering solution that runs on G3 PLC technology.

Landis+Gyr started technology field tests with G3 PLC at the beginning of 2015 in Norway and Switzerland. Today, results show that the technology is ready for rollout.

Landis+Gyr’s Gridstream® GWA (Gateway Administration) is a new, fully automated, comprehensive smart metering solution. Developed to meet the strict requirements of the German market, the Gridstream GWA is designed for high performance as well as efficient operations in large scale, point-to-point smart grid installations with high privacy and security requirements.