The Knox Board of Works was recently informed that some software upgrades will be needed prior to the end of the year.
Utility Supply Company Meter Specialist Scott Dunlap came before the Board during their January meeting and spoke about an upcoming change that will impact the Neptune Meters that the City uses.
He shared, “Windows in not supporting Flash after 2020. Flash is a driver for software. The soda PDF software runs on that. With Flash not being supported, Neptune is having to change their layout.”
He noted that instead of on-premise software, they’re switching to a cloud-based system.
Dunlap explained, “The great thing about cloud-based software is we get unlimited data storage. So what you’ll get every month when you read meters is you’re going to have that meter-read attached to every one of those accounts. So you’ll be able to build a two-year history on every customer and be able to see trends in usages.”
Wastewater Superintendent Kelly Clemons asked if that data will be available to the customer. Dunlap responded that it will only be available to officials initially but the City would be able to coordinate with a third party customer portal company to offer that option to residents.
Dunlap went on to talk about one of the other advantages of this kind of system.
He noted, “Every time you read meters, it will also tell you an exact gallonage that has gone through all of the meters in town so you can tell exactly how much water you have billed to your customers and compare that with the exact gallonage that you pumped and get the immediate water loss.”
Water Superintendent Tim Lindewald later emphasized that this aspect will be beneficial for future water audits, which are now an annual requirement of the Indiana Financing Authority.
BOW member Steve Dodge asked about security precautions, worrying that having all that information in the cloud could open the City up to a hacking risk.
Dunlap stated that the system is run through Amazon Web Services, which is widely used. While he didn’t have the speicifics of their security arrangements, he felt the information would be well guarded. He also stated that personal details such as social security numbers and bank information will be not be stored in the cloud system.
Dunlap mentioned that some associated hardware upgrades will also be required. According to figures provided to officials, the switch over will cost around $10,500.
The Knox Board of Works was recently informed that some software upgrades will be needed prior to the end of the year.
Utility Supply Company Meter Specialist Scott Dunlap came before the Board during their January meeting and spoke about an upcoming change that will impact the Neptune Meters that the City uses.
He shared, “Windows in not supporting Flash after 2020. Flash is a driver for software. Neptune software runs on that. With Flash not being supported, Neptune is having to change their layout.”
He noted that instead of on-premise software, they’re switching to a cloud-based system.
Dunlap explained, “The great thing about cloud-based software is we get unlimited data storage. So what you’ll get every month when you read meters is you’re going to have that meter-read attached to every one of those accounts. So you’ll be able to build a two-year history on every customer and be able to see trends in usages.”
Wastewater Superintendent Kelly Clemons asked if that data will be available to the customer. Dunlap responded that it will only be available to officials initially but the City would be able to coordinate with a third party customer portal company to offer that option to residents.
Dunlap went on to talk about one of the other advantages of this kind of system.
He noted, “Every time you read meters, it will also tell you an exact gallonage that has gone through all of the meters in town so you can tell exactly how much water you have billed to your customers and compare that with the exact gallonage that you pumped and get the immediate water loss.”
Water Superintendent Tim Lindewald later emphasized that this aspect will be beneficial for future water audits, which are now an annual requirement of the Indiana Financing Authority.
BOW member Steve Dodge asked about security precautions, worrying that having all that information in the cloud could open the City up to a hacking risk.
Dunlap stated that the system is run through Amazon Web Services, which is widely used. While he didn’t have the speicifics of their security arrangements, he felt the information would be well guarded. He also stated that personal details such as social security numbers and bank information will be not be stored in the cloud system.
Dunlap mentioned that some associated hardware upgrades will also be required. According to figures provided to officials, the switch over will cost around $10,500.
Water Superintendent Tim Lindewald said he will be looking into how this can be appropriately funded prior to the end of the year. He’s also looking into some potential new options for meter reading as well.
Water Superintendent Tim Lindewald said he will be looking into how this can be appropriately funded prior to the end of the year. He’s also looking into some potential new options for meter reading as well.
