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Water Utilities

AI Solutions for Water Utilities

15 production-proven solutions for billing, metering, leak detection support, and demand forecasting — each running as a parallel digital twin with zero risk to your systems of record.

Solutions

Billing Quality Assurance Metering Quality Assurance Meter Aggregation & Analysis Program Measurement & Verification Demand Forecasting Key Customer Identification Key Customer Insight Rate Assignment & Validation Rate Design & Simulation Service Level Agreement Monitoring Customer Contact Management Customer Data Portal Data API Weather Data Customer Care & Billing

Billing Quality Assurance

Reconcile All Bills · Improve Quality · Easily Update Rates

Problem
  • Billing system complexity makes billing errors likely
  • Changes in rate structures and rate plan assignments require additional quality assurance checks
  • Need to quickly check bills before sending
  • Need to reconcile billing input values against source meter data
Solution
  • Delivered parallel billing system to check system-of-record billing system
  • Reconciled every line item of every bill before being sent to customer
  • Rate editor enables real-time changes to rate structures and rate plans
  • Billing inputs reconciled against source meter data and any discrepancies flagged
  • Rate assignments on every account checked to insure that account qualifies for that rate
Impact
  • Eliminated need for $35 million billing system rewrite
Why Fractal
  • Delivered parallel solution with Fractal Programming
  • Parallel application ran over 1,000 times faster, reduced storage 90%, and eliminated billing errors
  • Utility is able to update rate models in minutes
  • Utility now has an independent way of checking billing and meter data

Metering Quality Assurance

Reconcile All Meter Data · Improve Quality · Pattern Detection

Problem
  • Multiple sources of meter data can lead to inconsistencies
  • Customers need to see a consistent data view
  • Billing calculations must produce matching results regardless of meter data source
  • Meter communication issues create data issues
Solution
  • Delivered parallel meter data management system to check system-of-record
  • Reconciled all interval data against all daily data
  • Reconciled all daily and interval data against billing system data
  • Machine learning module to identify unusual consumption patterns
Impact
  • Eliminated need for $10 million meter data management system re-write
Why Fractal
  • Delivered parallel meter data management system to check system-of-record
  • Parallel application run over 1,000 times faster, reduced storage 90%, and eliminated meter data errors
  • Utility is able to bill with confidence that meter data is correct
  • Utility now has an independent way of checking billing and meter data

Meter Aggregation & Analysis

Analyze by Rate · Demographic · Program Participation · Equipment

Problem
  • Need to analyze aggregate behavior by customer groups
  • Need a flexible/easy way to define customer groups
  • Need to correlate behavior with weather, program participation, and other non-billing attributes
  • Need to aggregate at the scale of entire customer base
Solution
  • Virtual meter capability enables easy definition of customer groups
  • Aggregation performed on both daily and interval data
  • Aggregation by rate class, demographics, consumption patterns, program participation, on premise equipment, and building type
  • Analyze group response to events such as demand response, weather changes, etc.
Impact
  • Deeper insight into customer behavior
  • Deeper insight into customer program results
Why Fractal
  • Fractal Programming enables virtual meters that aggregate millions of individual meters
  • Virtual meter definitions are easy to create and edit
  • Fractal Programming performance enables real-time analysis
  • Utility can now do more sophisticated analysis by grouping / aggregating customer base many different ways

Program Measurement & Verification

Measure Aggregate Response · Verify Individual Response

Problem
  • Effectiveness of utility program difficult to measure and analyze
  • The scale of large programs make data processing difficult
  • Need to analyze sub-groups within programs
  • Need to adjust group definitions based on changing conditions
Solution
  • Virtual meters defined for program participants to analyze aggregate behavior
  • Each individual customer's behavior also analyzed
  • Virtual meters defined for each sub-group within the program
  • Virtual meters also defined for reference groups that do not participate in the program
Impact
  • Programs can be analyzed at overall program level and sub-groups to identify where program is most effective
  • Program resources can be allocated based on effectiveness to maximize program impact and results
Why Fractal
  • Fractal Programming enables virtual meters that aggregate millions of individual meters
  • Virtual meter definitions are easy to create and edit
  • Fractal Programming performance enables real-time analysis
  • Can now accurately measure and analyze program participation and effectiveness

Demand Forecasting

Forecast With Tight Time Constraints

Problem
  • Forecasting system must run within time constraints
  • Using major data center, legacy system did not always finish in time
  • Utility also needed to increase system size and capacity
  • Utility needed to accurately bid in futures market
Solution
  • Fractal Programming enabled new demand forecasting system to be written and deployed in a single business quarter
  • Dramatically increased accuracy and number of scenarios that can be run
  • Uses full customer data set instead of just a data sub-set
  • System runs in minutes instead of hours
Impact
  • Added accuracy of forecasting 100% of the data, not samples, impacts millions of dollars of futures contracts each year
Why Fractal
  • Fractal Programming enabled the development of a demand forecasting application that runs over 1,000 times faster than the legacy application
  • Forecasting system was delivered in a single business quarter and is more accurate than legacy system

Key Customer Identification

Identify By · Behavior Patterns · Rules-Based Metrics

Problem
  • Key customer relationship are not always obvious – especially when customers have a portfolio of locations and multiple billable entities
  • Ownership of commercial properties frequently via special purpose vehicles, making it unclear who the portfolio customer relationship is with
  • Qualification for key account status based on spending levels and program participation can be complicated to identify and track
Solution
  • Implement qualification rules for key accounts
  • Implement aggregation rules to identify portfolio relationships
  • Classify every customer at both individual account and aggregate customer portfolio level
  • Enable utility profitability analysis by key account relationship
Impact
  • Identify key account customers by evaluating total portfolio consumption and behavior
  • Enables more focused programs by identifying impactful portfolio level decision makers in customer base
Why Fractal
  • Fractal Programming enables flexible rules for assigning accounts to a customer based on multiple attributes
  • Application performance enables rule sets to be applied to entire customer base to identify key account relationships
  • Automatic assignment of key account status based on qualification rules
  • Both metered and non-metered attributes incorporated into rules

Key Customer Insight

Insight From Multiple Sources · Internal and External

Problem
  • Key customer insight data is often located outside of systems-of-record
  • Valuable customer information is located department-level computers or desktop spreadsheets that are not accessible by systems-of-record
  • Customer entered and customer maintained data needs to be incorporated into customer insight apps
  • Public domain information (eg. tax records) must be incorporated into customer insights
Solution
  • Implement continuous real-time data import from systems-of-record
  • Implement continuous real-time data import from department-level computers and desktop applications
  • Implement continuous real-time data import from public domain sources
  • Implement continuous real-time data import directly from customers
Impact
  • Deeper key customer insight
  • Enables all customer information, regardless of where it resides, to be incorporated into 360 degree view of customer relationship and customer activities
Why Fractal
  • Fractal Programming enables continuous real-time data import
  • Data import tools work with internal and external data sources, including public domain data
  • Data import tools work with desktop resources such as spreadsheets and text files in addition to data exports from systems-of-record
  • Customer data entry / import supported

Rate Assignment & Validation

Validate Rate Class Qualification · Auto Assign Rates

Problem
  • Assigning rates to accounts can be time consuming and error prone
  • Rate assignment is complicated
  • Qualification requirements for rates change over time requiring reassessment of all customer accounts
Solution
  • Implement qualification rules for each rate class
  • Test every rate on every customer account
  • Enable “what if” scenario analysis for key account customers for qualification for different rate
  • Forecast customer budget impact and utility revenue changes for new rate assignments
  • Enable utility profitability analysis by rate plan
Impact
  • Saved half a million dollars in consulting fees for validating rate assignments
  • 100% of customers on correct rate plans
Why Fractal
  • Fractal Programming enables flexible rules for checking rate assignments
  • Application performance enables 100% of customer accounts to be validated for correct rate assignment
  • Automatic assignment of correct rates
  • Automated customer notification of new rate assignments along with explanation

Rate Design & Simulation

Real Time Planning · All Customers · 100% Accuracy

Problem
  • Need to plan different rates across millions of customers every year
  • Complicated rate structures
  • Costs millions of dollars to simulate rates, create financial forecasts, and estimate customer impact
  • Customers may get billing surprises when rates structures change
Solution
  • Implement real time rate planning engine
  • Test every rate, across every customer, using previous bills
  • Forecast annual revenue to the penny
  • Eliminate all new rate surprises
  • Enable utility profitability analysis by rate plan
Impact
  • Saved $2 million paid to rate consultants for single rate plan
  • Saved $8 million for subsequent rate planning
Why Fractal
  • Fractal Programming enables flexible real-time creation of rate plans
  • Application performance enables rate plans to be run against 100% of customers for dozens (multiple years) of billing cycles in minutes
  • Eliminate all new rate surprises for customers
  • Utility has highly accurate financial forecasts for itself and its customers

Service Level Agreement Monitoring

Exception Detection · Analysis · Alarming

Problem
  • Data provider service level agreements can be challenging to monitor, analyze and manage
  • Data service level shortfalls can lead to billing problems with customers
  • Quick early detection of data provider problems is needed to prevent downstream issues
Solution
  • Parallel meter data management system
  • Analyze all interval and daily data to locate any missing data elements and test against service level agreement metrics
  • Reconcile all interval data against all daily data to check for consistency
  • Machine learning module to identify unusual consumption patterns that can indicate meter reading issues
Impact
  • Increase in bill quality
  • Reduction is customer billing complaints and issues
Why Fractal
  • Delivered parallel meter data management system (MDMS) with Fractal Programming
  • Parallel MDMS application identifies all missing data and meter reading errors
  • Automatic alerting and alarming of failures to meet data service level agreement metrics
  • Utility is able to bill with confidence that meter data is correct

Customer Contact Management

Critical Loads · Priority Loads · Key Contact Management

Problem
  • Contact information for notification of outages or other problems can be different than billing contact
  • The scale of customer base can make data management and automated communication challenging
  • Customers need to be able to update contact information and preferences to track changes in their internal organization
Solution
  • Customer portal that enables customers to update their contact information and preferences
  • Internal support portal for use by call center and key accounts team to track and update customer contact information
  • Identification and classification of critical, priority, and key accounts loads for real-time detection of site-specific outages and other issues
Impact
  • Customers proactively notified and updated on issues
  • Organizational and contact changes continuously tracked and updated
Why Fractal
  • Fractal enables data portals to be easily built for both internal and external customer use
  • Flexible database definitions enable easy addition of attributes for tracking critical, priority and key accounts
  • Native email, text and voicemail communication for alerting and alarming
  • Solution scalability for entire customer base

Customer Data Portal

Customer Data Available On · Desktop · Mobile Devices

Problem
  • Customers want access to water and billing data on digital devices
  • Customers want to do scenario analysis for rate plans
  • Customers want budget forecasts
  • Customers want visibility to conservation metrics
  • Customer want to supplement their data
Solution
  • Parallel customer care and billing system that is accessible from customer's digital devices
  • Instant customer visibility to their real time bill
  • Customer can test different rate plans in real time
  • Customers have easy access to budget forecasts
  • Customers can self-service their data needs which frees up key account and call center resources
Impact
  • $10 million development cost savings and customer support cost reduction for customer information portal
Why Fractal
  • Delivered a parallel customer care and billing system in 90 days with 90% less cost than legacy system
  • Application provides customer rate plan scenario analysis, budget forecasts, conservation metrics, and enables customer to enter supplemental information about efficiency projects
  • Customers can self-service their information needs on web portal from their digital devices

Data API

Web Services · Metering · Billing · Customer & Program Info

Problem
  • Customers increasingly requesting programmatic access to their data
  • Large customers want convenient access to their entire portfolio of accounts and associated information
  • An API is necessary in order to make many third party services available to customers
Solution
  • Web services API’s are exposed as components of parallel systems for managing meter data, billing, and customer information
  • Customers can access the data both via interactive web portals and via programmatic APIs
  • Multiple data format supported (JSON, XML, CSV) as well as custom data formats
Impact
  • Increased customer satisfaction
  • No additional load on IT resources
  • Third party services easier to enable for customers
Why Fractal
  • Delivered parallel data management system with Fractal Programming
  • Make metering, billing, weather, and other customer data available without imposing any load on legacy systems-of-record
  • Consistent interface and interaction for customers across all data types and data requests

Weather Data

Data For · Demand & Financial Forecasting · Scenario Analysis

Problem
  • Weather data is required for many business functions and applications
  • Consistent weather assumptions must be made across multiple business processes and applications
  • Required weather data may need to be integrated from multiple data sources
Solution
  • Weather data management system
  • Integrates data from multiple data sources
  • Provides data at multiple levels of time granularity (5-minute, hourly, daily, weekly, monthly)
  • Data accessible via interactive graphical user interface(s) as well as application programming interface(s) API
Impact
  • Increased consistency across business processes
  • Increased quality and consistency in analysis and forecasting processes and applications
Why Fractal
  • Delivered weather data management system with Fractal Programming
  • Integrates data from multiple data sources and reconciles the sources for a consistent data view
  • Data accessible both interactively and programmatically via web APIs
  • Insures consistent weather assumptions across business processes and applications

Customer Care & Billing

Transform · Customer Care · Billing

Problem
  • Billing system too complex to easily modify
  • Needed 360 view of major corporate customers
  • Give customers ability to self-service their data needs
  • Check each bill for 100% accuracy before sending
  • Give key account team flexible customer info
Solution
  • Delivered parallel customer care and billing system costing 90% less than legacy app
  • Reconciled every bill before being sent to customer
  • Delivered customer data portal to all customers
  • Entire solution in production in 90 days
  • Gained deeper understanding of largest customers
  • Key accounts team and call center increased customer satisfaction
Impact
  • Eliminated need for $35 million billing system rewrite
Why Fractal
  • Delivered parallel solution with Fractal Programming
  • Parallel application ran over 1,000 times faster, reduced storage 90%, and eliminated billing errors
  • Able to add new features in hours and days rather than months

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