The City of Raeford completed the upgrade of its water system, replacing its aged metering infrastructure with remote-read technology. Ferguson Waterworks, Inc. was the prime on the contract that spearheaded the implementation of the Sensus FlexNet system. The project was managed by MeterSYS.

Our Program Managers held weekly calls throughout the project with the entire Raeford Team to ensure the project plan was being properly executed and identified issues or potential influences to project progression.  In addition, we established monthly team on-site meetings for more detailed collaboration among the team and the coordination of Installation and Systems Integration sub-teams.

The MeterSYS team provides some standard services that are listed below that were provided to Raeford. These services are listed below, but each client project is unique and receives custom care to better meet their needs.

 

Project Planning

Our seasoned Program Managers work with your team to develop a detailed project plan, which is used to guide and control all tasks and services associated with the project. The project plan identifies each individual task via a detailed work breakdown structure that includes the level of effort required to complete tasks, a timeline for completion of tasks, dependencies (predecessor and successor relationships), responsible party (vendor, client, etc.) and the current status of each t ask.

Project Communications

Another key duty as your Project Manager is to create and maintain open communications among all stakeholders and vendors. Your Project Manager will lead forma l, re-occurring status meetings with the core team members to ensure that the project tracks to the milestones set forth in the project plan. Additionally, we are in constant communication with various project participants, following up on action items and work products, and fielding questions on a daily basis.

We utilize several administrative tools to communicate program status. These include Microsoft Project, Zoho Projects, Dropbox, and Trello (both shared Web-based tasks and file access platforms) and JoinMe (a Web-based meeting platform). These tools assist us in initiating and tracking projects, capturing data, storing and sharing project documents, maintaining schedules, scheduling events, reporting results and publishing documentation related to each project and task.

Records/ Document Control

We understand the necessity of document control as it relates to the efficient execution of projects. We employ  a document control system that requires contributors to submit to the  check-in/check-out process.  Change  control Ts strictly enforced and a team member (typically  the project coordinator)  will  be  responsible  for  handling  documents. Each document is identified and every version of each document must pass through this person.

Client–based Advocacy and Internal Reviews

MeterSYS utilizes the review process in order to keep projects on target and the goals of the client in the forefront. The Project Manager conducts an internal review to ensure that scope, costs and time line are being managed appropriately. Documents are submitted for team review to ensure completeness before being submitted to management for final review and approval. Each document is reviewed by the Management Team and Executive Team to ensure completeness and accuracy.

Risk Management

A risk is an event or condition that, if it occurs, could have a positive or negative effect on a project’s objectives. Risk Management (RM ) is the process of identifying, assessing, responding to, monitoring and reporting risks. RM is a continuous , forward-looking process that addresses issues that could endanger achievement of critical objectives, and includes early and aggressive risk Identification through the collaboration and involvement of relevant Stakeholders.

Change Management

Deviation from original scope can be caused by new requirements, unforeseen circumstances, or simply the desire to take advantage of a new technology or cost reduction opportunity. MeterSYS employs standard change management practices of assessing the change and then making a recommendation to stakeholders. The assessmeht of a change includes impacts to cost, resources, and duration (schedule). The recommendation is qualified against the original goals and objectives of the project to ensure there is alliance and a strategic fit. The decision to include the change in the project is ultimately a customer-driven decision. Our goal is to ensure the customer is adequately educated and equipped to make this decision. Issue Management is managed very similar to risk and change management. The goal of the team is to assess the issue and understand its impact. We work with the customer and suppliers in a cooperative manner to resolve the issue in a satisfactory manner. The key to this process is to remain objective, address the issue as early as reasonable and practical, and work to mitigate the problem.

Issue Management

Issue Management is managed very similar to risk and change management. The goal of the team is to assess the issue and understand its impact. We work with the customer and suppliers in a cooperative manner to resolve the issue in a satisfactory manner. The key to this process is to remain objective, address the issue as early as reasonable and practical, and work to mitigate the problem.

The Sensus meters installed can detect and provide notification to utility staff of field conditions like leaks, backflow, no flow, usage on an inactive account, and tamper. Far beyond basic water usage measurement, these smart meters will allow the City to reduce non-revenue water loss, improve the accuracy of customer bills, enable proactive customer support, and ensure sustainable use of water by the City.  For more information on MeterSYS Project Management services, please visit our “Contact Us” page.