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CB3 pitches smart meters to San Juan, projects hundreds of thousands in annual savings
Summary
CB3 representatives presented a turnkey smart-meter proposal to San Juan, saying the plan would cover about 7,221 meters and could recover an estimated $545,000–$728,000 a year in underbilled water and sewer revenue.
CB3 representatives presented a turnkey smart meter and advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) proposal to the San Juan commission, saying the project would replace or provision approximately 7,221 water meters for existing customers and anticipated development.
Steven Cruz, who identified himself as a CB3 representative, summarized software features, local warranty and support plans and estimated the first-year revenue recovery from detected water losses. “If we were just going with the bare minimum … you’re looking at a savings of $545,000 a year,” Cruz said, describing a conservative five percent recovery. At an eight percent recovery scenario he cited a potential annual benefit of about $728,000.
CB3 recommended Mueller-brand meters after an analysis the company conducted for the city, but Cruz emphasized the company is not tied to one vendor: “We are not sold to any particular brand,” he said. Cruz said CB3 provides a 10-year performance and installation warranty supported by local manufacturer partners and promised unlimited local staff training at no additional cost.
On financing, Cruz described three options the company discussed with staff: (1) CB3’s financing spread up to 10 years; (2) use of language in the city’s energy contract to finance the project at a very low rate; and (3) direct financing through government capital programs. Cruz said CB3 would work with the city’s finance director to choose the best method. He also offered to pay an outstanding fee previously owed to another vendor—an amount he described in discussion as “a hundred and something thousand” dollars and later referenced as about $135,000—if San Juan selected CB3’s proposal.
Commissioners and staff asked technical questions about software upgrades, integration with the city’s billing provider, testing approaches and warranty scope. Cruz said all future software upgrades are included in the package and that CB3 would perform an integration with the billing provider at no additional cost. He said installation and manufacturer warranties would cover meters and that all labor would be hired locally.
The commission did not vote on the proposal during the meeting; staff were asked to continue vetting the project details and financing options. Commissioners requested additional documentation about warranties, upgrade rights and the city’s integration needs before any contract or financing commitment.
If pursued, the project would move the city from manual meter reading to continuous AMI monitoring, providing leak alerts, distribution and system-health analytics and more timely consumption data for the public utilities department.
