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Water and wastewater staff outline water-tower painting and AMI meter replacement; privacy and reliability questions addressed
Summary
Wastewater superintendent Mike Tom and other staff described a planned painting of the downtown storage tower and a city-wide replacement of AMI nodes and meters; staff said the transmission network is private and readings are encrypted.
Mike Tom, wastewater treatment plant superintendent for the City of Lebanon, described two utility projects affecting water and wastewater customers: repainting the downtown storage tower and a replacement of the city’s advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) nodes and meters.
Tank painting and inspection: Tom explained the downtown tower (the “Logo Tower”) will be repainted to match a recent composite-tank scheme. The tower type is multi-column; Tom said painting cycles and structural inspections follow established standards and that this will be the tower’s second paint between full metal restoration cycles.
AMI replacement and water-node work: Tom and other staff said the AMI manufacturer discontinued support for the city’s older nodes, prompting a full replacement program. Staff said approximately 9,800 electric meters and about 7,800 water nodes will be replaced; water-node replacement requires drilling small holes in certain lids to ensure signal transmission. The meters and nodes transmit usage only; staff said the city’s configuration does not permit auxiliary control of customer devices.
Security, privacy and operations: In response to multiple resident questions, staff said the AMI system uses a private network that transmits encrypted meter readings back to the city and that collectors/gateways use cellular links to relay data. Staff said data contains meter identifiers and usage readings but does not include customer personal data, and they described safeguards against unauthorized use. The city expects the electric-meter swaps to take about 20–30 seconds per meter; the water node installations will not interrupt water service.
Ending: Staff said replacements are scheduled to begin next month and estimated the overall work to finish in six to seven months. They advised residents to contact utility staff with specific meter-location or service concerns.
