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Albany approves utility purchases, AMI software to speed leak detection and grid hardening
Summary
The commission authorized purchases including transformers, reclosers, pole inspections and software modules tied to the AMI meter rollout; staff said grants will cover much of the recloser cost and modules will help automate leak detection, meter-health analytics and rate modeling.
Albany commissioners voted Dec. 16 to invest in grid hardening and data-driven utility management, approving transformer and recloser purchases, a pole inspection contract and software modules to extract information from the nearly-complete AMI meter rollout.
Utility staff recommended buying 15 pad'mounted transformers for $213,181 to replenish operations inventory and 20 Viper solid-dielectric reclosers for $547,794 to upgrade substations 14, 20 and 21. Staff said the recloser purchase is substantially grant-funded: a $2 million GIFA grant would reimburse about $1.4 million, leaving the city responsible for roughly $600,000.
The commission also approved a 90-day firm-price contract with UTech Construction for pole inspections and corrective services at $213,316.19. Staff reported that 31 of 51 distribution circuits have been inspected and estimated a failure rate of about 8.3%, leaving an estimated ~580 poles that may need replacement across the system.
To support the AMI program, the commission authorized four Harris SmartWorks software modules at $357,268 to provide acoustic leak detection, meter-health analytics, rate-revenue modeling and a customer-facing "instant insight" tool. Staff said the AMI project is about 97% complete, that the modules will speed leak detection and billing analysis, and that annual software maintenance is expected to be approximately $45,000.
Commissioners asked staff to verify there is no duplication among purchased software features and to measure utilization after implementation. All utility items were approved by recorded vote.
