According to a June 2018 study by Northeast Group, Smart Metering as a Service (SMaaS) will see annual revenue grow from $199 million in 2018 to $1.03 billion by 2027. And it’s easy to see why. The benefits are clear. Managed services drive cost efficiencies as well as benefits beyond finances.

When migrating to AMI, managed services can be the answer to overcoming the monetary, operational and technology challenges some utilities face. In my opinion, it boils down to two core benefits: Peace of mind and a competitive advantage.

Peace of Mind

One stop shop – With a full managed service, you have one and only one contact to reach out to with questions and requests. Vendors can’t play the blame game and you have, what’s often jokingly referred to as “one throat to choke.” (Although I sincerely hope your relationship with your managed service provider never leads to actual physical violence.)

Security – Let your managed service provider worry about protecting against the latest cyber threats and updates required for regulatory compliance.

Budget predictability – When investing in a managed service such as the Sensus Network as a Service (NaaS), aside from your meters, there are no major capital investments. All you pay is an annual fee.

Guaranteed performance – Great managed service providers should also have great SLAs. No need to worry about available meter reads when you have a solid guarantee.

Competitive Advantage

Expertise – For utilities who don’t have the in-house expertise or lack the funding to hire or train the needed personnel, you get access to the best of the best.

Latest technology – Your managed service provider will stay on top of this for you, so you’re always ahead of the curve, operating with the latest and greatest.

Future proof – Your managed service provider will be ready to grow when you grow. And with the right multi-application network, like the FlexNet® communication network, growth can go beyond utility meters to other IoT devices, as your smart city evolves.

When you have peace of mind and feel confident in providing your customers with best in class technology and service, this allows you to free up your staff to focus on your core business. Imagine all the innovative and revenue producing projects you could tackle – conservation initiatives, customer service improvements, renewable energy projects, data analytics strategies and more!

To learn more, download our checklist of ten reasons why utilities rely on the Sensus managed service, Network as a Service (NaaS), to make the jump from AMR to AMI.