Gas Distribution
Bynry demonstrated SGL digitized process of Meter Reading and Bill Distribution
Sabarmati Gas Limited (SGL) and Bynry worked together for a pilot project to improve meter reading accuracy and, in turn, billing accuracies. Bynry’s Smart Meter Reading and Bill Distribution (MRBD) solution was instrumental in improving data quality and productivity.
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Summary
Industry: Gas Distribution
Scope: Conduct a pilot project (PoC) for Meter reading using Bynry’s Smart Meter Reading and Bill Distribution (MRBD) solution
Consumer Base
5,500
Consumer Categories
Domestic and Commercial
Location
Gandhi Nagar, Gujarat
Key Challenges
- Scattered consumer mapping
- Mismatch in meter numbers and database
- Poor quality data from meter readings
- High average billing
- Delayed billing cycles
Salient Features
- Digitized process with no manual efforts
- GPS & route sequencing based meter readings
- Real-time Dashboard
- Quality assurance of meter readings
- Automated Daily reports
Finding a solution partner who understands both technology and natural gas industry was one of the major challenges we faced. Team Bynry successfully implemented the solution and ensured smooth tranisition in just 90 days and helped us to increase by 30% overall operation efficiency.
SGL
Commercial Head • Gujrat
About SGL
Sabarmati Gas Limited is one of the most renowned gas distributors in Gujarat. It is promoted by the GSPC and BPCL as a gas distributor in 5 districts across North Gujarat. The company aims at distributing clean fuel to homes, vehicles, restaurants, etc. through an extensive distribution network.
Challenges
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AS SGL grew its consumer base, the number of challenges it faced also grew.
When these challenges began affecting the company’s profit margins, it became
necessary to address them. A closer look at the issues in question brought about
a realization that a heavy dependence on manual labor was at the crux of the matter.
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Scattered Consumer MappingSGL’s consumers were scattered around the city. In many cases, there were long distances between consumers. As a result, there were many instances wherein meter readings were skipped. This affected the company’s financial growth and made consumers felt uncared for. |
Mismatch in Meter Numbers and DatabaseSGL had a very poorly maintained consumer database. Consumer information was entered manually which resulted in many entries being made in wrong columns,interchanging of meter numbers in database, etc. There were also many meter numbers that did not correspond to the consumer accounts. This led to billing issues that, in turn, affected the company’s profit margin. |
Poor Quality Data from Meter ReadingsThe company was dependent on manual effort to take meter readings. This led to a high risk of human error and a slow adoption rate for new technology. In addition, the company lacked quality assurance measures and thus, readings taken manually were not standardized. As a result, there were a high number of billing-related issues and consumer complaints. |
High Average BillingThere were many instances when SGL field members visited homes to take meter readings and found the homeowners unavailable. Faced with a locked door and given the large distances between consumers, the company leaned towards creating bills on average consumption rather than actuals. Consumers complained if this average was higher than their actual consumption and on the other hand, if the average was lower than actual consumption, the company’s margins were hit. |
Delayed Billing CyclesBeing dependent on manual effort for meter readings and database management made the company’s processes slow and inefficient. This led to delayed bill generation as well as incorrect billing. This, in turn, affected payment collection and the company’s cash flow. |
Solutions
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While SGL understood the intricacies of gas distribution, they needed a technology partner to introduce digital solutions. Given their expertise and experience in the field, Bynry emerged as the ideal partner. The solutions introduced by them helped SGL work more efficiently, improved billing cycles and cash flow and boosted their brand perception. |
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Consumer Profile CreationBynry offered a robust technology solution that can automate consumer profile creation. The data can be accessed from anywhere and can be used to improve operations. BESL in sequencing and optimizing its meter reading routes. This helped them attend more consumers without increasing the existing resource strength. |
Restructured Consumer DataBynry introduced digital processes to enter and manage consumer information. This increased data accuracy and helped map consumers accurately. As a result, the field force could map routes more efficiently. This saved time and effort and ensured that not meter readings were skipped. Restructuring this data also made the information more usable for the company’s future decisions |
Smart Meter Reading with GPS TaggingBynry helped SGL adopt new technology like smart meter reading with GPS tagging. The GPS tagging helped with route sequencing and brought about transparency in the billing process with meter’s exact location. This reduced dependency on manual effort and in turn reduced wrong reading and unattainable consumer locations. |
Photo based readings with multi-level validationsAlong with GPS tags, alsosolution had aone of the most important feature i.e photo meter reading This made the meter readings more reliable and easy to take. Efficiency was improved and meter reading information could now be standardized. This helped with accurate bill generation, reducedreduction in average billing and increased consumer satisfaction levels. |
Multi-visit feature to reduce Locked Door CasesTo counter instances where homeowners were unavailable when the company sent people to take meter readings, Bynry introduced a multi-visit feature. With this feature, homeowners were intimated before someone visited to take meter readings. If the door was locked, a visit could be rescheduled to ensure that billing cycles were not affected. |
Impact
Improvement in Accuracy and Efficiency
The pilot project with Bryny’s digital solutions demonstrated SGL their operations more efficient and reliable. Improved accuracy in terms of consumer data and meter readings also brought about significant improvements in productivity.
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Overall Efficiency Improvement
70 %
Data Quality Accuracy
97 %
Reduction in Door Lock Cases
20 %
MR Productivity Increase
45 %
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