New system to end BCM’s poor record in meter reading, billing
IN AN attempt to address the crisis of incorrect billing of Buffalo City Metro (BCM) homes, the metro is seeking help from other municipalities after ending an “outdated” system provided by a company appointed last year.
The metro’s poor meter reading and billing system has seen the metro receive negative media reports over the past years, including a recent case of a Mdantsane man billed for more than R1million for services he never received.
That transaction was reversed after his story was published in the Daily Dispatch last month.
Acting city manager Nceba Ncunyana recently told council that a delegation from the city would visit Nelson Mandela Metro, Secunda’s Goven Mbeki municipality and Polokwane local municipality, to assess their different billing systems.
The new system to be soon adopted is set to cost the metro R2.3-million over two years.
Ncunyana told council he had approved a deviation and had invited three companies to present meter reading and management concepts based on the metro’s billing specifications.
Ncunyana said this was done to accommodate executive mayor Xola Pakati’s first 100 days in office programme where Pakati was set to announce the results of this initiative earlier this month.
“BCM’s accurate meter reading and billing capabilities has in recent times been receiving several negative media attention.
“BCM’s inability to accurately identify meter location, the collection of credible meter data and the processing and ultimate uploading of this credible data to the billing system has resulted in incorrect consumer billing,” said Ncunyana.
He further said “the current system was out of sync with the latest technological trends, the quality of service rendered was below the minimum requirement and that the supplier of the system displayed hesitance in complying with Municipal Regulations on Standard Chart of Accounts (mSCOA) circulars”.
The company appointed to do the job for three years was appointed in September 2015.
Ncunyana said in July 2016, the company was invited together with other companies to “indicate willingness to comply with mSCOA requirements”, and after assessment BCM terminated the services of that company just one year into its contract.
As a result of the challenges, Ncunyana said council decided to implement a new meter reading system across its regions as part of the council’s first 100-day programme.
“In parallel to the exit process, BCM developed an mSCOA complaint meter reading specification which is in line with the latest meter reading technological trends.
“BCM invited Dimension Data, Business Connexion and Microsoft Corporation to do a presentation on their complete meter reading and management suite,” Ncunyana said.
A general manager for BCM’s Information and Communications Technology department, only identified in the council report as M Dondolo, conceded in the report that the city was not rendering a credible meter reading and billing service to its consumers. — mamelag@dispatch.