“Choose the meter that does more than measure water. Choose the meter that explains what the water system is trying to tell you.” – MJ Martin
Looking Beyond the Purchase Price
When a Canadian municipality begins evaluating water meters, the conversation often starts with price. Procurement teams compare unit costs, installation budgets, and project totals. While these factors are important, they rarely tell the full story. The real question is not the purchase price of a water meter. The real question is the total cost of ownership over the entire lifespan of the installation.
A water meter may remain in service for fifteen to twenty years or more. During that time, it becomes one of the most important data collection devices in a utility’s infrastructure. Selecting a meter based solely on initial cost can create challenges that persist for decades. Conversely, choosing the right meter can improve revenue recovery, customer service, water conservation, leak detection, and operational efficiency.
The purchase price is only one small part of the equation.
The Cost of Choosing the Wrong Meter
A municipality that selects the wrong meter often discovers hidden costs long after the procurement process has ended. Older technologies may experience declining accuracy over time, particularly at low flow rates. Small leaks that continue for months may go undetected. Valuable water consumption data may never be captured. Utility staff may spend countless hours investigating billing complaints, performing manual inspections, and responding to customer concerns.
The financial impact can be substantial. Every litre of water that enters the distribution system but is not accurately measured represents lost revenue. Over thousands of service connections and many years of operation, these losses can significantly exceed any savings achieved through a lower purchase price.
In many cases, the cheapest meter becomes the most expensive meter.
Water Meters as Data Collection Platforms
Modern water utilities are increasingly recognizing that water meters are no longer simply measuring devices. They are data collection platforms.
The most advanced meters provide detailed consumption information, interval data, flow profiles, leak indicators, reverse flow detection, tamper notifications, and other operational insights. This information helps operators understand what is happening throughout their distribution system.
A meter that generates meaningful data can identify continuous leaks, unusual consumption patterns, seasonal demand trends, and infrastructure problems before they become costly emergencies. Instead of reacting to complaints, utility staff can proactively manage the system based on facts and evidence.
The discussion shifts from metering water to understanding water.
Turning Data Into Action
Data alone has little value unless it can be transformed into actionable information. The right meter tells a story.
It may reveal a customer with a leaking toilet that has been running for months. It may identify a commercial property with abnormal overnight consumption. It may show changing demand patterns that influence infrastructure planning and capital budgeting decisions.
These insights allow operators to act quickly, reduce water loss, improve customer satisfaction, and optimize system performance. The utility becomes more efficient because decisions are based on reliable information rather than assumptions.
This is where modern metering technology delivers its greatest return.
The Metercor Perspective
At Metercor, we understand that every municipality has unique requirements and budget constraints. We offer cost effective metering solutions that satisfy basic measurement needs, and these products continue to serve many utilities successfully.
However, we also provide advanced metering technologies that generate vast amounts of meaningful operational data. These solutions help municipalities move beyond simple billing applications and embrace a more intelligent approach to water management.
The decision is not simply about buying a meter. It is about selecting a long term information source that will support utility operations for years to come.
When viewed through the lens of total ownership cost, the right meter is rarely a cost problem. It is a data management opportunity. Municipalities that recognize this distinction are often the ones that achieve the greatest operational, financial, and customer service benefits over the life of their metering investment.
About the Author:
Michael Martin is the Vice President of Technology with Metercor Inc., a Smart Meter, IoT, and Smart City systems integrator based in Canada. He has more than 40 years of experience in systems design for applications that use broadband networks, optical fibre, wireless, and digital communications technologies. He is a business and technology consultant. He was a senior executive consultant for 15 years with IBM, where he worked in the GBS Global Center of Competency for Energy and Utilities and the GTS Global Center of Excellence for Energy and Utilities. He is a founding partner and President of MICAN Communications and before that was President of Comlink Systems Limited and Ensat Broadcast Services, Inc., both divisions of Cygnal Technologies Corporation (CYN: TSX).
Martin served on the Board of Directors for TeraGo Inc (TGO: TSX) and on the Board of Directors for Avante Logixx Inc. (XX: TSX.V). He has served as a Member, SCC ISO-IEC JTC 1/SC-41 – Internet of Things and related technologies, ISO – International Organization for Standardization, and as a member of the NIST SP 500-325 Fog Computing Conceptual Model, National Institute of Standards and Technology. He served on the Board of Governors of the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) [now Ontario Tech University] and on the Board of Advisers of five different Colleges in Ontario – Centennial College, Humber College, George Brown College, Durham College, Ryerson Polytechnic University [now Toronto Metropolitan University]. For 16 years he served on the Board of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), Toronto Section.
He holds three master’s degrees – in business (MBA), communication (MA), and education (MEd). As well, he has three undergraduate diplomas and seven major certifications in business, computer programming, internetworking, project management, media, photography, and communication technology. He has completed over 80 next generation MOOC (Massive Open Online Courses) [aka Micro Learning] continuous education programs in a wide variety of topics, including: Economics, Python Programming, Internet of Things, Cloud, Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive systems, Blockchain, Agile, Power BI, Big Data, Design Thinking, Security, Indigenous Canada awareness, and more.
Martin in a volunteer, a photographer, a learner, a technologist, a philosophizer, and a romantic optimist.