RALEIGH, NC - May 9, 2019
Park City is one of the most popular tourist areas in the United States. Beyond being a popular ski destination, every January thousands of movie fans flock to the city to check out the best independent cinema has to offer at the Sundance Film Festival. For the city’s water utility, providing effective water service for both residents and tourists can be a major production.
“We have about 8,000 residents in Park City, but it’s more like 30,000 with tourism factored in and it can be much higher when big events come to town,” said Park City Water Resources Manager Jason Christensen. “We’re constantly punching above our weight in terms of water services.”
To extend the benefits of its Sensus advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), Park City decided it was time to look deeper into its water distribution data. Christensen and his team sought an affordable solution that could combat water loss and help the city proactively respond to issues with water pressure and flow.
Park City wanted to extend its water pressure and flow monitoring to remote sites that had no power or land-based communications. The city’s water team conducted a pilot program with the battery-powered Sensus® Smart Gateway Sensor Interface at two pressure reducing valve (PRV) sites. Soon after deployment, the city’s customer service team noticed an issue when the distribution pressure downstream of one of the PRVs began to spike.
Park City uses the battery-powered Sensus® Smart Gateway Sensor Interface to connect to a variety of applications in locations where no power or land-based communications are available.
“The alarm went off and you could see the failure happening in real-time,” said Christensen. “The issue was resolved without incident, but it was a lesson for us in just how impactful the system could be.”
In addition to helping staff respond quickly to issues, the Sensus Smart Gateway solution increases the city’s level of service. Park City is planning to extend to 24 more sites in the coming months.
“While the added connectivity enhances operational performance, it will also help us get smarter as a utility,” said Christensen. “As we monitor more sites, we’ll be able to store the data and use it as a resource for ongoing asset management and water loss reduction.”
Read the full case study to learn more about Park City’s deployment of the Smart Gateway solution and how they plan to use it to benefit the community.
Summary:
- Park City Water Division wanted to extend the benefits of its Sensus advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) by looking deeper into its water distribution data.
- Park City deployed the battery-powered Sensus Smart Gateway Sensor Interface at two remote pressure reducing valve (PRV) sites to proactively respond to water pressure or flow issues.
- The municipal water provider plans to extend to 24 sites and gather more robust data to reduce water loss.
While the added connectivity enhances operational performance, it will also help us get smarter as a utility. As we monitor more sites, we’ll be able to store the data and use it as a resource for ongoing asset management and water loss reduction.
Jason Christensen
Park City Water Resources Manager
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