Software Development for Water Submeter Test Bench

About the Program

Category: Information Technology (Best in Category)

Year: 2020

The County of San Diego’s Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures (AWM) inspects commercial scales, weighing and measuring devices to make sure they are charging customers accurately, which promotes consumer confidence and fair business competition. This includes water submeters that measure the amount of water used by certain businesses and multi-unit residences. Inaccurate operation of these submeters could potentially overcharge users. The test to inspect these submeters is an automated system that relies on a licensed software to push specific amounts of water at certain flow rates (i.e. gallons per minute) through the submeter, allowing staff to determine their accuracy. The software is expensive and creates operational inefficiencies in the water submeter certification program. As part of AWM’s continued commitment to provide cost-effective and efficient service, AWM developed an alternative software program to replace the licensed software. This innovative software is easy to use and is programmed to perform on many different platforms and operating systems. This software is expected to save AWM $112,096 in software licensing fees over the next five years and will allow for increased efficiency in testing time that will significantly improve service to water submeter users.