Kaduna Electric’s IT initiatives In Power Distribution

Kaduna Electric has recognized Information Technology as a Key aspect towards attaining greater heights. It is not in doubt that proper implementation coupled with full utilization of IT solutions will change the fortunes of the company and position it as a profit driven entity. Below are some of the internally developed interventions to drive efficiency.

Bill Distribution App

This Application has also been integrated with GIS technology where activities can be monitored on the Map to track all customers that have been visited by the sales reps on the Map. So far, this Application has proven to be an effective way of curbing the issue of lack of Bill delivery to customers but more needs to be done by the company to trigger the utilization level in order to feel a more significant impact.

The Meter Reading Application is developed in order to ensure quick, efficient and transparent process in reading customer meters thereby improving the Billing accuracy. This application is being used for carrying out postpaid Meter Readings and is one of the most utilized App.

Payment Tracking App

One of the major issues affecting collection is lack of proper tracking of payment. The Application includes both Prepaid and Postpaid customers tracking. The Application provides a real-time customer information to sales rep on field. The Application also has a disconnection module where the disconnection notice served to customers is automatically sent to the disconnection team for easy tracking of customers who have not paid their bills. The App utilization level is currently so low. There is no doubt that full utilization of this application will increase collection.

GIS Mapping and Customer Enumeration App

With the utilization of an android based mobile app, Kaduna Electric was able to map all its 33kv and 11kv network including all its distribution transformers. With regards to customer enumeration, the old paper-based system of enumerating customers which has been in place during the pre-privatization era has proven to be ineffective. The adoption of IT has transformed the process of enumeration. The App is also powered by GIS technology which can be displayed on the map to ensure adequate capturing of customers during the exercise.  The Enumeration App has positively impacted the ongoing Enumeration project which has led to an average of 68 percent customer increase based on the feeders that have been enumerated thus far.

CRM

This Application is developed to effectively manage customer complaint in an efficient manner. CRM manages customer data, improves staff productivity (as all activities are monitored), improves customer satisfaction, cost saving, Increased revenue and profitability. Customer can also go the company’s website and lodge their complaint directly to this system and tracking the progress of the complaint.

Enforcement App

This Application has been deployed with sole aim of reducing commercial losses which is mainly attributed to Energy theft. This App will track and ensure accountability of revenue being generated from energy theft. Some of the challenges with the enforcement team operations includes; Disconnected Customer usually report to Kaduna Electric Office before Inspection Team return from Site; hence their IR form is not available, based on analysis, over 1 ream of paper is used to print blank forms for daily inspection, Manual LOR calculation is error prone and can lead to customer under booking. This will result to huge loss to the company. With the enforcement app, investigate report is sent through mobile app from site, the investigation report data can always be accessed on the system, penalty and loss of revenue calculations is computed automatically by the system.

Automatic Meter Reading (AMR)

The AMR Technology solves a lot of issues accompanied with manual Meter reading. The manual meter reading is tedious and is prone to manipulations. However, there is need for huge investment into AMR meters. The AMR meters provides real-time energy consumption of the customer which includes the current passed via every phase of the meter, detection of missing phase or meter temper, data acquisition, analysis, and reporting.

Business Process Automation

To enable the company enforcement the developed processes and procedures, the IT department deployed Microsoft SharePoint Application. The system is customized for document management, task management, work collaboration, and process management. Currently, the following activities are being carried out on the system; 1- Leave application, 2- Performance appraisal, 3- Task assignment, 4- Power Outage requisition, 5- Cash Advance request, 6- Cash Retirement and Reimbursement, 7- Travel Authorization, 8- Meeting Room Booking to mention a few while continuous customization is ongoing to automate other processes.

Billing and Customer Information Management 

The centralization of the billing system and integration of the collection system and third-party collection agents have gone a long way in reducing billing errors, collection losses, and also provides more payment options to the customers.

Store Management System

With the development of the stores management system for the company integrating all the store across the company. This has help in asset tracking, allocation, and valuation.

Fleet Management System

The Fleet management system was developed to control the amount of money the company is spending in terms of logistics and vehicle maintenance cost.

Meter Verification App

The meter verification app was developed to enable the company trace, track, and verify the number of active PPM meters in circuit along with the status of the meter (tempered or not). It also enables the verification of the location of the meters and corresponding customer details registered on the database vis-à-vis what is actually in the field. The app uses geo-location function to ensure that the verification staff have visited the location as well as picture upload of the visited meter with time stamp

Source: Daily Trust.