Now Reading: BEST plans to upgrade meter test benches as smart meter rollout speeds up
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BEST plans to upgrade meter test benches as smart meter rollout speeds up
BEST plans to upgrade meter test benches as smart meter rollout speeds up
BEST is replacing outdated meter-testing benches at its Wadala laboratory as smart-meter installations cross 60% of island-city consumers. Committee chairperson Trushna Vishwasrao said the current benches are obsolete and need advanced equipment…
BEST is replacing outdated meter-testing benches at its Wadala laboratory as smart-meter installations cross 60% of island-city consumers. Committee chairperson Trushna Vishwasrao said the current benches are obsolete and need advanced equipment to verify accuracy before meters are deployed. A formal procurement proposal has been prepared, a senior official confirmed.
Smart meters are tested at Wadala before approval. General manager Sonia Sethi said the accelerated rollout is being paired with awareness campaigns to address complaints that smart meters inflate bills. BEST will hold bill-verification camps, set up help desks in civic wards, and strengthen grievance redressal to build consumer trust in the new system.
Indian Opinion Analysis
BEST supplies power to the island city and parts of the extended suburbs through a legacy network that was never designed for two-way digital communication. Smart meters, which record consumption in near-real-time and communicate wirelessly, require test equipment capable of verifying data protocols and time-stamping accuracy, not just rotational speed. The Wadala lab currently handles around 2,000 meters a month, with island city conversion already past 60% and suburban rollout under way, that number could double within a year. The next concrete test will be whether BEST can approve and install the new benches before the next monsoon, when inspection delays historically compound billing complaints.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
