By Alan Lorenzo Contreras
One of the most visible and important groups of employees at OCWA is our dedicated Meter Reading staff. Every weekday this seven-person crew fans out across OCWA’s five-county service territory to ensure that our customers’ water meters are read timely and with a high level of accuracy.
The Meter Reading staff meticulously prepares their daily routes using OCWA’s sophisticated Customer Information System. This data, which is uploaded onto portable hand held devices, gives meter readers access to all pertinent information about their daily routes with just a swipe of the finger.
Given the undulating terrain and ever-changing weather in Central New York, suffice it to say that meter reading at OCWA is a very demanding job. Luckily for us, our meter readers work tirelessly – rain or shine or (as it is often these days) snow – in the field daily to read our customers’ meters.
Typical water meters are black automated units that are found on the outside of a customer’s residence or building. Our team routinely reads about 120,000 of these meters every 90 days – with most residential customers receiving a quarterly bill.
A common obstacle for our meter readers is unclear pathways. Personal or household items, as well as snowfall, are frequent barriers that hinder both operational efficiency and the safety of our staff. As our team is authorized and needs to be on a customer’s property to read their meter, we respectfully ask customers to be mindful and keep access to their meter clear at all times.
Pictured below is meter reader Dave Mushynsky, who started with OCWA in 2015, reading a commercial meter. All meter readers wear clothing which contains the OCWA logo, and they carry identification clearly identifying them as Authority employees.
For more information on your water meter, please visit OCWA’s our FAQ page at: