Marin Water, serving the San Francisco Bay Area, has long struggled with the limitations of traditional AMI solutions in its hilly, complex terrain. In January 2025, Marin Municipal Water District launched its first large-scale pilot with Subeca, installing 104 devices across some of the area’s most difficult meter locations. The results have been exceptional, delivering over 90% read rates within the three-day billing cycle. These results open opportunities for potential systemwide expansion across Marin’s 62,000 meters.
THE CHALLENGE
Marin Water’s service area is known for its challenging terrain. From steep hills to dense vegetation, there are many hard-to-reach meter pits that hinder reliable data collection. Marin previously faced challenges such as retrieving consistent reads from these areas, resulting in increased truck rolls, delayed billing, and reduced operational efficiency. Additionally, another major challenge for Marin was ensuring interoperability between their AMI and existing business systems, including billing. Subeca’s end-to-end system allowed for seamless integration, allowing meter data to flow directly to their billing system without added complexity.
THE SOLUTION
Subeca provided Marin Water with 104 Wireless Pin devices to retrofit directly on to existing meter infrastructure. Installation, led by Subeca and Marin crews, was completed in minutes per unit. Subeca’s Installation Coordinator conducted a demonstration with 15-20 field staff, walking through the process of installing and provisioning a device using the Subeca Engage Mobile app. With no need for specialised hardware, the team used their existing mobile devices and were fully up and running immediately. Without interrupting service, 104 Subeca Wireless Pin devices were installed seamlessly. Previously, Marin staff members manually read meters daily.
Now, utilising Amazon Sidewalk as the primary communication network, the system delivered real time reads to Marin Water through the Subeca Engage platform without installing any communications infrastructure like gateways. Amazon Sidewalk is a secure network built from already-installed Amazon devices like Echo smart speakers and Ring cameras, enabling Subeca devices to transmit meter reads reliably, without installing additional infrastructure or relying on cellular networks. The Amazon Sidewalk network provided a 92% one-day read rate, allowing Marin Water to receive real-time reads, even in terrain where other solutions failed. Subeca also supports export formats directly compatible with Marin’s billing system, Itron Temetra, making data handoff a seamless process.
RESULTS
- 92% of devices are delivering reliable reads within Marin Water’s 3-day billing cycle
- Challenging terrain unlocked for the first time using AMI technology with Subeca
- Zero comms infrastructure required, reducing installation time and costs
- Positive internal customer feedback on performance, speed, and simplicity
- Performance indicates a new benchmark for AMI feasibility in complex environments
– Craig Lauridsen AMI Program Manager, Marin WaterAmazon Sidewalk Works, we’re getting meter reads without installing any infrastructure.
