Communal standpipe prepayment systems

The system is designed with the specific purpose to provide clean potable water accessible to people that live in concentrated areas. They however do not have individual connections and therefore make use of these communal standpipes to collect their water via 25 litre containers. The system consists of three main components, an electronic module, latching valve and polymer water meter with a pulse output, all contained in a protective stainless steel meter box. The prepayment system conforms to SABS 1529-9 specifications and has replaceable batteries with a life of up to 3 years.

The innovative prepayment system works with the consumer initially purchasing water credit. Then by use of a secure encrypted token, water can be dispensed from the prepayment standpipe in various quantities as controlled by the customer. A multi-tier step tariff system monitors the monthly consumption of the consumer and charges him using the appropriate tariff. A monthly consumption profile is generated, which in turn is loaded back onto the secure encrypted token. This profile is also uploaded to the management system the next time the consumer purchases credit, aiding consumer water management.

An LCD display on the meter box also provides the consumer with additional useful information such as credit remaining, amount of water dispensed, tariff level and rate, plus alarms such as low battery.