South African homes and businesses are using more technology than ever before to manage quality of life and ensure competitiveness in the global economy. Several of these technologies use “smart” components in the machinery. The local electricity system, in contrast, has not changed in over more than a decade, casting a dark blanket over the country and our economy.
According to Dudley Miller, general manager of prepayment electricity meter specialist, Conlog, prepayment meters offer an opportunity to peep out from under this blanket by allowing customers to not only track their energy usage more accurately, but to also control what you are using. “Even more beneficial, is that the movement towards smart prepayment meters allows for better and more detailed analytics of both the flow of energy and the means to track this electricity for better management,” he says.
Conlog, is a Durban-based company, which has garnered a global reputation for its excellence in research, development and pioneering efforts.
“Since the inception of the South African prepayment industry in the late 1980s, Conlog has been at the forefront of innovative solutions that meet the needs of utilities across the world. In fact, the majority of our revenue comes from outside South Africa’s borders,” says Conlog general manager, Dudley Miller, who gained vast professional experience in both the business and energy sectors at Schneider Electric, the energy management specialist company that acquired Conlog in 2000, prior to taking on his current role in 2013.
Established in 1965 as an electronics design company, Conlog today specialises in providing prepayment solutions for the delivery of electricity services. Its broad product offering encompasses prepayment meters, vending, revenue management, maintenance, support and consultation, as well as a dedicated and accredited training facility for all aspects of prepayment.
“This comprehensive and holistic approach enables customers to reap the full benefit of their investment and ensures sustained success, into the future,” says Miller.
He explains that at present, Conlog has the world’s largest installed base of prepaid meters, spanning more than 20 countries on four continents.
“Furthermore, over 70 utilities worldwide utilise our solutions and consider the company their preferred prepayment provider. With systems that are available in English, Arabic, French, Spanish and Portuguese, our products have been able to reach millions,” adds Miller.
The Conlog factory, which is located at head office, employs mainly women, and its engineering department boasts many experts in their relevant fields, including project management, embedded software engineering, hardware design, validation, mechanical engineering, systems engineering and research and development. “Conlog engineers are well equipped with the knowledge and experience required to develop products that constantly outperform the rest,” says Miller.
Many industry firsts have been developed by Conlog’s dedicated team at this site, including the standard for the secure transfer of credit, Standard Transfer Specification (STS), an IEC standard (62055-41); the industry’s standard wallbase for electricity meters; the common vending system and the first commercial scratch-card solution for prepayment.
Earlier in 2014, the Certification Committee of ETHIC Intelligence, a leading international certification agency specialising in anti-corruption compliance programmes, also awarded Conlog an Anti-corruption Compliance System Certification for its programme to prevent corruption.
The main conclusions drawn during May 2014, following an on-site ethics audit in February by leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company, SGS, revealed that its compliance policy and governance model are well designed, formulated in a coherent manner and correspond to international best practices.
“We strive for excellence in all areas of our business and are proud of the fact that our meters are manufactured to the highest quality of standards. Our focus now is on smart meters, and we are especially excited to witness the value proposition that they will offer society, especially in terms of greater individual electricity empowerment and energy management,” says Miller.
