Utilizing newly deployed Industrial Control Links water level sensors and a cloud platform for Internet of Things (IoT) devices provided by ACE IoT Solutions, the residents of Monroe, Louisiana have access to dashboards providing real-time water level measurements for Lake Bartholomew and two reservoirs outside of the city for the first time.
It’s pretty wild, you can encounter snakes or alligators…
For the last 22-years, Sean Benton, Water Systems Manager for the City of Monroe, or a member of his team has departed the City of Monroe early in the morning to collect the bayou elevation measurements from several critical bayou and reservoirs that supply the City’s 60,000+ customers with drinking water. For the City of Monroe’s Water Systems team, collecting the measurements has been a daily task and takes 2-3 hours to complete.
Bodies of water surround the City of Monroe. The bayous and reservoirs enhance the lives of Monroe residents, are central to economic activity in the region and, of course, can also contribute to flooding. Collecting the bayou elevation data is an important task. The measurements are a key input into the city’s flood prevention efforts. The data also informs the region’s water treatment and can trigger authorities to issue guidelines for recreational boating. According to Mr. Benton, it is not particularly difficult work, but it can be tedious and “it’s pretty wild, you can encounter snakes or alligators.”
Earlier this year, Mr. Benton and his team discussed with EMR Associates, a manufacturers’ representative for automation systems with whom the city has a long-standing relationship, about the potential of deploying a smart solution that would automatically collect the water levels and push the data to the cloud. The City of Monroe sought to deploy a solution that would collect the data and log the data into a dashboard that could be made available to members of Monroe’s Water Systems team and to other interested parties including the Bayou Bartholomew Homeowners Association and Tensas Basin Levee District.
The right tool for the job
Matthew Knight, an automation expert and partner at EMR, recommended the City deploy the Industrial Control Links water level meter and couple the meter with an Internet of Things (“IoT”) monitoring platform provided by ACE IoT. With the meters and the ACE IoT platform the city could stand-up remote monitoring dashboards for as little as $50 per month.
“For the City of Monroe and for many of EMRs customers, remote monitoring solutions can be too costly or too complex – or both – to be viable options. The ACE IoT monitoring platform is reliable and secure but does not have a lot of costly add-on functionality that, in many cases, my customers do not need. It is the right tool for the job.” - Matthew Knight, EMR Associates
The City of Monroe’s initial pilot deployment includes four dashboards, displaying real-time measurements from Lake Bartholomew, Bart Intake Reservoir, Midway Reservoir, and the L11 Reservoir. Follow this link to visit the City of Monroe’s Bayou Elevation Measurement site.
Under the leadership of Mayor Jamie Mayo, Monroe, LA has launched a smart city initiative designed to combine technology, information and civic engagement. For Sean Benton, the deployment of the Bayou elevation meters is right in line with the Monroe’s smart city goals.
At its core, the Bayou elevation dashboard project is about enhancing visibility, transparency and accountability. Where it makes sense, we are committed to leveraging new technologies – like IoT – to make sure we work smarter as a city and collect and provide access to data that encourages and enables citizen engagement.” - Sean Benton, Water Systems Manager, Monroe LA
To learn more about EMR Associates, the City of Monroe’s Bayou Elevation Dashboard or ACE IoT’s remote monitoring platform for IoT devices, please contact Bill Maguire at bill@aceiotsolutions.com.