Tank Monitoring and Metering Application Introduction
Why “Tank Monitoring” Makes Sense Achieve a 30% efficiency gain Each “truck roll” to the tank is expensive ($50 in US) Optimize routes based on tank fill level Increase the amount of propane delivered per drop
Increase Customer Satisfaction Eliminate runouts on monitored tanks Provide customers a monthly usage report Communicate with customer more frequently
Improve Revenue Offer a “pay as you go” feature Win competitive bids Increase customer stickiness
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Why “pay as you go” Makes Even More Sense Your Monitoring Costs are Covered by the Customer Charge an Account Mgmt. fee to cover monitoring costs Achieve a true 30% efficiency gain You Win more Competitive Customer Bids
Charge for setting tank and plumbing it, but not the gas Estimate is $100s of dollars lower than competitors Win every time
You Get Cheaper Propane Storage in the Field
Store surplus propane buys in the field in customer tanks Avoid 30,000 gallon storage tanks on premises
Roll out is one tank at a time – capital hit is minimum 3
Proven, Reliable, and Scalable Networks Network and Tank Radios o OWL Licensed Spectrum Radios Tunable across many frequencies from
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450 MHZ – 470 MHZ 154 MHZ – 174 MHZ
Battery life warranty for 10 yrs.—can be swapped out Programmable transmission intervals 2 Watts -- good for 10 -15 miles from tower
OWL Cellular Radios 3G with AT&T and Sprint Battery life warranty for 10 yrs.—can be swapped out Programmable transmission intervals
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Radio Models
Wall Mount Radio
Underground Tank “Pit” Radio
Meter Radio
OWL Cellular Radio
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Portal Dealer Screen
(1)
(1) Currently OWL© supports Mid:Com 8000 file structure
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Mapping of Tank Locations and % Full
Stauffer, Ken Owens, Shane Bubbalou’s BBQ Perabo, George Intilli, Tom Hutcheson, Zenas Kline, Michael Healy, Steve Rubin, Marty Campbell, Vera Shelly’s Gas Rick’s Autobody Guiles, Jay Fair Lakes Golf Club Simpson, Richard Smith, John Sims, Robert Faulkner, Mike Schrophert, Tim Wright, Lane
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Graphs of Customers Historical Usage
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Metering Application
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Alerts and Reporting
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Example Monthly “pay as you go” Invoices Under Estimate
Over Estimate
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Customer Testimonials Garry Lovelace, President of Lovelace Gas Service “I’ve deployed OWL © on propane tanks at both my commercial and residential accounts. Tank monitoring is great, but OWL © has taken tank monitoring to the next level with its GIS mapping and graphical capabilities. When I log into the portal I can immediately see all the tanks and their fill levels mapped on the screen. It reduces the number of truck rolls, so I’m able to gain efficiencies by better route planning. As I play with the web portal I find new ways of using the tool. By watching the usage rate on the graph I can schedule the time of fill up to maximize the gas delivery per route—that saves me money. But what has really driven my adoption of the OWL © monitoring system is its monthly usage based billing capability. I can now offer a “virtual gas metering service”. My customers enjoy not having to pay for a full tank of gas, and I enjoy being able to fill the tank when we’re on that route. OWL © provides a more even cash flow for both my customers and me, and allows me to maintain monthly contact with my customers. It is also a great sales tool to gain new customers.”
Phil Marks III, Manager of Nantucket Energy “I’ve been looking for a product like this for 5 years. I went with OWL© because they are the first underground “pit” radio made for the propane industry. With this product they have opened up a whole new market for underground tanks which has been a problem area for remote tank monitoring.” 12
Purchasing Options
Purchase options
Cellular Radio $245 – less with quantities Pit radio $195 – less with quantities Wall Mount radio $165 – less with quantities Meter Radio $135 – less with quantities Cheapest radio on the market 10 year battery warranty No truck rolls every 3 – 5 years
Software/ data fees starts at $5 per month Lease options available (hardware plus monthly software fee)
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Contacts
• Ken Stauffer,
[email protected], 732-688-0516 • Shane Owens,
[email protected], 407-399-5677
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