What utilities actually evaluate
A utility replacing meters is not shopping for hardware. It is buying an end to manual reading, an end to estimated billing, and the data that makes loss detection possible — which means the decision rests on integration with existing billing systems, communication reliability across the service area, and how a large deployment is managed without chaos. Vendors who lead with device specifications are answering a question nobody asked.
What we build for a metering provider
First, capability framed as outcomes: reading automation, loss detection, billing accuracy, with the data platform behind them. Second, integration with billing and utility systems stated explicitly, because that is where these projects usually fail. Third, deployment evidence at scale, including communication coverage and rollout duration. Fourth, tender-ready documentation, since almost every buyer in this sector procures formally.