Kenya has officially begun a nationwide roll-out of a new power meter reading technology, Optical Character Recognition (OCR). The technology, which is being implemented by the national power distributor Kenya Power (KPLC), is designed to enhance the efficiency, accuracy and speed of meter data collection.
The technology, which uses scanning to capture readings, is specifically targeting the company’s 1.8 million postpaid meters across all eight of its operating regions.
The new OCR meter reading system is a technological leap from the error-prone process of manual data entry. OCR works by scanning the numerical display of the meter, allowing for automatic, high-accuracy processing of the meter reading.
“With the OCR system, the meter reader will just be required to scan the meter, and the system will pick the meter readings automatically. This will save time and eliminate human error that is likely to occur if the meter reader manually types the readings,” Richard Wida, Kenya Power’s Commercial Cycle Manager, said.
The successful implementation of this technology is expected to significantly reduce billing anomalies and disputes that frequently arise from erroneous readings and bill estimations, thereby improving customer experience.
This initiative is part of a wider strategy that includes the existing MyPower App and USSD Code self-service platforms, which already allow customers to access services and even submit their own meter readings.
Kenya Power says it also plans to enable customers to use OCR for self-reading in the future. Furthermore, the company has already deployed smart meters, which support two-way communication for remote reading and service control, for large power users, SMEs, and selected domestic customers.
“The OCR technology is a major milestone in Kenya Power’s digital transformation journey through which the Company is aiming to strengthen service delivery and enhance customer experience. It will complement other technologies that the Company has deployed to improve service delivery and strengthen operations,” said Mr. Wida.
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