Automated Meter Reading with Clarity voice-operated Software

Clarity Software allows input of meter data for electricity and gas by phone via voice and keypad / Automated speech processing and real-time transfer of the data to data bases and SAP / System of Clarity works round the clock / Cost saving for suppliers / No annoying meter reading appointments for the customers any more

The automated speech processing on the phone becomes increasingly popular among companies. That way, customer demands, like, for example, at service hotlines, can be pre-qualified and channeled at an early stage by the phone query. After having been skeptical at first, in the meantime also the customers got used to this cost-saving kind of dial switching. Responsible for this are not least the considerably improved voice-recognition devices which guarantee a smooth transfer of customer demands to the appropriate contact persons.

 

„An important application field of speech processing software is the meter reading for power suppliers“, explains Christoph Pfeiffer, CEO of Clarity AG. For that purpose, the customers simply call a service number to give the latest reading of their gas, water and electric meter. Hereby, the voice-operated software of Clarity asks at first for the customer data, for example the customer number. After the registration, the callers can then enter the meter reading by voice or, alternatively, by the keypad of their phone.

 

The software transfers the data via an interface into the customer data base, the SAP system of the power supplier or other applications used for the administration of customer data. Thus, their plausibility can be checked in real-time. In case of dubieties, the system asks to enter the data again. Not least due to the modern voice-recognition device, the Clarity system guarantees a largely automated meter reading. Only in exceptional cases a customer service representative of the supplier is used.

 

Such a system offers numerous advantages for the power supplier. By this system, the supplier saves personnel for meter reading. The Clarity software works round the clock. Expensive direct mails and field works as well as the laborious manual analysis of the data are now part of the past. The result is a distinct cost reduction.

 

Also the customers benefit from the Clarity system. The annoying appointments for the meter reading, for which many a consumer had to take a day off, are not necessary any more. Furthermore, the employees in the service centres of the power suppliers have more time for customer service, as routine requests of customers concerning meter reading are rarely made.

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