Bucheon-si, Smart Water Metering System Effectively Detects Leaks, Saving 1.5 Billion KRW

Bucheon City in Gyeonggi Province has saved 1.5 billion KRW in water bills by detecting leaks in advance through a smart water meter reading system.

According to Bucheon City on the 22nd, the city has introduced the smart water meter reading system since 2019 and has applied it to 60,700 out of 132,600 water meters in the area to date.

Smart meter reading is a non-face-to-face, remote reading method that transmits meter readings by connecting communication terminals to digital water meters and utilizing Internet of Things (IoT) technology. Unlike the traditional method where meter readers visit each household once every 1 to 2 months, the system remotely reads water meters 24 times a day, enabling transparent billing.

Smart Water Meter Reading System
[Provided by Bucheon City]

Since 2022, the city has also operated a 'Water Leakage Monitoring' system using smart meter reading, which detected 2,432 leak cases in advance and saved 1.5 billion KRW in water bills.

Additionally, it has helped prevent accidents such as falls during on-site meter reading and suffocation in manholes, and strengthened the safety net for socially vulnerable groups by detecting water usage in single-person households. Bucheon City plans to apply the smart meter reading system to all water meters in the region by 2027.

Jo Yong-ik, mayor of Bucheon City, said, "With the application of the smart meter reading system, we expect to provide new water administration services that citizens can experience, such as real-time water bill inquiry, leak forecasting, and meter freezing risk alerts."