PRISM UTILITY VENDING SYSTEM (UVS)

Overview

The Utility Vending System (UVS) allows Utility Companies to manage Prepaid Vending to Standard Transfer Specification (STS) Electricity, Water and Gas meters in a turnkey solution.

Features

Meter Management:

Main features are comprehensive customer and supply point information and meter management.
It has never been easier to manage and control your meters.
Meters can now be blocked or suspended from vending, ensuring maximum control.
Meters can also be associated with a Place of Connection (POC), allowing for location-based management.

Tariff Management:

Allows Utility Companies to design tariffs to suit their requirements with multiple rates (block tariff), various charges as well as numerous free units on a single tariff.

Consumer Management:

Allows Utility Companies to manage their consumers and arrears better. Arrears are controlled by the consumer rather than by meter, simplifying collection.

Supports Multiple Utilities:

An installed hosted system can support multiple independent utilities. This saves on costs associated with installation, hosting, operating system and database licenses.
The multiple independent utilities each have access to their individual supply group codes meter and customer bases.
This feature makes it ideal for hosting a single system at a central point, and multiple private utilities can benefit from the cost savings achieved through hardware sharing. Prism offers such a hosted service. Contact us for details on how to become operational and start saving immediately.

Bulk & Individual Token Generation:

Tokens may be generated individually or in bulk.

Partners

EasyPay has a proven track record of over twenty years.
Offering a nationwide footprint with secure payments at a variety of retail networks, with over 100,000 payment points.

Use the Easypay Mobile Application for Vending.

Benefits:

Enterprise-grade security, reliability and functionality, using STS certified devices.
Easy integration with point-of-sale, token distribution and smart meter head end systems using an easy to use high-level interface.
Upgradeable to support the IEC 62055-41 Edition 3 (STS600) specification using the High-Level Security Module (HLSM). Included are the new security features as well as TID rollover.
Host it yourself or let us pay you by collecting your tenants’ prepayments in advance and paying directly to your bank account.
Free! Do zero setup and maintenance costs appeal to you? Within South Africa and neighbouring countries, we offer a solution called Software as a Service (SaaS) from a UVS hosted at our sister company, EasyPay in Cape Town.

Token sales are available at all EasyPay outlets, including those in neighbouring states.
No setup costs, no maintenance costs, merely manage your customers and meters and let us collect money for you.
No hassles about technology upgrades, TID rollover, and license cost – these will be taken care of.
The EasyPay service includes a Mobile App.

Utility Companies

The UVS has been designed with the large user in mind, typically municipalities and hosted vending sites.
It has the ability to integrate with payment and distribution networks.
Utility companies deploying STS certified prepaid meters use the UVS to manage their meters, tariffs and customers.
As the solution is meter independent, utilities have the freedom to choose from their preferred meter suppliers without fear of changing their vending system.
It can be configured to support many independent utilities, each with their unique access and management interface.
By partnering with Mobile Operators, we offer utility companies the utility vending Platform as a Service (PaaS).
The utilisation of existing distribution channels alleviates infrastructure headaches while ensuring maximum distribution reach to the consumer.
Use preferred meter suppliers without changing vending systems.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How does vending occur and will this replace the current system?”

A: The system will replace the existing system.

Vending can be done in many ways.
For installation in another country, a level of integration with the infrastructure should exist in the country of deployment.
The sales distribution system Virtual Top-Up (VTU), initially developed for mobile network operators for prepaid airtime top-ups, has since been adapted for electricity, water and gas.
The VTU supports nodes for integration to ATM’s, web pages, terminals, USSD, for example.
These are not necessarily supplied, yet they are supported.
In South Africa, mobile applications for vending are used which need not be linked to local banks.

Q: Can the EasyPay vending system support block tariffs?

A. The EasyPay utility vending system can support block tariffs.

To use different tariffs on the same SGC, different Tariff Indexes are allocated to the meters which requires a key change on the meter.

Q: Which system should I choose?

A. Various systems can be purchased and operated independently, with licensed software.

The standalone systems are suitable for cash sales or integration with a payment system. You pay a license per transaction. There are low and high-speed versions available.
Alternatively, a hosted system at EasyPay may be used, that is integrated with the retail and banking footprint. There are no upfront costs; however, approximately one thousand meters are required to sign up and access to the ‘Private Utility’. You need to be a Supply Group Code owner for any of the vending systems, meaning one sub-vends on behalf of property owners. The municipal bill is settled from income collected on their behalf. The rate varies depending on the number of meters and is a percentage of the sale.

STS Prepayment Solutions/
Payment (EFT) HSM Solutions

+27 31 267 5500

6 Sookhai Place, Westville,
Kwazulu-Natal,
South Africa

Email

info@prism.co.za

STS Prepayment Solutions/
Payment (EFT) HSM Solutions

+27 31 267 5500

6 Sookai Place, Westville,
Kwazulu Natal,
South Africa

Email

info@prism.co.za