ST. LOUIS, December 15, 2008 –- Washington State's oldest and largest energy utility, Puget Sound Energy (PSE), a subsidiary of Puget Energy, has successfully rolled out Aclara's Customer Moves Center, which allows utility customers to start, stop, and transfer electric and natural gas service online. The utility also recently deployed Aclara's paperless billing and e-mail notification solutions to eliminate paper statements and ensure customers receive bills in a timely manner.
PSE is the first utility to employ the Customer Moves Center in conjunction with paperless billing and e-mail notification, allowing residential consumers to make payment arrangements and start, stop, or transfer service without assistance from a call-center agent. Actual payments are processed by a third party.
“We continue to enjoy a productive partnership with Aclara Software. Our implementation of its consumer-oriented energy products has allowed Puget Sound Energy to provide top-notch service to its customers,” said Wendy Micklus, Manager Customer Experience. “We are pleased with the benefits to our utility customers provided by Aclara.”
“Our partnership with Puget Sound Energy continues to grow, and we plan to work closely with the utility as it applies Aclara applications to improve the customer experience and enhance call-center operations,” said Bruce Phillips, Group President of Aclara.
Customer Moves and paperless billing are the latest in a series of software solutions from Aclara implemented by PSE. The utility employs Aclara Software's energy- and bill-analysis software to empower customers to control and reduce energy usage. The applications all work from within Aclara's dashboard application, a user interface that provides a single screen from which customers can manage their accounts. PSE also uses Aclara Software's call-center solution to automate customer contact.
About Aclara
The Aclara brand represents the industry's leading fixed-network Advanced Metering Infrastructure technologies and Meter Data Management software serving water, gas, and electric utilities globally. Three technologies provide Aclara customers premier solutions including TWACS® Technology (power line communications), STAR® Network (licensed radio frequency), and Aclara Softwareâ„¢ (meter data and asset management). More than 475 utilities in nine countries rely on proven Aclara solutions to connect with their customers. Aclara is part of the Utilities Solutions Group of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE), St. Louis. Capturing data. Liberating Knowledge.â„¢ www.Aclara.com.
About Puget Energy
Puget Energy (NYSE:PSD) is the parent company of Puget Sound Energy, a regulated utility providing electric and natural gas service primarily to the growing Puget Sound region of Western Washington.
About Puget Sound Energy
Washington State's oldest and largest energy utility, with a 6,000-square-mile service area stretching across 11 counties, Puget Sound Energy serves more than 1 million electric customers and 739,000 natural gas customers, primarily in Western Washington. PSE, a subsidiary of Puget Energy (NYSE:PSD), meets the energy needs of its growing customer base through incremental, cost-effective energy conservation, low-cost procurement of sustainable energy resources, and far-sighted investment in the energy-delivery infrastructure. PSE employees are dedicated to providing great customer service to deliver energy that is safe, reliable, reasonably priced, and environmentally responsible.
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Nancy E. Talley
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