Utilities

Capgemini helps utility companies - including many of the world's largest - to improve their customer service and operational efficiency.

With around 7,500 of our 90,000 staff active in the utility sector in consulting, technology and outsourcing, Gartner last year ranked us #1 consulting services provider to utilities in Europe.

Price reviews are being completed this year for the next regulatory period (PR09/SR10 for water and DPCR5 for electricity networks). These reviews mean that utility companies must seek additional ways to drive up efficiency and maintain or improve customer service. Combined with the continuing need to meet all regulatory targets in an environment of considerable economic uncertainty, these pressures make the next period look very challenging.

For those companies that are purely in the business of buying and selling power, the big issue is the volatile price of oil and gas, and its impact on electricity prices. Combined with issues around the availability and capacity of power stations, this factor is likely to necessitate significantly increased prices to consumers. Increased prices during a recession also make for more problems collecting payments, so that credit management becomes a hot topic.

Further down the line, smart metering and smart grid look set to transform the industry as much as deregulation did. Simply selling more power is no longer the global utility industry’s only key objective. An overriding target, mandated by governments worldwide, is to manage supply and demand with less carbon impact – in other words, effectively to use conservation as a fuel.  While these may seem distant prospects it is important to be ready, since they could be a source of competitive advantage, as well as helping to address environmental issues. 

Capgemini has developed a suite of services to help utility companies respond to these industry challenges.

Operational Excellence helps companies improve efficiency, effectiveness and service at the same time. It’s achieved by identifying opportunities for improvement, based on our insight into the top performers, and then rapidly implementing change using a set of accelerators including:

• Business case models for cost to serve and satisfaction (OPA for water)
• Integrated operations and control rooms, particularly for water
• Contact centre optimisation
• Work optimisation for the direct and contractor field force
  
• High performance in capital investment
  
• Business Process Outsourcing
• SAP accelerators for utilities, such as the Preconfigured SAP solution for UK Water Companies 
• Business intelligence for utilities

When prices are escalating and customers are hard-pressed to pay bills, it’s vital to have appropriate credit management techniques and tools in place. Capgemini’s end-to-end credit management solution gives you better debt collection at lower cost, while improving your relationships with customers and regulators.

Smart metering and smart grid will allow consumers to take control of their energy consumption, save money and help to protect the environment. For utility companies, these technologies are a way to increase efficiency, improve customer relationships and comply with environmental legislation, while also reducing the need for future infrastructure investment. 

For further information on Capgemini’s Utilities offerings, contact:

Martin Wells

Vice President, Utilities

Telephone 0870 238 2180

Email martin.wells@capgemini.com

 

Our Utilities capabilities include: