Telemetry costs explained: SIM, data, texts and the Dashboard

"No subscription" is the first thing people notice about Telemetrix, and the second thing they ask is "so what do I pay?" Fair question. Remote monitoring has a reputation for small monthly charges that add up, and the honest answer is that there are some, they are small, and here they all are.

What is included in the panel price

The panel, the built-in router, the connection to our cloud service, and the alerts. Every Telemetrix panel sends a notification for pump 1 trip, pump 2 trip, high level and panel offline, to as many people as you like, for as long as the panel is in service. There is no annual licence, no activation fee and nothing to renew.

Email notifications are free. All of them, forever.

The costs that can apply

Text messages: 10p each

If you want alerts by SMS as well as email, texts cost 10p per message, charged only for the texts actually sent. A station that trips twice a year and sends to three people costs 60p a year in texts. A station that alarms on every storm to a dozen people costs more, which is usually a sign to fix the station rather than the bill.

Most customers use email for the routine notifications and SMS for the people who need to be woken up.

Connection: free, or £6 a month

Telemetrix connects three ways, and you choose on site:

• Site WiFi: free.
• Ethernet cable to the site broadband: free.
• 4G SIM in the built-in router, for a pump station in a field: the multi-network SIM is free to purchase and £6 a month for the data. It works on whichever network has signal at the site.

The SIM is the one cost that goes on every month, and only where there is no site network to use.

The Dashboard: from £6 a month, optional

The panel sends alerts without it. The Telemetrix Dashboard is the optional web portal that shows live status, every pump run with its duration, the level history, an alarm log and smart warnings for all your stations in one place. It is priced per account, not per station:

• £6 + VAT a month for up to 5 stations
• £25 + VAT a month for up to 250 stations

with a 30-day free trial and no card needed to start. Cancel any time.

Worked examples

One private pump station, on 4G, alerts by email, no Dashboard. SIM £6 x 12 = £72 a year. Texts: none. Total £72.

One station, on 4G, with the Dashboard and SMS to two people. SIM £72 + Dashboard £72 = £144 a year, plus texts at 10p each; call it £150 a year with a handful of alarms.

A contractor looking after 50 stations, mostly on 4G, with the Dashboard. SIM £72 x 50 = £3,600 + Dashboard £300 = £3,900 a year, or £78 per station per year, for live status, run history and alerts on all of them. Stations on site WiFi cost £6 a year, which is the Dashboard share.

A station in a plant room with WiFi, email alerts only. £0 a year.

All prices exclude VAT.

What there is not

• No annual licence per panel.
• No charge for adding or changing the people who receive alerts.
• No charge for the number of alerts.
• No contract term on the Dashboard.
• No charge for the panel's connection to our service, now or later. If we ever changed that, the panel would still work as a pump panel: the switchgear does not depend on the cloud.

Compared with the alternatives

A standalone telemetry unit retrofitted to an old panel typically costs as much as a new Telemetrix panel once it is installed, and then carries its own SIM and, often, a monthly licence. That is why, where remote monitoring is wanted, we usually suggest replacing the panel: Telemetrix remote pump monitoring explains the reasoning, and the Telemetrix FAQs cover the practical questions.

Telemetrix is £1,798 + VAT for the dual pump DOL panel. Full pricing on the Telemetrix page.

Frequently asked questions

Is there really no subscription?

There is no subscription for the panel or its alerts. The optional costs are the 4G SIM (£6 a month, only if you use one), text messages (10p each, only if you want SMS) and the optional Dashboard (from £6 a month per account).

What happens if I stop paying for the SIM?

The panel keeps controlling the pumps exactly as before; it just cannot send alerts until it has a connection again. Put it on site WiFi or Ethernet and it needs no SIM at all.

Can I use my own SIM?

Yes. The built-in router takes a standard SIM. The multi-network SIM we supply is convenient because it roams to whichever network has signal, but it is not required.

Does the Dashboard price go up with more stations?

Two bands: up to 5 stations for £6 a month, up to 250 for £25 a month. Both include every feature.

Are there any costs for the Telemetrix View panel?

The same. Telemetrix View adds a touchscreen and a level sensor input to the panel; the connection, alerts and Dashboard costs are identical.