CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Introduction
In a world like ours today there is
every need to manage funds in every activity being carried out. It is the
concern of every firm to control its finances to ensure that unnecessary
expenses are avoided. Financial management in a company has proved to be a
great task involving the monitor of almost all departments of the company. As
such, companies tend to be severe about the tools being used to manage these
resources of theirs. This is because financial resources have to do with
figures, calculations and computations which may present errors if not properly
handled. To this end a computerized system will go a long way to sort many
issues in managing financial affairs.
Monitoring power and issuing its bill
is the job of Power Holding companies, and they intend to present this
information to their customers/subscribers on time and precise. In Nigeria the
situation is not different. The Power Holdings Company Nigeria (PHCN) PLC has
been on the job for decades now. The issue now is how is it being done and
whether the method being used yields the best results? With the growing rate of
technology in our world today the question is not far fetched.
The use of manual means of
manipulation of records has been proved to have different flaws attached to it
so companies are gradually turning on to information technology for aid.
Offices are no longer known for the piles of paper and files that it usually
had. Rather it is made of devices that make up an automated office system,
devices like, desktops, laptops, printers, scanners, etc.
A computerized system according to
Friaser, C. (2007), involves the use of computer devices and connections to
achieve tasks in a corporate environment. Using this type of system to manage
activities will help solve problems of familiar problems being presented by
manual systems.
This research project is focused on
showing how a computerized system can be modeled to monitor power outage and
present bills for it. It studies the characteristics of a computerized system
and its components.
1.2 Statement ff Problem
Over the years electricity monitoring
in PHCN(usually known as NEPA) has been operated using manual systems and this
constitute irrespective of its innate and intrinsic shortfall. When customers
go to the billing sections to pay up their accrued bills, they get entrapped in
long interminable queues to inefficient machines. In light of this, payment of
bills turns out to be hard nut to crack for customers. On the other side of
PHCN officials, it has been a tedious and cumbersome task to be abreast of the
condition of electricity cables, transformers etc, and these inabilities
contributes to their poor and torpid attention to critical power problems. As a
matter of necessity, only an online, real-time monitoring transaction
processing system can revert these plagues associated with manual procedures of
power monitoring system.
The question of turning to the
computerized system rather than partially automated system which serves which
serves as an impediments and discomfort due to poor operating environment
becomes another problem to be resolved.
1.3 Theoretical Background
The National Electric Power Authority
(NEPA), which is now known as Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), was
established by decree 24 of 1972 via the then electricity corporation of
Nigeria and the Niger Dan Authority (NDA). It was accorded the mandate to
generate, transmit, distribute, and market electricity.
It has on its own the task to develop
and to maintain an efficient coordinated and economical system of electricity
supply to all parts of Nigeria and other parts of West Africa like Benin
republic, Ghana and Niger republics in the northern part of Nigeria. In the bid
to meet with its statutory responsibility geared towards the satisfaction of its
customers need worldwide constitute the establishment of the Alausa-Ikeja road
office, which has been functional over decades.
Past, the system was not well
efficient because the manipulations of the system were handled solely using
humans’ operations which constituted different errors. In our time, it has
become necessary to implement modern approaches to technology in order to
manage activities of an organization.
1.4 Objectives of the Study
The objective of this study is to
show how a computerized system can be built for the PHCN Uyo, to aid the handle
of electricity monitoring and bill presentation for customers. The study
examines the distinction between a manual and computerized system, and intends
to settle the problems created by manual systems by modeled automated systems.
To employ Information Technology (IT)
potentials in customers service and the organization as a whole, as well as to
ascertain whether computerized system is of positive impact to the general
service structure or a threat to the staff’s job security.
1.5 Significance of the Study
Owing to the apparent and deliberate
cynic approach of people towards the issue of whether or power monitoring
system is expedient, the research project has the under-listed significance:
I.
Eliminates
the problems inherent in the old power monitoring system/procedure by offering
an automated real-time data processing approach.
II.
Reduce
complaints by aggrieved customers owing to poor service thereby upholding the
corporate image of PHCN.
III.
Educate
PHCN officials of the use of computing operations to carry out transactions.
IV.
To
ginger further study and research on the topic by other students and
academicians.
1.6 Scope of the Study
The scope of this study is focused on
power monitoring in PHCN. It considers the procedures used for managing the
billing system in PHCN and how a computerized system can contribute to the
betterment of these activities. The study uses Power Holding Company of Nigeria
(PHCN), Uyo as its case study.
1.7 Definition of Terms
Electric Power: Electric power is the rate of energy consumption in a circuit. The
electric power is measured in units of watts.
Capacitor: This
is a passive two-terminal component used to store energy in an electric field.
Monitoring: This
generally means to be aware of the state of the system in order to control the
system effectively.
Bills: This is
an amount of money owed for goods supplied or services rendered, set out in a
printed or written statement of charge that is to be paid for at a later date
by the consumers.
Voltage: This
is the potential energy that makes the electrical current flow in circuit by
pushing the electrons around. It is how we measure the difference in electrical
energy.
Supply: This
is the amount of electrical energy that is being released to a particular
circuit within a particular. Supply determines the consumption of power.