City Saved $32,569 in One Year : Electrician Knew What’s Watt on Meter

Keen eyes and a little curiosity have paid off big for Steven Zeiss--and San Diego taxpayers.

The 38-year-old electrician at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium was suspicious of nine electric meters used by Service America Corp., the stadium concessionaire.

“They read a little funny,” Zeiss recalled.

He did some digging and found out the industrial-grade meters should have had a multiplier on them to correctly determine the kilowatt hour usage. Since they did not, city taxpayers were unwittingly paying some of Service America’s electrical bill from San Diego Gas & Electric. Zeiss told city officials of his discovery and saved the taxpayers $32,569 in one year.

On Monday, Zeiss appeared before the City Council and was rewarded with a certificate signed by Mayor Maureen O’Connor and City Manager John Lockwood--and a check for $5,000.

Situation Corrected

Stadium Manager Bill Wilson said the mistake on the meters had been overlooked by everybody. The correct multipliers were put on the meters about a year and a half ago.

The city’s suggestion program began 25 years ago as a means of picking the brains of employees to find better ways of doing things, to seek common sense approaches to everyday bureaucratic tangles.

Earlier this year, James Meyer, a civil engineer, received $1,000 for his suggestion on how “to structurally repair manholes without having to replace them,” said Starlene Snead, the administrator of the suggestion awards program. This saved the city more than $100,000.

Last year, San Diegans saved more than $300,000 because of city employees’ suggestions for savings and $55,000 was divided among contributors.

Some recent suggestions have included:

- Convert conventional lighting in the B Street tunnel near San Diego City College to low-sodium lighting to save energy. Estimated savings: $15,656

- Use automatic timers for air-conditioning units at the San Diego Police Department so they shut off when not in use. Estimated savings: $19,806

- Use plastic replica stickers to cover school safety patrol stop signs instead of replacing the entire aluminum portion. Estimated savings: not available yet.

“One out of every four ideas submitted gets approved,” Snead said.

“Some of the suggestions are excellent but the city savings are hidden. These are called intangible savings and the idea originator gets $500 and a certificate.”

Others are given a portion of the estimated savings up front and the remainder on a prorated basis, depending on the actual amount saved, Snead said.