Piedmont Water, Lake Country’s leading provider of water and wastewater services, celebrated the grand opening of its Customer Care and Learning Center on April 15.
The grand opening event included a ribbon-cutting ceremony jointly hosted by the Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce and the Greene County Chamber of Commerce, tours, and lunch provided by The Meat Locker and Kona Ice of Lake Oconee.
The development of the center started about a year ago, as part of Piedmont Water’s efforts to improve customer experience and communication with the community.
The Eatonton center features a showroom that guides customers through the entire water journey, as well as space for operations, educational seminars, and in-person meetings. Customers can also submit bill payments 24/7 through a secure drop box located outside the center.
“[Last year,] we were sitting in a meeting in what was our conference room, and we had somebody walk up and they didn’t really know exactly what they wanted, but they knew they wanted to see us,” Piedmont Water owner Adam Shaifer said. “I said, ‘This is crazy. We’ve got to let people inside our doors and help them, and there are a lot of things that we have to educate our customers about for our business.’
“While this is not all that grand in terms of space, what is grand and symbolic for us is really trying to give our customers and all of our stakeholders better transparency for our business. We had a soft opening, just word of mouth, several weeks ago, and we got very good feedback from the customers who came in and got to see us in person… We do expect a lot of people will come to see us.”
“This is about making it easier for our customers to do business with us and helping them get what they need,” Chief Operating Officer Brent Hurst added. “At the end of the day, it’s about listening, answering questions, and making sure that our customers will be taken care of. You know, the bottom line is to be able to make sure that we’re building trust within the community and making sure that we’re taking care of the community.”
Eatonton-Putnam Chamber President/CEO Robbie King praised Piedmont Water during the ribbon cutting.
“With Putnam County being a rapidly growing community, none of that’s possible for the businesses or for the residences without a reliable water supply, and we appreciate all the work Piedmont Water puts into making sure that when we turn the faucet on, the water comes out,” King said. “Now, they’ve added in this beautiful customer service/ education center, and we appreciate all they do for our community.”
The customer care center, located at 607 Old Phoenix Rd., is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., excluding major holidays.