MAYFIELD, Kentucky — The WK&T Telecommunications Cooperative board of directors is pleased to announce an arrangement with the city of Dresden in Weakley County, Tennessee, to build a fiber network that would allow the city to read water meters remotely. WK&T plans to expand that network to be able to offer high-speed broadband to residents in Dresden.

“The city of Dresden has taken an innovative approach to solving a problem using technology,” says WK&T CEO Trevor Bonnstetter. “In many ways, a forward-thinking city like Dresden is a perfect anchor customer for a progressive cooperative like WK&T and the city’s residents will soon see the benefits of this new relationship.”

In Dresden, WK&T will lay about 66 miles of fiber during the planned build out, which will begin later this year. The new fiber optic network will allow the municipal water department to gather accurate readings more efficiently by transmitting signals directly from the meters back to the office.

WK&T will be able to expand the network beyond the water meters to provide high-speed internet access to local residents, filling the need for a world-class communications infrastructure. The cooperative will also bring new voice, security and television offerings to the residents of Dresden.

“I’d like to commend the officials in Dresden for seeking a more efficient way to read meters and improve their water department’s operations,” Bonnstetter says. “They managed to increase efficiency there while also bringing reliable broadband to their citizens. Dresden residents shouldn’t have to settle for slower internet connections because of where they live. I truly believe broadband from WK&T will improve economic development, education, health care and their overall quality of life.”

As a cooperative, which is locally owned by its members, WK&T is in a unique position to serve the people of Dresden. “Cooperatives are different,” Bonnstetter adds. “We’re invested in improving the lives of our members, and WK&T has a vision to keep expanding in order to serve more residents in our region with advanced technology.”

WK&T is currently constructing a fiber network to read water meters and provide services in nearby Martin, Tennessee. Work in Martin began in February of 2017 and is expected to be completed by August of this year.

WK&T is a communications cooperative serving West Kentucky and Northwest Tennessee across more than 13,000 access lines. The company is dedicated to using technology to keep its members connected through telephone, high-speed internet, digital television and security services.