City of Culver City, California
Agenda Item Report
Meeting Date: 01/04/10 Item Number: A-1
CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM: (1) Waiver of the Formal Competitive Bidding
Process as Authorized by § 3.07.065 (A) & (D) of the Culver City Municipal Code
and (2) Approval of the Purchase of Ten Smart Cover Sewer Monitoring and Alarm
Systems from Plumbers Depot, Inc.
Contact Person/Dept.: Eric Mirzaian/PW Phone Number: (310) 253-6410
Fiscal Impact: Yes [X] No [] General Fund: Yes [] No [X]
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [X] Attachments: [X]
Commission Action Required: Yes [] No [] Date: _______________
Public Notification (E-mail) Meetings and Agendas – City Council (12/30/09)
Department Approval:
Charles D. Herbertson (12/22/09)
City Attorney Approval:
Carol Schwab (by H. Baker) (12/28/09)
Chief Financial Officer Approval:
Mark Scott (by N. Kimball) (12/28/09)
City Manager Approval:
Mark Scott (12/30/09)
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends the City Council (1) waive the formal competitive bidding process
as authorized by § 3.07.065 (A) & (D) of the Culver City Municipal Code and (2)
approve the purchase of ten Smart Cover Sewer Monitoring and Alarm Systems
(Smart Covers) from Plumbers Depot, Inc., in the amount of $39,259.23.
BACKGROUND:
Smart Covers are sensor modules which are mounted under sewer manhole covers
and sense sewage levels and send out alarms when the level exceeds a
predetermined set point. The intention of the Smart Covers is to supplement the
Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) System currently utilized by the
Public Works Department to monitor many components of the City’s seven sewer
pump stations including: pump operations, wet and dry well levels, and electrical
components. Should any of these components fail or reach a pre-determined
warning threshold, the SCADA System will notify Public Works Staff via pagers and
cell phones. Staff determined it would be effective to install Smart Covers as a
separate independent back-up system that would notify Staff in the event of a
SCADA System communications failure. In addition, the Smart Covers alert sewer
maintenance staff of problems within the sewer system itself, such as sewer
blockages, which are not related to pump station operation.
Pursuant to authorization provided by the City Council, a total of 22 Smart Covers
have been installed at various locations throughout the City. The Smart Covers
have proven to be an inexpensive and dependable alert system and are an effective City of Culver City, California
Agenda Item Report
back-up and enhancement to our existing SCADA System. Elevated sewage levels
have been detected by the Smart Covers on a number of occasions since
installation. This early detection allowed Public Works Staff to respond to and
correct the problems before a sewer overflow occurred.
Several questions have been raised by a member of the public pertaining to the
warranty, maintenance and potential network issues of the Smart Covers system.
The Smart Covers are actually manufactured by Hadronex, Inc. and purchased
through Plumbers Depot, Inc as a sole source vendor. The hold harmless language
of the City’s standard contract covers any negligence that can occur during
installation by either Hadronex or Plumbers Depot. Additionally, equipment,
workmanship and replacement parts are covered via a one-year warranty. Staff is
currently in the process of reviewing an extended warranty option proposed by
Hadronex. This is an option that can be added at a later time.
While neither Hadronex nor Plumbers Depot assume responsibility for loss of
wireless communication or network failure, Public Works Staff will receive alarm
notifications about the network loss via multiple data networks (and will be notified
by Plumbers Depot directly), at which point Staff will inspect sewer lines at locations
that have Smart Covers installed. It should be noted that the Smart Covers connect
to numerous existing nationwide data networks simultaneously and are not
dependent on just one network; thus reducing the chance of total communication
loss.
Staff has begun to carry spare parts such as batteries and antennas and is capable
of replacing these components without the services of Hadronex or Plumbers Depot.
Most service/repair needs can be handled at the local level by either Public Works
staff or Plumbers Depot (usually the same day). If the services of Hadronex are
required, they can usually respond within 24 hours.
Many surrounding agencies including El Segundo, Hawthorne and Santa Monica are
also using Smart Covers for the same purposes as Culver City and have acquired
Smart Covers under the same terms and conditions as Culver City. The Hawthorne
contract that was referred to during the December 14, 2009 City Council meeting is
actually the extended warranty from Hadronex that is mentioned above. Staff was
aware of the availability of this extended warranty and has received a proposal
similar to the Hawthorne contract. At this time, staff is examining the extended
warranty to determine if it represents a good value for the City. If the determination
is made that it does, staff will return to the City Council with a separate agreement
addressing the extended warranty.
DISCUSSION:
The Public Works Department has been implementing Smart Covers in small
batches over the course of the past two years. At the time of the initial purchase, City of Culver City, California
Agenda Item Report
Staff determined that it would be in the best interest to test the functionality of this
relatively new technology as a pilot program. Based on the successful results of the
pilot program and the infrastructure needs of the City’s sanitary sewer system, Staff
identified other locations throughout the City to install Smart Covers. These
additional ten locations when combined with the existing 22 smart manhole covers
will bring the total number of units to 32 throughout the City. Staff believes that
these 32 units will be sufficient to provide efficient citywide monitoring of the sewer
system. Additionally, as existing problems with the sewer system are addressed,
staff will redeploy the units to continue to provide coverage in areas that present the
highest risk of sewer blockage and overflow.
Staff recommends that the formal competitive bidding process be waived per Culver
City Municipal Code § 3.07.065 (A) & (D) since these additional Smart Covers will be
components for equipment previously acquired by the City and due to the fact Smart
Covers can currently be purchased only through Plumbers Depot, Inc. (a sole-
source vendor). Accordingly, staff recommends that the City Council approve the
purchase of ten additional Smart Covers from Plumbers Depot, Inc., in the amount of
$39,259.23.
FISCAL ANALYSIS:
Sufficient funding is available in the Capital Improvements Project P-521, Pump
Station Improvements (20400521), to cover the requested purchase of ten Smart
Covers at a cost of $39,259.23. The price includes equipment, installation and
annual monitoring for the first year. Subsequently, there will be recurring costs of
$300 per Smart Cover for annual monitoring. The ongoing annual monitoring costs
are included in the Sewer Fund’s annual operating budget (20466100). In addition
to providing access to the wireless communication system, the monitoring costs also
cover data access, technical support and the receiving of alarms.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Quote from Plumbers Depot, Inc.
MOTION:
That the City Council:
1. Waive the formal competitive bidding process as authorized by § 3.07.065 (A) &
(D) of the Municipal Code; and,
2. Approve the purchase of ten Smart Covers from Plumbers Depot, Inc. in the
amount of $39,259.23; and,
City of Culver City, California
Agenda Item Report
3. Authorize the City Attorney to review/prepare the necessary documents and,
4. Authorize the City Manager to execute such documents on behalf of the City.
1/4/10
(1) Waiver of the Formal Competitive Bidding
Process as Authorized by § 3.07.065 (A) & (D) of
the Culver City Municipal Code and (2) Approval of
the Purchase of Ten Smart Cover Sewer
Monitoring and Alarm System from Plumbers
Depot, Inc.
MEETING DATE:
AGENDA ITEM:
ATTACHMENTS
Pages|109| Quote from Plumbers Depot, Inc. 1Data Estimate *
11/10/2009 3S39
PLUMBERS DEPOT INC,
3921 W. 139th Street
Hawthorne, CA 90250
Phone: (866) 422-2156
Fax: (310) 355-1711
Quote
Name! Address
City of Culver City
Attn: Liam Leonard
9305 Iefferson Blvd.
Culver City, CA 90232
Item Description Qty Price Total
SMART-01 Standard Smart Covet Unlit WithEattery Pack 10 3,071.00 30,710.00T
Discr% Discount Applied % **** 10 Unit Price"' -2,000.00 -2,000_00
SMART-03 Smart Cover Mounting& Installation 10 ' 475.00 4,750.00
Install Units on Manbolo Cover
Instill Antenna on Manhole Cover
Set Water Level Cable Length
SMART-04 Service, Yeariy IviourEoring Service 10 300.00 3,000.00
Quote good to the oad of the year.
&oblate] s36,460.00
Sales Tax (75%) $2,799-23
Total $39,259_23
Signature and Na _
Fax*
010)355-1711