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CC - Approval of a Purchase Order with Westnet, Inc. for the Fire Station Alerting System Upgrade Project, in an Amount Not-to-Exceed $280,000.00.
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Meeting Date: October 24, 2016
Contact Person/Dept: David White/Fire
Phone Number: 310-253-5900
Fiscal Impact: Yes [X] No [] General Fund: Yes [X] No []
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [] Attachments: []
Commission Action Required: Yes [] No [X] Date:
Public Notification: (E-Mail) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (10/19/2016)
Department Approval: David White (10/11/2016)
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RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council approve a purchase order with Westnet, Inc. for the Fire Station Alerting System Upgrade Project, in an amount not-to-exceed $280,000.00.
BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
Staff included the Fire Station Alerting Upgrade Project (Project) as a goal on the Fire Department’s 2014-2018 Strategic Plan and introduced the Project to the City Council in the Fiscal Year 2015-16 budget. Currently, all three fire stations have antiquated fire station alerting systems. The technology used in the current alerting system is an early version of MOSCAD (a Motorola product), which is nearly 30 years old and is no longer manufactured, nor supported. The Project will accomplish the following:
• Upgrade all three fire stations with color-coded apparatus-specific alert lighting;
• Upgrade all alert speakers;
• Install display monitors that reflect incident information;
• Provide redundant station alerting pathways (IP primary, radio secondary);
• Network interface with computer aided dispatch system; and
• Implementation of a pre-alert system to automate some dispatching and improve response times.
The Department introduced the Project to City Council as a capital improvement project in the Fiscal Year 2015-2016 budget. As the possibility of joining a regional dispatch center existed and the station alerting equipment must have the ability to interface with dispatch’s computer aided dispatch system, the Fire Department held off on bringing this project forward until City Council had the opportunity to make a decision regarding dispatch operations.
On October 10, 2016, City Council approved a contract with the South Bay Regional Public Communication Authority, also known as the Regional Communications Center (RCC), to provide 9-1-1 dispatching services for the Police and Fire Departments. To support this contract, the Fire Department must purchase a new Fire Station Alerting System that is compatible with RCC’s Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system. RCC named two compatible Station Alerting Systems-Westnet, Inc. manufactures one and the other no longer offers sales representation or installation in the Southern California Region.
Westnet, Inc. is the only vendor currently operational in Southern California and compatible with RCC’s CAD system to provide a Fire Station Alerting System for the City’s three fire stations. Therefore, Staff recommends authorizing a purchase order with Westnet, Inc. for the Fire Station Alerting System Upgrade Project, in an amount not-to-exceed $280,000.00, including taxes, installation, one-year technical support and on-site warranty.
This procurement is excepted from the bid requirements per Culver City Municipal Code Section 3.07.045(G). Section 3.07.045(G) excepts bidding requirements where competitive bid procedures have already been utilized by another public agency. Because of the City’s participation with the Houston-Galveston Area Council (HGAC) group purchasing organization, this procurement meets this requirement.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
In the City Council Adopted Budget for Fiscal Year 2015-2016, Staff appropriated $280,000.00 for a Fire Station Alerting System Upgrade Project (PF008). Staff included the full Project amount in the carryover to FY 2016-2017.
ATTACHMENTS
None.
MOTION
That the City Council:
1. Approve a purchase order with Westnet, Inc. for the Fire Station Alerting System Upgrade Project, in an amount not-to-exceed $280,000.00; and
2. Authorize the Purchasing Officer to execute the purchase order on behalf of the City.