1999 AGN FEB 16 I11 - Laserfiche WebLink

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CITY OF COLTON AGENDA REPORT For the City Council Meeting of February 16, 1999 TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUN APPROVAL: HENRY T. GARCIA, CITY MANAGER FROM: THOMAS K. CLARKE, UTILITY DIRECTOR V SUBJECT: AWARD A SOLE SOURCE CONTRACT TO SIEMENS ENERGY FOR ONE 15KV CIRCUIT BREAKER IN THE AMOUNT OF $17,724.88 DATE: TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 09, 1999 BACKGROUND On December 6, 1998, a rodent squeezed its way into a 15000 Volt circuit breaker at the City's Hub Substation, near the City Corporate Yard. The animal's body created a short circuit inside the high voltage circuit breaker, causing severe damage to the equipment. Approximately 20% of the City's customers were affected by the outage. Power was restored to all customers within 56 minutes.. DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS The breaker was removed from service and taken out of its metal switchgear enclosure for inspection. Damage was extensive, and the decision was made to return the breaker to the manufacturer for an assessment of repair costs. The manufacturer reported that the cost to repair the unit approximated the cost of a new unit. This was due to the costs of disassembly and additional testing that would be required on the used breaker to recertify it for service and provide the standard warranty. The manufacturer offered to credit the cost of the inspection toward the purchase of a new breaker. Substation staff was directed to attempt to find an alternate supplier'. They confirmed the original manufacturer as the sole source for the breaker, which must interface both physically and electrically with existing substation systems. The attached letter also confirms and explains the manufacturer's opinion that it is the only suitable provider of the equipment. ALTERNATIVES The Substation Division replaced the failed breaker with the spare breaker that is maintained for such contingencies. Although the Electric Division strongly recommends against it, the City could elect to not maintain a spare breaker. Another breaker failure would result in either extended and/or rotating outages in a portion of the City during hot weather conditions. FINANCIAL IMPACT Funds are available in Account No. 520-8000-8003-2301-0921-000 to make the purchase. RECOMMENDATION That the City Council waive the requirement for competitive bidding and award a Purchase Order to Siemens in the amount of $17,724.88 for the procurement of a new 15000 Volt circuit breaker for the Hub Substation. Report prepared by Timothy C. Trewyn, P.E., Assistant Electric Utility Director Page 1 of 1 (w/attachment) Item # 1 I