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HomeMy WebLinkAbout5F - Brine Tank Purchase REP Phone 952.447.9800 / Fax 952.447.4245 / www.cityofpriorlake.com 4646 Dakota Street SE Prior Lake, MN 55372 CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT MEETING DATE: APRIL 15, 2019 AGENDA #: 5F PREPARED BY: JASON WEDEL, PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR/CITY ENGINEER PRESENTED BY: NICK MONSERUD AGENDA ITEM: CONSIDER APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE PURCHASE OF A BRINE PRODUCTION EQUIPMENT AS SET FORTH IN THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM GOAL AREA AND OBJECTIVE: DISCUSSION: Environmental Stewardship & Recreation 5. Employ emerging technologies to preserve and protect our natural resources. Introduction The purpose of this agenda item is to seek City Council approval to the purchase of new brine equipment. History The City began utilizing salt brine as part of snow management program in 2006. The brine is used to pretreat City streets prior to snow events. For lighter snow falls, the brine treatment will keep the streets clear without the need for plowing and for larger snow events the brine treatment prevents the snow from adhering to the roadway surface which facilitates easier removal with the plows. The brine is also used to wet the salt as it exits the plow trucks which activates the chemical reaction and expedites the melting of the snow on the pavement. Included in the approved 2019 Capital Improvement Plan is the replacement of the existing equipment. The existing equipment is starting to fail and it is very labor intensive to operate. Replacement this year is therefore necessary. Current Circumstances As part of staff’s due diligence to research various brine making equipment, visits were conducted at several cities that have newer brine making equipment. This included visits to the cities of Eden Prairie and Bloomington. After these visits staff proceeded to obtain quotes from two different vendor which were Aspen Equipment and Varitech Industries. Varitech is the manufacturer of the City’s current brine system. Their latest product line includes a significant number of advances that the City’s current system does not currently have. This includes being able to set the specific blend that is required and the equipment will automatically pump from the various tanks to create the exact blend automatically. Currently, 2 City staff have to manually pump from the various tanks and test the brine being produced to determine if the appropriate blend is being created. This is a cumbersome and time consuming process. It is also fairly complicated so that only a few staff are currently able to complete this process. The computer interface with the new equipment is intuitive and easy to use. This will allow multiple users to operate the equipment and provide more flexibility from a staff perspective. The City of Eden Prairie has this system and they spoke highly of it. The other manufacturer the City received a quote from was Aspen Equipment. The benefit of this system was that it was lower in price, but it is not nearly as user friendly. It uses stack mixing so depending on the specific blend that is needed for a snow event, the equipment turns valves on and off to switch between tanks and create the requested blend. It then needs to be combined in another tank so that it can be properly mixed together. The equipment is more complicated to operate and only specifically trained staff would be able to operate it. This is the system that both the cities of Bloomington and Orono have and neither of them was completely satisfied with it. Conclusion Staff is recommending the purchase of the Varitech Industries brine equipment. The additional cost will be offset by the quality of the brine mixtures being produced and the ease and flexibility of operations and the ability to have multiple staff operate the equipment. The Council is being asked to authorize the purchase of the new equipment. ISSUES: There are no issues anticpated with this purchase. FINANCIAL IMPACT: The Council approved the 2019 budgets and tax levy as part of the December 3rd, 2018 City Council agenda. This authorization for purchase of this equipment is in accordance with the 2019 budget as presented for the equipment replacement program as approved in the 2019 CIP. The 2019 Equipment Replacement Plan (CIP) and the 2019 revolving Equipment Fund budgeted $99,960.00 for the replacement of this equipment. The quote received from Varitech Industries is $75,690 and the quote from Aspen Equipment is $66,249. The Varitech Industries equipment is therefore $9,441 higher. However, the quality of the brine product produced by the Varitech system coupled with the enhanced user interface which allows multiple staff to operate it is worth the additional cost. In addition, the total cost for the Varitech system is still well within the budget included in the 2019 CIP. ALTERNATIVES: 1. Motion and second to approve a resolution as part of the consent agenda authorizing the purchase of the nine pieces of equipment and appurtenant equipment as detailed in this report. 2. Motion and second to remove this item from the consent agenda for additional discussion. 3 RECOMMENDED MOTION: Alternative #1. 4646 Dakota Street SE Prior Lake, MN 55372 RESOLUTION 19-___ A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE PURCHASE OF BRINE PRODUCTION EQUIPMENT AS SET FORTH IN THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM Motion By: Second By: WHEREAS, Each year the City Council adopts an Equipment Replacement Plan as part of the Capital Improvement Program (CIP); and WHEREAS, The 2019 Equipment Replacement Plan contemplates the replacement of the City’s brine production equipement; and WHEREAS, The 2019 Equipment Plan programmed $99,096 for the replacement of this equipment; and WHEREAS, Quotes were received and are incorporated in the agenda report. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT HEREBY RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF PRIOR LAKE, MINNESOTA as follows: 1. The recitals set forth above are incorporated herein. 2. Staff is authorized to purchase new brine production equipment from Varitech Industries. 3. Funds will be drawn from the Revolving Equipment Fund (410-43100.00-55570.00) Passed and adopted by the Prior Lake City Council this 15th day of April, 2019 VOTE Briggs Thompson Burkart Braid Erickson Aye ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ______________________________ Michael Plante, City Manager