From
Glenda Peterson
Title
Purchase of 25 Uninterruptable Power Supply Systems (UPS) from Paradigm Traffic Systems, Inc. in the amount of $118,750 using the national interlocal with BuyBoard (including a discount of $12,500)
Presenter
Gabriel Johnson, Public Works Director
Recommended Action
Approve
Analysis
The purchase of the battery backup units will provide an uninterruptable power supply (UPS) to 25 more signalized intersections located on the City's arterial roadway network. During extreme weather events, brownouts and traffic related accidents, power outages interrupt the power supply to the traffic signals. Battery backup units will provide 4 to 6 hours of temporary power to the traffic signal.
Currently there are 90 traffic signals outfitted with the UPS systems. Staff must deploy and additional 25 portable generators to existing traffic signals during weather events, brownouts and traffic related accidents that interrupt power provided to the traffic signal. These 25 units will allow traffic signal personnel to respond to other critical calls during these types of events.
Chapter 271.02 of the Local Government Code authorizes local governments to participate in a cooperative purchasing program with another local government or local cooperative organization. In lieu of competitive bidding, items and services may be purchases through such agreements as the agreements have already been bid by the sponsoring entity or agency. The City of Grand Prairie has master inter-local cooperative agreements with various entities including BuyBoard.
The BuyBoard is able to save money by pooling the impressive purchasing power of their members, which include hundreds of school districts, municipalities, counties, other local governments, and nonprofits across Texas. They use the power of numbers as leverage to get better prices with the same vendors we use now.
The BuyBoard contract (524-17) with Paradigm Traffic Systems, Inc. began April 1, 2017 a...
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