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TO: Mayor Richard C. Irvin
FROM: David E. Schumacher, P.E., Superintendent of Water Production
DATE: August 26, 2021
SUBJECT:
A Resolution Authorizing a Professional Services Agreement with Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc., for bidding and construction observation services for the Normal Pressure System Master Meter Replacement Project in the not-to-exceed amount of $62,000 for the Water Production Division.
PURPOSE:
To obtain City Council approval to execute a professional engineering services agreement with Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc. (CMT), Aurora, IL, for bidding and construction observation services for the Normal Pressure System Master Meter Replacement Project for the Water Production Division.
BACKGROUND:
All residents of the City of Aurora are provided with potable water from the city owned and operated Water Treatment Plant (WTP). The WTP was originally constructed in 1991 and began operation in 1992. The water treated at the facility is then pumped to two distinct and separate pressure zones, the normal and high pressure zones, which cover the entire City of Aurora.
All of the water that is pumped out to the Normal Pressure System (NPS) flows through one individual "master" flow meter which registers the amount of flow pumped to the pressure zone. This information is then used for multiple purposes such as reporting to regulatory authorities, monitoring quantities of water loss, and ensuring proper operation of the WTP's finished water pumps.
The NPS flow meter has been in constant operation since 1992, and over the past five years it has shown decreased measurement accuracy and precision. Accordingly, the WPD has hired several experts from the flow meter manufacturing company to inspect the meter and perform various types of repairs. Unfortunately, the electrical windings in the NPS master flow meter are no longer salvageable and the accuracy and precision of the meter is severely hampered. A temporary meter has been in use for several years. After 29 years of constant operation, the WPD believes that the NPS master meter is past its useful life and is in need of replacement.
DISCUSSION:
The current NPS master meter location does not allow for removal of the existing meter without significant modification to the existing cast-in-place concrete floor of the existing WTP pump station. Also, the current location of the meter with respect to the discharge header piping is not ideal for collecting accurate and consistent readings from any type of flow meter. As such, it has been determined that locating two replacement meters in underground vaults in the yard of the WTP, one each for the westside and eastside transmission mains, is preferred for a number of reasons.
1. This will provide the best locations to collect the most accurate and precise readings.
2. This will allow potential isolation of the east and west sides of the water distribution system to allow potential water loss investigations via district metered areas to occur.
3. This provides better operational management of the WTP during the actual construction installation of the meters.
The engineering design work only for this project was completed separately in 2019 by CMT under a separate purchase order. The bidding and construction of the project was postponed in 2020 due to the global COVID pandemic. The Contract Documents are prepared for potential public advertising in Fall 2021.
Funding for the professional engineering services and the construction of this project has been requested and provided in the 2021 City Budget via a carryover for CIP #I045. Funding is available in the 2021 budget account No. 510-4058-511-32-23.
IMPACT STATEMENT:
Without the replacement of the NPS master meter, the information obtained from the temporary meter and reported to regulating authorities regarding the final water flow pumped from the WTP into the NPS will remain unreliable.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That a resolution authorizing the execution of a Professional Services Agreement with Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $62,000.00 be approved by the Mayor and City Council. It is further recommended that this matter be submitted to the Finance Committee for review and recommendation.
cc: Finance Committee
CITY OF AURORA, ILLINOIS
RESOLUTION NO. _________
DATE OF PASSAGE ________________
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A Resolution Authorizing a Professional Services Agreement with Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc., for bidding and construction observation services for the Normal Pressure System Master Meter Replacement Project in the not-to-exceed amount of $62,000 for the Water Production Division
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WHEREAS, the City of Aurora has a population of more than 25,000 persons and is, therefore, a home rule unit under subsection (a) of Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution of 1970; and
WHEREAS, subject to said Section, a home rule unit may exercise any power and perform any function pertaining to its government and affairs for the protection of the public health, safety, morals, and welfare; and
WHEREAS, the Aurora Water Treatment Plant has been in continuous operation for 29 years since 1992; and
WHEREAS, all water pumped from the facility into the Normal Pressure System is metered by a single flow meter which is also 29 years old and is in disrepair and of compromised function; and
WHEREAS, replacement of the existing flow meter along with relocation of new meters is required for proper, accurate, and precise flow meter functioning into the future; and
WHEREAS, a proposal has been received from Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc., to provide necessary professional engineering services for bidding and construction observation for the project; and
WHEREAS, budgetary authority is granted per CIP# I045 and funds are available in the 2021 City Budget account No. 510-4058-511-32-23.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Aurora, Illinois, as follows: The Purchasing Director is hereby authorized to execute a professional engineering services agreement with Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc., for necessary bidding and construction observation services, on a time-and-material basis, for an amount not-to-exceed $62,000.00 for the Normal Pressure System Master Meter Replacement Project for the Water Production Division.