Title
Resolution to Appropriate Funds and Reimburse FCR, Inc. for the Purchase of a Replacement Fire Protection System at the City-owned Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) $117,779.00 (8 Votes Required)
Memorandum
The attached resolution appropriates funds and reimburses FCR, Inc. (the City’s contracted MRF operator) for the cost of replacing the material recovery facility’s fire protection system in the 40,000 square foot warehouse area. The cost of the replacement system is $117,779.00 which includes a 20% contingency of $19,630.00. The contingency is greater than the usual 10% requested, due to the higher level of uncertainty associated with the work that will be required. That level of uncertainty has already resulted in difficulties as the City attempted to solicit bids. The City made signficant effort over a period of about 6 weeks in order to locate three vendors willing to bid the project.
The current fire protection system was installed when the building was first constructed in 1995, and included Schedule 10 thin wall black pipe for the mains and branch pipes in the facility, the least expensive and least durable piping allowable at the time. Because the warehouse area is not heated, the sprinkler lines are “dry”, meaning that they are charged with air instead of water. When the system is activated, air evacuates from the dry system (sprinkler head detects fire, break in line, etc.) and the pressure balancing or “dry valve” in the riser room opens causing the sprinkler line to be flooded with water.
Each time the system floods, it needs to be cleared after the event. It is not possible to remove all of the water that fills the pipes (sediment in pipe holds water, condensation builds up). As the system ages the residual water forms rust on the inside of the pipes. The rust continues to erode the walls of the pipe and the system degrades. Over the past 13 years, the system has “dumped” several times due to fire/smoke (“hot” waste loads, equipm...
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