Title
Resolution to Approve an Agreement with American Conservation & Billing Solutions, Inc. for a Customer Portal and Consumption Data Analytics Solution (est. $260,000.00 over 5 years) and Appropriation of Funds from the Water Supply System ($34,000.00) and Sewage Disposal System ($34,000.00) (8 Votes Required)
Memorandum
This resolution requests approval of a professional services agreement with American Conservation & Billing Solutions, Inc. (AmCoBi) for 5 years, for the purchase of software, support, and maintenance of the AquaHawk product through a SaaS subscription model. The total amount contract is estimated at $260,000.00, which includes annual maintenance fees as well as pay-per-contact charges for e-mail, text and phone messages.
Currently, the City issues over $90,000.00 in credits per year due to apparent leaks and incurs additional customer dissatisfaction due to unexpected high water bills, which is unquantifiable. As a result, the City issued RFP #18-32 to solicit customer engagement and data analytic solutions that could take full advantage of the City’s Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) system. The solutions were required to provide customers self-service access to their water consumption data, allow them to set customer specific thresholds for alerts, provide projected bill estimates, and provide consumption analysis and leak detection on all meters for the City to review.
Through the course of the RFP review and due diligence, 4 of the 7 respondents were eliminated by the evaluation committee. The three finalists conducted separate demonstrations at City Hall that addressed functionality, training, support, and implementation.
A pricing comparison of the three finalists is below:
|
|
Implementation Costs |
Annual Cost* |
|
Aquahawk |
$32,700.00 |
$35,304.00 |
|
WaterSmart |
$17,500.00 |
$42,000.00 |
|
Aclara |
$62,000.00 |
$38,000.00 |
Based on the comprehensive evaluation of the proposed solutions, the City determined that AquaHawk had the most complete alerting capability allowing customers to set defined thresholds for actual and projected consumption as well as the most accurate bill estimates giving customers the data they need to make informed decisions about their water consumption. Therefore, the City recommends awarding AmCoBi with a Professional Services Agreement to purchase and implement the AquaHawk solution.
Budget/Fiscal Impact: The estimated cost of the service is $68,004.00, for the first year with ongoing support fees starting at $35,304.00 per year after that. The total contract price includes price escalation for the annual fee after the 3rd year as well as an allowance for pay-per-contact communications such as e-mail, text and phone messages. The implementation of this solution was not budgeted in FY19’s Operating and Maintenance Budget of the Water Supply System nor the Sewage Disposal System. Therefore, staff is requesting appropriations to implement this solution for the City’s customers.
The ongoing maintenance of this service will be paid 50% from the Water Supply System and 50% from the Sewage Disposal System, if so approved by Council for the duration of the five-year agreement.
Staff
Prepared by: Julius Alexander, Applications Specialist Sr, ITSU
Reviewed by: Craig Hupy, Public Services Area Administrator
Tom Shewchuck, Director ITSU
Approved by: Howard S. Lazarus, City Administrator
Body
Whereas, The City issues over $90,000.00 in credits due to apparent customer leaks per year and customer dissatisfaction due to unexpected high water bills is unquantifiable;
Whereas, Technology exists that would allow the City to address these issues while saving costs and increasing customer satisfaction;
Whereas, The City issued RFP #18-32 “Water Utilities Consumption Data Analytics Software,” and through careful consideration selected American Conservation & Billing Solutions, Inc.’s (AmCoBi) AquaHawk solution to meet this need; and
Whereas, AmCoBi complies with the requirements of the City’s conflict of interest and Non-Discrimination Ordinances;
RESOLVED, That City Council approve the Professional Services Agreement with American Conservation & Billing Solutions, Inc. (AmCoBi) for the customer portal and consumption data analytics solution AquaHawk for an amount not-to-exceed $260,000.00 over five years;
RESOLVED, That City Council amend the fiscal year 2019 expenditure budget for the Water Supply System fund and the Sewage Disposal System fund by $34,000.00 each to appropriate a total of $68,000.00 for implementation of this project with funding to come from the use of $34,000.00 from each systems fund balance;
RESOLVED, That future funding needs for the duration of the five-year agreement be split equally among the Water Supply System and the Sewage Disposal System; and
RESOLVED, That the City Administrator be authorized to take the necessary actions to implement this resolution.