CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM
ACTION REQUESTED:
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Approve the award of Cooperative Procurement 26-117, Electric Meters and Gatekeepers, to Wesco Distribution for an amount not to exceed $360,760
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DEPARTMENT: Electric Utility
SUBMITTED BY: Brian Groth, Director
BOARD/COMMISSION REVIEW:
N/A
BACKGROUND:
The Electric Utility (“Utility”) has deployed smart meters to all customers since 2011, with approximately 64,000 meters currently in service across its system. These meters are installed at both residential and commercial properties to record electric consumption for utility billing purposes.
Beyond billing, the smart meters provide valuable data that supports several customer and operational programs. Through the Empower customer portal, residents can access detailed usage information to better manage their energy consumption. The meters also supply data and outage notifications used by the Utility’s Outage Management System (OMS), enabling faster and more efficient outage response. Additionally, the meters deliver near real-time information that supports the Utility’s Conservation Voltage Reduction (CVR) program, which optimizes substation voltage levels to reduce system-wide energy use.
To accommodate future development projects, additional meters are required to maintain adequate inventory levels. Procuring these meters in advance will ensure that construction and service installations proceed on schedule. Delays in securing meters could hinder project timelines and impact service delivery for new developments.
Gatekeepers are field devices that remotely collect 15-minute voltage data, real-time consumption data, and real time outage notifications from installed meters and transmit this information back to the Utility’s two datacenters for use in various utility processes including billing, conservation voltage reduction and outage detection. Each year, the Utility staff performs an AMI communication evaluation and optimizes the system. These annual evaluations have allowed the Utility to reduce the number of gatekeepers deployed from 125 down to 90.
DISCUSSION:
Utility staff has identified the need to procure 800 Model 12S A4 meters to support upcoming apartment complex developments, along with 40 Gatekeepers to facilitate installation and replacement efforts in 2027. These meters are required to meet construction and service connection demands for projects scheduled for completion. The Gatekeepers are essential to ensure timely deployment, as their 36-week lead time necessitates advance procurement to support work planned for 2027.
Staff has identified an approved cooperative contract, Sourcewell Cooperative Contract 091422WES, through Wesco Distribution, for the procurement of the meters and gatekeepers.
The meters will be delivered by September 8, 2026. This date is approximately 22 weeks from the date of order. The gatekeepers will be delivered by December 15, 2026. This date is approximately 36 weeks from the date of order.
FISCAL IMPACT:
CIP #: EU080
Electric meters and gatekeepers are expensed to the Operating Supplies account listed below. The Electric Utility included $700,000 in the 2026 budget for various warehouse supplies. These meters and gatekeepers are being purchased to ensure sufficient inventory exists. As these are put into the field, the expenses will be realized against EU080 through a quarterly transfer. The award requested is within the amount budgeted for this expense.
|
Account Number |
Fund Description |
Total Budget Amount |
|
40101300-541407 |
Electric Utility Fund |
$700,000 |