Title
Approving a procurement contract with SOAP Engineering in the amount of $226,388 associated with the Programmable Logic Controller Replacement Project, and authorizing the City Manager to execute the same.
Summary
As part of the fiscal year 2025 budget, the City allocated funding to replace aging Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) systems that are utilized to control a variety of water and wastewater facilities across the City. Every water and wastewater facility across the City of Pflugerville has a PLC cabinet that opens valves, turns pumps on, notifies staff of intrusions, etc. while also allowing for the systems to run autonomously with little intervention from operations and maintenance staff. As all of these facilities came online at different times, the PLC systems that allow for the proper operation of the water and wastewater system have a variety of different programming software and have different obsolescence dates. Some of the current facilities have PLC systems that are unable to be upgraded any further given the age of the equipment which could soon pose a security risk for the site they control as they can no longer be updated to current standards to protect against any potential threats to the software that is used to program the PLC's.
In order to address these aging critical components to the City's water and wastewater system, the City publicly bid out the replacement of 13 remote sites across the City that have outdated PLC systems and are permanent facilities that will continue to stay in service after a variety of capital projects are completed. This project garnered significant interest even with the work being very specialized work to complete the installation of these PLC components and confirm the automation of the sites they are installed within. This project was bid out as a "Best Value" bid and not a "Lowest Price" bid given the specialty nature of the work and the need to evaluate the bidders' qualifications to complete the work. The City received 5 total bids for this project:
SOAP Engineering: $226,388
Prime Controls: $575,690
Inflexion: $543,300
CPUSA: $298,780
Alterman: $326,786
All bidders were well qualified and have significant experience within this field and working with municipal clients for this type of work within water and wastewater systems. After reviewing the proposals, the City selected SOAP Engineering given both their cost proposal to complete the work and their qualifications within a similar work environment and it was determined they provided the best value to the City for this project. This project is allocated within the Utility Fund in the Utility Services budget as it affects both the water and wastewater systems. While the cost proposal did come in higher than budgeted, staff have identified savings within this line item that will still allow the budget line overall to be within budget for fiscal year 2025. This project meets the City's Strategic Goal of Infrastructure by maintaining a resilient and robust infrastructure that ensures that water and wastewater services can continue uninterrupted and without risk to the security of the overall system that controls the facilities across the City.
Prior City Council Action
N/A
Deadline for City Council Action
Action is requested on May 13, 2025
Funding Expected: Revenue Expenditure X N/A ____
Budgeted Item: Yes X No N/A ____
Budget Source: Utility Operating Fund - Utility Services
Amount: $226,388
1295 Form Required? Yes X No ____
Legal Review Required: N/A X Required Date Completed:
Supporting documents attached:
Bid Tabulation - PLC Replacement
SOAP Engineering Proposal
Recommended Action
City staff recommends approving a procurement contract with SOAP Engineering in the amount of $226,388 associated with the Programmable Logic Controller Replacement Project, and authorizing the City Manager to execute the same.