Report Prepared by: Jeremy Geiger, Public Works Supervisor - Water Quality Control Division
Title
SUBJECT: Approval of Professional Services Agreement with BSK Analytical for General Laboratory Services in the Total Contract Amount of $377,706 for a Three (3) Year Agreement with Contract Term Ending June 30, 2024
REPORT IN BRIEF
Considers approving a three-year agreement with BSK Analytical for general laboratory services.
RECOMMENDATION
City Council - Adopt a motion approving an agreement for professional services with BSK Analytical for general laboratory services in the total contract amount of $377,706 with contract term ending on June 30, 2024; and authorizing the City Manager or designee to execute the necessary documents.
Body
ALTERNATIVES
1. Approve, as recommend by Staff; or,
2. Approve, subject to other than recommended by Staff; or,
3. Deny; or,
4. Refer to Staff for reconsideration of specific items; or,
5. Continue to a future meeting.
AUTHORITY
Charter of the City of Merced, Article XI, Section 1111 - Competitive bidding, and Merced Municipal Code Charter 3.04 Article III - the purchase of materials, supplies, equipment, and contractual services of an estimated value greater than thirty-three thousand dollars ($33,000), the “contract threshold”, shall be made by the purchasing supervisor by written contract with the lowest responsible bidder.
CITY COUNCIL PRIORITIES
As provided for in the 2021/2022 Budget.
DISCUSSION
Under federal and state law, the City of Merced is required to perform a variety of laboratory tests for water, wastewater, and biosolids. The Wastewater Treatment Facility (WWTF) in-house laboratory is certified to perform some of these standard water and wastewater tests. The majority of the tests performed at the WWTF are for conventional pollutants. These pollutants, such as suspended solids, biochemical oxygen demand, pathogenic (disease-causing) organisms and pH levels, are normally found in domestic, commercial, and industrial wastewaters.
Federal and state regulations also require the City to test for non-conventional pollutants. These pollutants may be toxic in nature, such as heavy metals (lead, copper, zinc) and organics [tetrachloroethylene (PCE), methylene chloride, acetone]. The WWTF laboratory is not equipped for testing non-conventional pollutants. These tests are more complex and require sophisticated equipment and expanded training.
Additionally, the Federal EPA requires the City to monitor drinking water under the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR) every five (5) years. The City will enter into the fifth UCMR (UCMR5), which will require monitoring for 30 chemical contaminants between 2023 and 2025.
On April 22, 2021, the WWTF sent Request for Proposals (RFP) to 19 state certified laboratories. Two qualified laboratories responded to the RFP. The proposals were evaluated on criteria including adherence to RFP instructions, organizational structure, experience with similar municipalities, project understanding, and ability to meet requirements. Below are the proposals scoring out of a total maximum possible score of 5:
|
Laboratory Name |
Score |
|
BSK Laboratories |
3.09 |
|
FGL Environmental Analytical Laboratory |
2.90 |
WWTF staff selected BSK Analytical as best meeting the needs of the City. BSK outscored other proposals in adherence to RFP instructions, organizational structure and project understanding.
IMPACT ON CITY RESOURCES
Funding for general laboratory services is available in Wastewater System-Enterprise - Fund 553 and Water System-Enterprise - Fund 557 within the FY 21/22 budget.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Professional Services Agreement