SR-12-08-2015-3C
City Council
Report
City Council Regular Meeting: December 8, 2015
Agenda Item: 3.C
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Dennis Downs, Interim Fire Chief, Fire Department
Subject: Award Bid for Rescue Ambulance Refurbishment
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Award Bid #4226 to Emergency Vehicle Group (EVG) Inc., a California based
company, for the refurbishment of up to four Rescue Ambulances;
2. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute a contractual service agreement
with Emergency Vehicle Group (EVG) Inc, in an amount not to exceed $353,283 for one
year, with two additional one-year renewal options in the amount of $353,283 on the
same terms and conditions for a total amount not to exceed $706,566 over a three-year
period, with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval.
Executive Summary
The refurbished Rescue Ambulances (RA) would be used by Fire Department
personnel to fully implement the RA pilot program that began November 1, 2015.
Following a formal bid process, Emergency Vehicle Group (EVG) Inc. is recommended
as the best bidder to provide RA refurbishment. The total annual expenditure is
$353,283 for the first year and a three-year total not to exceed $706,566 subject to
future Council funding.
Background
On January 27, 2015 Council approved adding 6.0 FTE firefighters to allow for the full-
time staffing of one RA staffed with 2 paramedics, 24-hours a day, 7-days a week. The
additional resource is anticipated to enhance the current delivery system and
deployment model.
By adding an RA to the Department’s response capability, the pilot program allows this
resource to be dispatched so that lower acquity calls can be handled by a two-member
RA versus the four-member Fire Engine. During the current pilot program the RA and
Engine 2 respond code-3 (lights and sirens) to all calls within Engine 2’s response
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district (roughly South of Olympic and West of 14th). In the event that an assessment
indicates a need for only basic life support (BLS), Engine 2 would be placed back in
service, leaving patient care to the rescue ambulance. In like manner, if the rescue
ambulance arrives on scene first and determines that an engine company is not
needed, they can elect to cancel the engine company’s response. Given its ability to
maneuver through congested areas, the rescue ambulance is also added to all calls on
the Pier. While each unit is similarly staffed with two paramedics, the pilot program’s
goal is to leave the engine in service a greater percentage of time making it available to
respond on advanced life support (ALS) calls, when it may necessary to have additional
personnel available to care for a more critical patient.
Program goals include sending the “right response resource to the right call at the right
time,” thereby reducing response times, improving response reliability, and decreasing
unit utilization (how many calls per day a unit is assigned to an incident). The
Department is assessing the pilot program service delivery at 30 day intervals.
Performance indicators being measured include response time, patient intervention
time, number of times the RA cancels the engine, and the number of times the RA
responds in and out of their immediate service district. Evaluation of these performance
indicators will determine future modifications to the deployment model, which may
include adding an additional RA in winter 2016.
Due to staffing shortages within the Fire Department, the six recruit academy graduates
that completed their training in April were used to fill existing vacancies as opposed to
being able to utilize them to staff the RA. Four recruits recently graduated the training
academy thereby allowing the implementation of the RA pilot program, which began
November 1, 2015.
Discussion
The Fire Department currently has four RAs within its fleet. Of these four, only one can
be used to transport patients effectively due to the other three being at or nearly at
gross vehicle weight (GVW) capacity. In order to ensure a viable pilot program, the
Department will need to have one front-line (primary) rescue ambulance as well as one
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serviceable rescue ambulance for use as a reserve unit during times when the front -line
unit is unavailable (e.g. preventive maintenance, repair, etc.). To effectively implement
the six month pilot program, staff recommends refurbishing two ambulances at a current
estimated cost of approximately $180,000 each. Additionally, depending on the
outcome of the pilot program, the Department may be in a position to implement a
second rescue ambulance in the fall of 2016. If this occurs, the Department will need to
refurbish one or two additional rescue ambulances in its existing fleet in late 2016 or
early 2017.
Vendor Selection
In October 2015, the City published a Notice Inviting Bids to refurbish existing RAs as
required by the Fire Department in accordance with City specifications. The bid was
posted on the City’s on-line bidding site, and notices were advertised in the Santa
Monica Daily Press in accordance with City Charter and Municipal Code provisions. A
total of 844 vendors were notified, of which 18 prospective vendors downloaded the bid.
Two bids were received and publicly opened on November 10, 2015. In addition to
price, bids were evaluated based on ability to meet specifications, ability to deliver, and
compliance with bid specifications. EVG was able to provide a bid which included all
specified goods and was the lowest bidder. Based on these criteria, EVG is
recommended as the best bidder to provide RA refurbishment in accordance with the
City specification and scope of work.
Financial Impacts & Budget Actions
The contract to be awarded to EVG is for an amount not to exceed $706,566. Funds
are available in the FY 2015-16 Capital Improvement Program budget in
C010170.589000. Future year funding is contingent on Council budget approval.
Prepared By: Terese Toomey, Principal Administrative Analyst
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Approved
Forwarded to Council
Reference:
Agreement No. 10229
(CCS)