SR 10-09-2018 3C
City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: October 9, 2018
Agenda Item: 3.C
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Susan Cline, Director, Public Works, Water Resources
Subject: Award Purchase Orders for Water Treatment Antiscalants and Cleaner
Chemicals
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Award RFP #180 to Avista Technologies, a California-based company, as
primary vendor; and King Lee Technologies, a California-based company, as
secondary vendor, for the provision of water treatment antiscalants and cleaner
chemicals for reverse osmosis membranes as required by the Public Works
Department;
2. Authorize the Purchasing Services Manager to issue a purchase order with
Avista Technologies for the provision of water treatment antiscalants and cleaner
chemicals in the amount not to exceed $80,000 for one year, with four renewal
options to extend on the same terms and conditions for year 2 and up to 3%
annual increases for years 3 to 5 based on the Chemical Provider Price Index,
for a total amount not to exceed $475,000 over a five-year period, with future
year funding contingent on Council budget approval.
3. Authorize the Purchasing Services Manager to issue a purchase order with King
Lee Technologies for the provision of water treatment antiscalants and cleaner
chemicals in the amount not to exceed $20,000 for one year, with four renewal
options to extend on the same terms and conditions, for a total amount not to
exceed $100,000 over a five-year period, with future year funding contingent on
Council budget approval.
Summary
To ensure a safe, reliable water supply for residents, the City uses antiscalant and
cleaner chemicals in conjunction with water treatment reverse osmosis membranes to
treat water at the Arcadia Water Treatment Plant. Staff recommends that the City award
purchase orders to provide antiscalants and cleaner chemicals through October 2023
with Avista Technologies, as primary vendor, in an amount not to exceed $475,000; and
King Lee Technologies, as secondary vendor, in an amount not to exceed $100,000.
King Lee Technologies would be used if Avista Technologies could not meet City orders
or operational requirements on a timely basis.
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Discussion
The City uses reverse osmosis membranes at the Arcadia Water Treatment Plant as
part of a multi-stage process to treat groundwater sourced from the Santa Monica Basin
to supply drinking water for approximately 18,000 Santa Monica residential, commercial
and institutional service accounts. Reverse osmosis membranes filter out minerals,
organic materials and salts, and require antiscalants and cleaner chemicals to prevent
fouling from mineral scale, biological debris, and other buildup. Without antiscalants and
cleaners, water-processing efficiency would decrease due to clogged membranes, and
the expected five-year membrane lifespan would be shortened dramatically and require
costly replacements. Due to proper maintenance and regular application of antiscalants
and cleaners, the City was able to get seven years of use out of its inventory of 1,608
Toray membranes, recently replaced in November 2017 at a cost of $800,000.
In support of the City’s water self-sufficiency goal, it is anticipated that Arcadia Water
Plant modifications would expand treatment capacity from approximately 9,900 acre -
feet per year to 13,400 acre-feet per year and improve water processing efficiency
(percentage of finished drinking water produced from raw groundwater) from 82% to
92%. If approved, the modifications to the Arcadia Water Plant would add a closed
circuit reverse osmosis system, which would require an increase in the use of
antiscalant and cleaner chemicals by approximately 30%. This has been included in the
purchase order award amount for years 4 and 5 for Avista Technologies.
Vendor Selection
The antiscalant and cleaner chemical industry has evolved since the City established its
2011 list of seven pre-approved combinations of antiscalant dosages/pHs for the
Arcadia Water Plant. Therefore, the City asked vendors to recommend updated
specifications and demonstrate their compatibility with the City’s water supply as part of
the bidding process. The City issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) inviting vendors to
submit new antiscalant dosage/pH combinations along with compatible cleaner
chemical(s)/dosage recommendations. Vendors were required to take water samples
from the Arcadia Water Plant and provide laboratory analyses demonstrating the
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efficacy and compatibility of their products with the City’s reverse osmosis treatment
system and current water quality characteristics. To evaluate pricing, vendors were
asked to provide costs per million gallons of finished water produced for:
1) Antiscalants;
2) Acid to adjust the water pH to an optimal treatment level; and
3) Cleaner chemicals.
RFP Data
RFP Posting
Date
RFP Posted
On
RFP Advertised In
(City Charter &
Municipal Code)
# of
Vendors
Downloaded
# of
Submittals
Received
Date
Publicly
Opened
7/12/2018 City's Online
Bidding Site
Santa Monica
Daily Press 26 4 7/31/2018
Proposals Received
American Water Chemicals, Inc. Avista Technologies
King Lee Technologies BASF Corporation
Justification for Best Bidder
Responses to the RFP were reviewed by a selection panel of staff from the Public Works
Department. Avista Technologies’ Vitec 1400 antiscalant and ROClean L403 and P112
cleaners were deemed as the best product combination based on laboratory testing of
Arcadia Water Plant water samples, dosage recommendations, cleaning frequency
requirements, and overall cost. Staff checked references with other local water agencies
including West Basin Municipal Water District, the City of Oceanside, and Eastern
Municipal Water District and found that Avista’s antiscalant products were effective on
reverse osmosis membranes processing groundwater with similar chemistry to Santa
Monica and reduced the need for cleaning chemicals. Cleaning chemicals provided by
Avista were found to be effective at reasonable cost. Avista also previously assisted the
City during the Arcadia Water Plant startup in 2011 to successfully resolve a reverse
osmosis membrane silica scaling issue. Based on these criteria and the criteria in SMMC
2.24.072, Avista Technologies is recommended as the primary provider of water
treatment antiscalants and cleaner chemicals.
To ensure continuity of water treatment operations, King Lee Technologies is
recommended as a secondary provider of antiscalants and cleaner chemicals. King Lee
Technologies has supplied the City with antiscalants and cleaners over the past six
years and reduced their proposal pricing by 40% for antiscalants and 10%-15% for
cleaners from current levels. While the Pretreat Plus Y2K antiscalant has been
reasonably effective and is priced below Avista’s Vitec 1400 product, the frequency of
membrane cleanings required has led to higher than expected chemical costs and
additional labor for water plant staff. Staff would only order from King Lee Technologies if
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primary vendor Avista could not provide products on a timely basis or if operational
issues occurred during use of Avista products on a full-scale basis.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
Staff seeks authority to award purchase orders with Avista Technologies, as primary
vendor, and King Lee Technologies, as secondary vendor, for the provision of water
treatment antiscalants and cleaners for reverse osmosis membranes through October
2023. An additional $60,000 for Avista Technologies has been allocated to
accommodate potential reverse osmosis system upgrades at the Arcadia Water Plant in
2022.
Purchase Order Request
Request Amount
FY 2018-19 Budget
Public Works Department Account #
Total Purchase
Order Amount
Avista Technologies
$80,000 50500003-525081 $475,000
King Lee Technologies
$20,000 50500003-525081 $100,000
Future year funding is contingent on Council budget approval.
Prepared By: Kevin Nagata, Senior Administrative Analyst
Approved
Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. Avista Technologies Oaks Initiative Disclosure Form
B. King Lee Technologies Oaks Initiative Disclosure Form
Please attach additional pages if more space is required.
CITY OF SANTA MONICA
OAKS INITIATIVE DISCLOSURE FORM
In order to facilitate compliance with the requirements of the Oaks Initiative, the City compiles
and maintains certain information. That information includes the name of any person or persons
who is seeking a “public benefit.” If the “public benefit” is sought by an entity, rather than an
individual person, the information includes the name of every person who is: (a) trustee, (b)
director, (c) partner, (d) officer, or has (e) more than a ten percent interest in the entity.
Public benefits include:
1.Personal services contracts in excess of $25,000 over any 12-month period;
2.Sale of material, equipment or supplies to the City in excess of $25,000 over a 12-month
period;
3.Purchase, sale or lease of real property to or from the City in excess of $25,000 over a 12-
month period;
4.Non-competitive franchise awards with gross revenue of $50,000 or more in any 12-month
period;
5.Land use variance, special use permit, or other exception to an established land use plan,
where the decision has a value in excess of $25,000;
6.Tax “abatement, exception, or benefit” of a value in excess of $5,000 in any 12-month
period; or
7.Payment of “cash or specie” of a net value to the recipient of $10,000 in any 12-month
period.
Name(s) of persons or entities receiving public benefit:
Name(s) of trustees, directors, partners, and officers:
Name(s) of persons with more than a 10% equity, participation, or revenue interest:
Prepared by: ____________________________Title: __________________________
Signature: ______________________________________ Date: ________________
Email: ____________________________________ Phone: ____________________