SR 01-23-2024 5C
City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: January 23, 2024
Agenda Item: 5.C
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Anuj Gupta, Director of Transportation, Department of Transportation, Transit
Maintenance
Subject: Award Bid to Air & Lube Systems, Inc. for Replacement of Bus Vacuum
System at SMDOT
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding of Categorical Exemption (Class 1 Existing Facilities) pursuant to
Section 15301 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines;
2. Award Bid #4463 to Air & Lube Systems, Inc. for the replacement of the bus
vacuum system at the Department of Transportation’s Fuel & Wash facility; and
3. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute an agreement with Air &
Lube Systems, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $695,321, including a $63,211
contingency, over a two-year period, with future year funding contingent on
Council budget approval.
Executive Summary
Big Blue Bus, a division of the Santa Monica Department of Transportation (DOT),
operates 194 transit buses across 69 square miles of greater Los Angeles providing
over 800,000 rides each month. The buses’ heavy use often results in a large amount of
dirt, debris, and trash on bus flooring requiring regular cleaning by DOT staff. DOT staff
perform daily cleaning of transit buses including vacuuming and mopping the bus
flooring. The bus vacuum system at DOT’s Fuel and Wash facility is a critical piece of
equipment to ensure that buses can be cleaned in a timely manner with minimal
physical stress on DOT staff. The existing bus vacuum system has reached the end of
its useful life and is currently operating at half-capacity, requiring DOT staff to sweep
half of the buses serviced each day. Staff recommends that Bid #4463 be awarded to
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Air & Lube Systems, Inc. for the replacement of the bus vacuum systems at DOT’s Fuel
and Wash facility in an amount not to exceed $695,321, which includes a 10%
contingency.
Discussion
DOT is committed to providing a safe and pleasant environment for passengers and
staff, and its maintenance standards are an important part of its customer experience.
On average, 130 transit buses are cleaned by DOT staff each weeknight to prepare
buses for daily service. DOT staff provide daily cleaning of bus interiors and floors to
maintain transit buses adhering to DOT’s standards for cleanliness. DOT staff uses a
vacuum system to assist them in cleaning transit bus interiors. The vacuum system
ensures that floors are clear of debris for mopping and reduces strain on Motor Coach
Cleaners as they clean bus floors. Without this system, DOT staff would need to sweep
bus interiors, resulting in increased strain on their wrists, shoulders, and back, and
increasing the risk of injury.
The existing bus vacuum system at DOT’s Fuel and Wash facility was installed in 2012
and has reached the end of its useful life. The system is a commercial grade, heavy-
duty vacuum system that includes two (2) 40-horsepower electric motors, two (2) heavy-
duty vacuum producer units, two (2) hose reels operated by electric motors, an
electronic control system, ducting to serve vacuum nozzles in our two bus lanes, and
various large filter and debris separation units. The system requires two large pumps to
provide sufficient capacity for the two bus lanes in DOT’s Fuel and Wash facility,
allowing for two buses to be vacuumed and cleaned simultaneously. Currently, one
pump has failed in the existing bus vacuum system which is requiring DOT staff to
sweep half of the buses serviced each day. Additionally, other components of the bus
vacuum system are at risk of failure including the vacuum control system and vacuum
tube reel. Staff recommends that bid #4463 be awarded to Air & Lube Systems, Inc. for
the replacement of DOT’s bus vacuum system.
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Vendor/Consultant Selection
Best and Only Bidder Air & Lube Systems, Inc.
Submittals Received Selection Criteria
Air & Lube
Systems, Inc. $ 695,321 Municipal Code SMMC 2.24.180
Evaluation Criteria Price, quality of services offered, ability to perform
all services, and bidder experience.
Bid Data
Date Posted Posted On
Advertised in
(City Charter & SMMC)
Vendors
Downloaded
Date Publicly
Opened
10/16/2023
City’s Online Bidding
Site Santa Monica Daily Press 12 11/2/2023
Additional Vendor Outreach and Justification to Award
A mandatory job walk was held on October 23, 2023. Three prospective bidders
attended. The City received two "No Bid" responses from GHD and Unipak Corp stating
that they do not offer the services sought. Air & Lube Systems has experience installing
vacuum systems for the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA
Metro), Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit, and Monterey-Salinas Transit Authority. Staff
reached out to peer agencies that have used a different vendor to replace or install bus
vacuum systems to compare pricing and found the pricing provided by Air & Lube
Systems to be reasonable. Based on the evaluation criteria Air & Lube Systems, Inc. is
recommended as best bidder. Additional outreach was conducted to the prospective
bidders who attended the job walk for this bid. The bidders stated that they did not feel
they would be able to provide a cost-competitive submittal.
Environmental Review
The project is categorically exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15301 of the CEQA
Guidelines. Section 15301 exempts Class 1 (Existing Facilities) projects from CEQA,
which include the operation, repair, maintenance, permitting, leasing, licensing, or minor
alteration of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or
topographical features, involving negligible or no expansion of existing or former use.
The awarded contract would address the maintenance responsibilities of existing transit
buses, and therefore, it has been determined that the project is categorically exempt
pursuant to Section 15301 of the CEQA Guidelines. Furthermore, none of the
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exceptions to Categorical Exemptions set forth in Section 15300.2 of the CEQA
Guidelines apply that would preclude use of this exemption.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
Staff seeks authority to approve available funding from the Big Blue Bus Fund to award
a contract with Air & Lube Systems, Inc. for replacement of the bus vacuum system at
the DOT’s Fuel and Wash Facility. Future year funding is contingent on Council budget
approval.
Contract Request
FY 2024-25 Budget CIP Account # Total Contract Amount
Amount
$695,321 C6004820.689000 $695,321
Prepared By: David Nanjo, Administrative Analyst
Approved
Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. Air and Lube Systems Oaks - Signed
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5.C.a
Packet Pg. 148 Attachment: Air and Lube Systems Oaks - Signed [Revision 1] (6120 : Replacement of Bus Vacuum System at