Exhibit 1 - Agenda Information SheetCity of Denton
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AGENDA INFORMATION SHEET
DEPARTMENT: Procurement & Compliance
ACM: David Gaines
DATE: November 10, 2020
SUBJECT
Consider adoption of an ordinance of the City of Denton, a Texas home-rule municipal corporation,
authorizing the City Manager to execute a contract with Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Inc., for the
purchase of SEL protective relays, controls, monitoring, metering, software, integration, accessories, and
devices for Denton Municipal Electric, which is the sole provider of these commodities and services, in
accordance with Texas Local Government Code 252.022, which provides that procurement of commodities
and services that are available from one source are exempt from competitive bidding, and if over $50,000
shall be awarded by the governing body; and providing an effective date (File 7429 – awarded to Schweitzer
Engineering Laboratories, Inc., in the five (5) year not-to-exceed amount of $1,864,638).
INFORMATION/BACKGROUND
Denton Municipal Electric (DME) has substation projects approved in its five (5) year Capital Improvement
Plan that will require the purchase of protective relay, control, monitoring, metering, and integration
hardware and accessories. These types of devices are all necessary to make substations functional. The
majority of these devices are microprocessor-based and highly technical in their design and application.
They are used to operate and protect substation components, such as circuit breakers, busses, and
transformers; to protect transmission lines in the event of faults, overloads, overvoltage, and other abnormal
conditions; to provide metering; and to interconnect devices for communication, access, interaction and
retrieval of information.
Before designs can be prepared for substation relay and control systems, specific protective metering,
control, monitoring, and integration equipment must be selected. DME has chosen Schweitzer Engineering
Laboratories, Inc. (SEL) as its standard for these types of hardware. There are several reasons for this: SEL
has a larger line of devices than any other manufacturer and they offer the greatest selection of features and
the best capability for integration. Integration is the term used to refer to the ability for devices to
communicate with each other and with other systems such as the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition
(SCADA) system. The warranty period for SEL devices is ten years, and their customer support is superior.
No other manufacturer offers the on-call application assistance and technical support that SEL offers. DME
currently has over 1,300 SEL devices in service in existing substations, which the majority are protective
relays.
SEL handles marketing directly on a nation-wide basis through manufacturer’s representatives. There is no
network of dealers for this highly technical product. Each area of the country is handled by only one
representative. Because of this, there is no mechanism for competitive bidding. Therefore, staff is
recommending Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Inc. as the sole source provider of this product.
City Hall
215 E. McKinney Street
Denton, Texas
www.cityofdenton.com
Section 252.022 of the Local Government Code provides that procurement of sole source commodities and
services are exempt from competitive bidding, if over $50,000, shall be awarded by the governing body.
PRIOR ACTION/REVIEW (COUNCIL, BOARDS, COMMISSIONS)
On November 9, 2020, this item will be presented to the Public Utilities Board (PUB) for consideration.
RECOMMENDATION
Award with a contract to Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Inc. (SEL), as a sole source supplier, for
the purchase of SEL protective relays, controls, monitoring, metering, software, integration, accessories,
and devices for Denton Municipal Electric, in a five (5) year not-to-exceed amount of $1,864,638.
PRINCIPAL PLACE OF BUSINESS
Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Inc.
Pullman, WA
ESTIMATED SCHEDULE OF PROJECT
This is a five (5) year contract.
FISCAL INFORMATION
The costs for material purchased under the proposed agreement will be funded out of amounts budgeted for
specific projects. The work proposed will be in the transmission category. These costs for transmission
projects will ultimately be recovered through the Public Utility Commission Transmission Cost of Service
Program (TCOS).
EXHIBITS
Exhibit 1: Agenda Information Sheet
Exhibit 2: Ordinance and Contract
Respectfully submitted:
Lori Hewell, 940-349-7100
Purchasing Manager
For information concerning this acquisition, contact: Donna Anderson, 940-349-7129.
Legal point of contact: Mack Reinwand at 940-349-8333.