TRANSMITTAL LETTER FOR BOARD MEETING OF AUGUST 14, 2025
COMMITTEE ON PROCUREMENT
Mr. John P. Murray, Acting Executive Director
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Issue purchase order and enter into an agreement for Contract 25-RFP-07 Professional Services to Furnish, Deliver, and Deploy a Technology Platform Using Real-Time Advanced Analytics for Aeration Optimization at the Terrence J. O’Brien Water Reclamation Plant, with DHI Water & Environment, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $160,000.00, Account 101-67000-612650, Requisition 1622683
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Dear Sir:
Authorization is requested to issue a purchase order and enter into an agreement with DHI Water & Environment, Inc. to furnish, deliver, and deploy a technology platform using real-time advanced analytics for aeration optimization at the O’Brien Water Reclamation Plant.
The purpose of this contract is to optimize aeration at the O’Brien Water Reclamation Plant. This contract will provide a dashboard that visualizes near real-time data from the aeration tanks to provide recommendations to adjust operations.
On January 15, 2025, request for proposal 25-RFP-07 was advertised and 1,902 firms were notified. Proposal documents were requested by 47 firms. On February 21, 2025, the District received six (6) proposals from the following vendors: Aquasight LLC, DHI Water & Environment, Inc., ENSARAS Inc., Jacobs Engineering Group Inc., SUEZ Smart & Environmental Solutions North America Inc., and Xylem Vue Inc.
An evaluation committee comprised of staff from the Monitoring and Research, Maintenance and Operations, Information Technology, and Procurement and Materials Management Departments evaluated the proposals. The evaluation criteria utilized by the committee included understanding of the project, approach to the work, cost of services, technical competence, financial stability, personnel effectiveness, compliance with insurance requirements, and submission of all necessary licenses and permits. Following the initial evaluation, four (4) proposers were invited to participate in finalist interviews held on April 3, April 8, and April 9, 2025. On April 17, 2025, a solicitation was sent to the finalists requesting an unqualified “best and final” offer. The “best and final” offers were submitted to the Director of Procurement and Materials Management on April 25, 2025.
Based on the evaluation of the proposal, interview, and pricing, DHI Water & Environment, Inc., was selected for the project. The DHI Water & Environment, Inc., team has knowledge and experience in data management, process modeling and design, and dashboard visualizations and functionality, along with a sound approach to completing the work.
The agreement for Contract 25-RFP-07 will be in effect from the date of the award through December 31, 2026.
DHI Water & Environment, Inc. will submit technical memoranda summarizing the plan for acquiring data and deploying the platform.
DHI Water & Environment, Inc. estimates that 144 hours are required to develop an acquisition plan for capturing the necessary data and implementation,180 hours for developing the platform, and 328 hours for deploying and supporting the platform. An estimated 10 people from DHI Water & Environment, Inc. will be working on this project.
The Affirmative Action Ordinance, Revised Appendix D and Appendix V, will not be included in this contract because the proprietary nature of the technology does not provide practical opportunities for subcontracting.
Inasmuch as the firm of DHI Water & Environment, Inc. possesses a high degree of professional skill, it is recommended that the Director of Procurement and Materials Management be authorized to issue a purchase order and enter into an agreement per Section 11.4 of the Purchasing Act, in an amount not to exceed $160,000.00.
Funds in the amount of $120,000.00 for the 2025 expenditure are available in Account 101-67000-612650. The estimated expenditure for 2026 is $40,000.00 and is contingent upon the Board of Commissioner’s approval of the District’s budget for that year.
Requested, Pinakin V. Desai, Acting Director of Maintenance and Operations, JS:PD:AP
Recommended, Darlene A. LoCascio, Director of Procurement and Materials Management
Respectfully Submitted, Precious Brady-Davis, Chairperson, Committee on Procurement
Disposition of this agenda item will be documented in the official Regular Board Meeting Minutes of the Board of Commissioners for August 14, 2025
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