Broadwater County board approves up to $30,000 to replace airport fuel payment system

Broadwater County Airport board members voted to purchase a QTPOD card-reader tower and related installation work to replace the airport's failing FuelMaster payment system, authorizing up to $30,000 for the purchase, installation and incidental expenses.

Board chairman Adam said the meeting was called because the airport has been without reliable automated fuel service: “The FuelMaster system has been giving us nothing but grief.” The move follows weeks of intermittent outages that forced staff to sell fuel manually and prompted pilots to seek fuel elsewhere, officials said.

The board decided the immediate priority was restoring dependable payment and price-control functionality. Dwight, the airport manager, told the board that Energy Systems provided two vendor options: the QTPOD (the M4000 system) and a PetroVend system. Dwight summarized QTPOD as a lower-cost, quicker option, saying the QTPOD quote was about $24,000 for hardware and installation and that a subscription for the cloud-based management system would be $1,200 a year. He also said the QTPOD lead time should be roughly one week. “It's a cloud based. You log in and change price, on from anywhere,” he said.

An Energy Systems representative, Cole, called in to answer technical questions. Cole said QTPOD is “service agnostic,” meaning local technicians can service it, and confirmed QTPOD can be installed quickly. Cole also said the competing PetroVend option was roughly $33,000 installed and had a longer lead time (about four to six weeks). Cole said he would confirm warranty and PCI-compliance details by email.

The board discussed connectivity (cellular versus using existing airport microwave Internet), the need to repair or replace a sun-damaged pump display, and conduit/electrical work. Dwight noted a likely recurring operating cost for cellular of about $480 a year and that the QTPOD subscription is expected to cover cloud services; he said staff would verify whether subscription fees include repairs and card-processing services.

Members also reviewed fuel inventory and business impacts. Board members said the airport currently holds about 8,000 gallons of fuel and wants to draw that down to roughly 5,000 gallons before a planned longer shutdown to allow a larger airport project. Sales were described in broad terms as about 1,000 gallons a month (roughly 10,000–12,000 gallons annually), though board members said sales have fallen because pilots avoid the airport while the payment system is unreliable.

After discussion, a board member moved to purchase the QTPOD system and installation with a not-to-exceed total of $30,000 to include the tower, installation, conduit work, a new digital readout if needed, connectivity (cellular or point-to-point/Wi‑Fi), and a weather cover. The motion was seconded and carried. The board instructed staff to contact Energy Systems to proceed and to pursue possible wholesale sourcing through City Service/Valcon first.

The board also discussed funding options. Dwight and other members said Montana Aeronautics offers loans and grants but the next application window would be later (November with decisions the following February); the board agreed the urgency justified buying the system now and seeking reimbursement or grants afterward if possible.

Board members asked staff to clarify warranty and PCI-compliance details with vendors and to include conduit and pump-display repairs in the final quote when practical. The board indicated it would seek to recover service capacity and customer trust after installation, including discussing a future open-house or fly-in event once the airport project and new systems are complete.

Votes at a glance: Motion to purchase and install a QTPOD fuel-management tower and related work, not to exceed $30,000 — approved (motion carries).