Utility board approves purchase of dump truck and interchangeable bed system

The Lawrenceburg Utility Board on June 2 approved purchasing a chassis from Hag Ford and a Meyer interchangeable bed system that allows crews to swap flatbeds and dump bodies.

Garrett Cavanaugh, a utility staff member presenting new business, said he obtained three quotes and recommended the Hag Ford chassis because it was the cheapest available and the last 2025 unit the vendor could source in the Midwest. He described the Meyer system as “the system that we're gonna have installed onto the cabin chassis that adapts the bodies to where you can interchange flat beds to dump truck beds.”

Cavanaugh told the board the city had appropriated $60,000 in water capital and $60,000 in sewer capital for a dump truck this year and that the valve exerciser would be carried on the flatbed body. The meeting record includes the two line items the presenter read into the record: a Hag Ford quote for $75,605 for the truck and a bed/system quote for $45,005.25. Board members discussed availability and the vendor supply timeline; Cavanaugh warned that if the 2025 chassis is sold before the city could secure it, ordering a 2026 chassis would delay delivery until fall and likely incur a price increase.

A motion to approve the Hag Ford quote and the bed system was made and seconded; the chair called the vote and the motion carried by voice vote. The presenter and board members noted the purchase would come from capital accounts and that the project would exceed the budgeted amount by about $1,120 according to staff calculations, which they said the board would accommodate.

Board members also asked practical questions about swapping beds; the presenter demonstrated the Meyer system “just rolls off” and “slides right up on it,” describing it as like a rollback.

The purchase was approved in open session; the item followed standard procurement discussion and allocation from existing capital appropriations.