Burleson approves 12‑month sole‑source leak‑detection pilot with Astera for $73,500

Burleson — The City Council unanimously approved a 12‑month, $73,500 sole‑source agreement with Astera USA to run satellite‑based scans and field confirmations to detect water and wastewater leaks across the city.

Eric Thompson, director of public works, framed the contract as a pilot to supplement existing leak‑detection tools. He said Burleson has roughly 223 miles of water mains and that last fiscal year crews responded to approximately 90 water leaks and 21 wastewater repairs. Thompson said earlier detection reduces nonrevenue water loss and helps prioritize pipeline rehabilitation projects.

Astera’s system uses satellite imagery and proprietary algorithms to flag likely subsurface leaks; the vendor also includes about 40 hours of field confirmation in the work plan. City staff provided sole‑source documentation to the city attorney and recommended a sole‑source procurement because Astera’s methods are proprietary, Thompson said.

Benefits, limits and pilot intent

Astera representatives told the council the company can flag leaks as small as 0.2 gallons per minute and that its clients often recover the program cost in under a year; the vendor also claimed higher detection efficiency compared with traditional acoustic methods. The pilot would include two scans and up to a year of follow‑up tracking and investigation.

Thompson described the project as a pilot: if the results are useful for Burleson, staff may recommend a multi‑year program. Council members requested staff work with nearby cities and with other utilities that have used the service to review outcomes; the vendor said nearby jurisdictions were coordinating satellite imagery to reduce cost.

Council action

Councilmember Alexis moved the sole‑source agreement; Councilmember Dan seconded the motion. The council voted unanimously to approve the 12‑month sole‑source purchase agreement with Astera for $73,500.

Quotes

"We're looking at, again, a $73,500 project that compliments the inspections and other methods that our staff already uses to help us find more leaks and find them sooner," Eric Thompson, director of public works, said.

Ending

Staff will implement the pilot and report findings to the council; any recommendation for continued or expanded use would return to the council for approval.