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Commissioners approve $144,000 purchase of mobile towable generator after debate on readiness and use
Summary
The Worcester County Commissioners authorized purchase of a towable emergency generator for $144,000 through a Sourcewell cooperative contract, citing past rental shortages and potential countywide uses. The motion passed 5–1.
Worcester County Commissioners on Feb. 4 approved purchasing a mobile towable generator at a cost of $144,000, with the county noting an estimated savings of $48,934 by purchasing through a Sourcewell cooperative contract. The item drew extended debate over maintenance, regular exercise of the unit and whether it would sit idle.
Director of Public Works Dallas Baker said the mobile unit would provide an interim backup when a fixed generator fails and rental units are delayed. "When we have a generator that fails and it's going to take a few days to get the repair part...we have nothing to back that up," Baker said, recounting that in the past two years the county had experienced two such failures and rental alternatives could cost more than $10,000 for a week-long rental.
Some commissioners worried a purchased unit could sit unused and degrade if not regularly exercised. Commissioners asked about maintenance requirements; Baker said the generator would require load-banking at least twice a year as part of its service program. Baker also said the county planned to make the unit available for use across county departments so it would be used at wastewater plants and other sites rather than remain stored.
Commissioners discussed the unit’s capabilities and limits: the towable generator is sized to be hauled with a three-quarter-ton pickup and should be able to support roughly 75% of county generators by load, but it would not replace very large fixed units (for example, some hospital- or jail-sized installations). Baker said electrical consultants had developed plans to restore critical functions in worst-case scenarios even when a full-size generator is not available, and the towable unit could assist in those scenarios.
The motion to purchase, made and seconded on the record, passed by a vote of five in favor and one opposed; one commissioner was absent. The county will add the unit to its maintenance schedule and make it available for shared use by county departments. The recorded motion included the cost and cooperative-contract savings; no additional capital funding sources were specified on the record.
