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SFO seeks sole-source $420,000 design contract for FAA-required EMAS on two short runways
Summary
San Francisco International Airport told the Budget and Finance Committee it must award a $420,000 sole-source contract to Engineered Arresting Systems Corp. to design engineered material arresting systems (EMAS) on two short runways the FAA requires; the committee advanced the waiver and indemnity revisions to the Board with recommendation.
San Francisco International Airport staff told the Budget and Finance Committee that the Federal Aviation Administration requires engineered material arresting systems (EMAS) at the ends of two shorter runways that cannot meet the FAA's 1,000-foot safety-area standard.
Kathy Weidner of the airport explained that ESCO (Engineered Arresting Systems Corporation) is the only FAA-approved supplier for the proprietary crushable concrete material used in EMAS and that the airport is requesting a waiver of the competitive-bid requirement and approval of a modified indemnification clause to enter a $420,000 contract to design the systems. Weidner said ESCO relies on airport-supplied operational data (aircraft types, traffic volumes) to design the EMAS and proposed indemnity limits tied to that information.
The city attorney's office and the city risk manager reviewed the revised indemnification language and deemed it reasonable in this unique procurement. Deborah Newman of the Budget and Legislative Analyst's office said the $420,000 cost was already included in the airport's capital budget and recommended approval. The committee opened public comment, received none, and moved the item forward with a recommendation to the full Board of Supervisors.
