Albany Utility Board approves equipment purchases, recommends contracts to City Commission

The Albany Utility Board on Dec. 15 approved a package of equipment purchases and voted to recommend several contracts to the City Commission intended to modernize the city’s electric distribution and water systems.

Board members voted to authorize staff to buy two Ditch Witch‑compatible fluid mixing kits at a cost of $75,104.40, which staff said supply drilling fluid for horizontal boring work. An unidentified presenter described the mixers as "engineered together to work with the Ditch Witch" and said the kits "100% support the boring machines." The motion passed on a roll call vote of the board.

The board also approved the purchase of 33 SEL voltage regulator controls to complete substation upgrades, at a reported cost of $51,301.14. Staff told the board the purchase is sole‑source and that Albany previously secured a $1,000,000 grant from the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority to reimburse the capital investment.

Members voted to recommend that the City Commission buy pad‑mount transformers from Magnetron USA as the lowest responsive bidder to replenish stock (estimated cost to the board: $213,481). Staff noted the solicitation drew 13 bids, that Magnetron is the low responsive, responsible bidder and that the items include a 12‑month warranty and an estimated 10‑week delivery.

The board recommended purchasing 20 Viper reclosers for three remaining substations (Nos. 14, 20 and 21) at $547,794. Staff warned of a roughly 40‑week lead time for the reclosers and said timely approval is important to keep the upgrade schedule on track.

Separately, the board voted to award a 90‑day firm‑price contract to UTech Construction of Lawrenceville to replace defective poles on six distribution circuits, a contract sized at $213,316.19. Staff reported an ongoing inspection program and said the utility keeps a stocked inventory of poles to support repairs.

On the water side, the board moved to recommend a multi‑year contract for four SmartWorks AMI modules at an annual cost of $357,268. Staff said the modules provide leak detection, meter‑health monitoring, rate and revenue analysis, and system‑wide instant insight to support billing accuracy and proactive repairs. Board members asked how annual support and customer notification would be handled; staff said automated messages and phone contact (if customers provide current contact information) are part of the implementation plan.

The board recommended purchases of a Kenworth T380 dump truck ($205,720) and two extended‑cab flatbeds ($278,240) to support utility operations. Staff said the two flatbeds will carry the fluid mixers used for horizontal boring.

Finally, the board recommended awarding a contract to Bobco Inc. to upgrade Lift Station 77 — including roughly 2,700 feet of 8‑inch sanitary force main and electrical improvements — at $493,707. Staff said the project is tied to a workforce‑development grant and is intended to create sewer capacity for a developing area; permitting and developer plans were described as in review.

All formal motions and recommendations recorded at the meeting were approved by roll call. The board emphasized that several purchases are tied to grant reimbursement and that lead times for specialized electric equipment make timely approvals important.

Votes at a glance: fluid mixers — approved (board vote: Burley, Collier, Fields, Woodall, Chair yes); SEL voltage regulators — approved; pad‑mount transformers (recommendation to commission) — approved; 20 reclosers — approved; pole replacement contract (UTech) — approved; SmartWorks modules (annual) — approved (recommendation to commission); Kenworth dump truck and flatbeds — approved; Lift Station 77 contract (recommendation to commission) — approved.

The board forwarded recommended contracts to the City Commission for final action. No formal dissenting votes were recorded in the board roll calls during the meeting.