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Officials review water plant failures, unread meters and approve proprietary microstrainer repair
Summary
Public works staff reported unread meters and repeated equipment failures at the water and sewer plant, noting a replacement motor arriving Monday; officials approved a Cogent proposal to repair a proprietary microstrainer PLC for a total of $5,013.
Staff reported multiple operational problems at the municipal water and sewer systems and sought approval for a proprietary repair.
A public-works staff member said crews found about 26 estimated water bills and roughly 51 meters that are not currently reading. The staff member described equipment failures at the treatment plant (motor and gearbox bearing failures), transmission problems in dump trucks and a recent power surge that damaged a motor. "We had a power surge at the plant...and it shelled that electric motor out," the staff member said, and added that a replacement motor was expected Monday.
On treatment performance, the staff member reported a 99.6% removal of suspended solids for the month and said biochemical-oxygen-demand (BOD) results were pending. The staff member also said ammonia levels were briefly elevated during plant upset conditions and that normal reporting would resume once continuous operations returned.
The microstrainer on one facility has a proprietary PLC. Staff told the meeting that $1,700 had already been spent on initial work and that the additional PLC repair would cost $3,254.76, bringing the total Cogent bill to about $5,013. "The only one authorized to work on this micro machine...is Cogent," a staff speaker said, explaining why competitive bids were not available. The meeting recorded a motion to approve the proposal and the chair called the vote; the motion was recorded as approved.
Officials also discussed temporary workarounds: a submersible pump was used to keep the system operating while parts arrive, and staff said they continue to pursue longer-term equipment replacement planning. No detailed procurement schedule or implementation deadline for the microstrainer repair was provided in the transcript.
The meeting asked staff to carry out repairs and return with implementation details if necessary.
