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Select Board approves $14,000 replacement for grant-funded drone after EMA presentation
Summary
After an EMA briefing, the Select Board authorized a $14,000 replacement drone (vendor replacement program) to replace a crashed grant-funded all-weather unit; the original unit cost was about $21,000 and staff will pursue reimbursement from the manufacturer if a defect is found.
EMA Director Todd Perrault told the Select Board that a grant-funded "all-weather" drone used in training crashed and the vendor offered a replacement under its crash-replacement program for $14,000. Todd said the original unit was valued at about $21,000 and that the vendor's program provides a reduced-cost replacement while the manufacturer will evaluate the returned unit for data to determine whether a defect or glitch occurred.
Todd described training uses — including the ability to fly in rain and snow — and stressed the importance of collecting the unit's flight data to learn what went wrong. "We crashed," he said, describing the training incident; later he added that the manufacturer program "will send us another drone" and that he will "be all over" any reimbursement if the manufacturer's analysis shows a defect.
Board members discussed funding the purchase from the contingency/unanticipated-expense account and asked that staff pursue recovery from the manufacturer if warranted. A committee member moved to approve the replacement at $14,000 from contingency and another member seconded; the motion passed 4-0.
