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Consent Agenda Item INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF UTILITY SERVICES gr Date: October 26, 2015 To: Joseph A. Baird, County Administrator From: Vincent Burke, P.E., Director of Utility Services Prepared By: Cindy Corrente, Utilities Finance Manage] Subject: Exchange Ten (10) Hydra Lunas Handheld Meter Reading Units for Ten (10) Panasonic Tough Pad Tablets DESCRIPTIONS AND CONDITIONS: In April 2014, Indian River County Department of Utility Services (IRCDUS) purchased 10 Hydra Lunas Hand Held Meter Reading devices from Municipal Waterworks Inc. for a total purchase price of $47,058.80. Municipal Water Works is the local distributor for Master Meter brand meters and accessories. Master Meter is the brand of the majority of the department's water meters. Master Meter, although not the manufacturer of the units, was the authorized repair agent for these units. The purchase of the devices included Master Meter's Master Linx meter reading software (that interfaces with the utility billing system) along with training on how to use the new devices. These devices are used in day to day operations for the purpose of gathering meter reads in the field and uploading those reads into the Utility Billing system. Shortly after using the handhelds staff began experiencing problems with them: Some units simply would not power on. Other units would shut down for no apparent reason while being used in the field. Any meter reads entered into the multiple units up to that point were lost. The faulty units were returned to Master Meter for repair under warranty. At any given time during the year, as many as five units were out for repair. The continual loss of meter reading data and lack of available working units has continued to put a strain on the day to day operations of the meter reading division. Although the warranty on the units expired in April 2015 and the manufacturer was no longer willing to offer any remedy to IRCDUS, Master Meter continued to service the units at no cost to the County. In an effort to assist IRCDUS with day to day meter reading requirements, Master Meter loaned IRCDUS five (5) Panasonic Tough Pad Tablets equipped with extended life batteries, Tough Mate cases, and the Master Linx software. Staff has used these units for several months and to date, the experience with these tablets has been very positive. The tablets appear to be working well in the field and staff has been able to use them successfully in their day to day meter reading operation. ANALYSIS: Recently, Master Meter has notified IRCDUS that the four handheld Hydra Lunas units that they currently have for repair cannot be repaired. Their efforts to work with the manufacturer of Page 1 of 2 30