Title
Resolution accepting the recommendation of the Chief Procurement Officer for the purchase and installation of a human word based automated voice dispatching and fire station alerting system as a Sole Source from Locution Systems, Inc. pursuant to Section 2-770 of the City’s Procurement Code.
Brief History
The City’s Fire Department (Fire) was awarded an Assistance to Firefighter Grant (AFG) through the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Grant Program Directorate, to upgrade the fire dispatch system. The project entails a Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) system that vocalizes the 911 dispatch, while providing station alerting and mobile dispatching on emergency crews. The Grant award is in the amount of $273,411, with a required City match of $30,379, which equates to a 90% Grant and a 10% cost sharing, for a total amount of $303,790. This Grant was approved at the October 16, 2012 Commission Meeting.
Fire has located one company, Locution Systems, Incorporated, that offers a human word based automatic voice dispatch system. Fire has determined that human word based technology is extremely important in Coral Gables where many of the Spanish street name pronunciations are similar but require very distinctive inflection and enunciation. The mispronunciation of a street name could very well yield the unfortunate result of sending emergency response crews to the wrong location.
In performing due diligence, the Procurement Division researched various CAD systems for fire station dispatching and alerting systems, as well as speaking to the President of Locution Systems. This research has resulted in finding no other human voice dispatching and fire station alerting system.
Under Section 2-770 of the Procurement Code, a contract may be awarded without competitive bids when the contract by its very nature is not suitable to competitive bids or proposals, as there is only one source for the required supply cap...
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