HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda Report - December 4, 1991 (61)*OF
CITY OF LODI COUNCIL COMMUNICATION
AGENDA TITLE: Purchase Telephone System Equipment and Voice
Processing System
MEETING DATE.: December 4, 1991
- PREPARED BY: Assistant City Manager
RECOMMENDED ACTION: That the City Council approve the PacTel
Meridian Systems' and Octel Communications
Corporation's proposals to furnish, instal?, and
maintain telephone equipment to upgrade existing telephone configuration
at City Hall, Public Safety building, Municipal Service Center, Parks and
Recreation, White Slough Water Pollution Control Facility, Fire Station 2,
and Hutchins street Square.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION: Last April, the City Council approved contracting
with Northern California Communications Network
(NCCN) to evaluate the City's current telephone
system. Common telephone problems identified by NCCN included antiquated
hardware, no growth capability with existing equipment; inability to
successfully transfer calls from certain locations, unexplained equipment
downtime, and employee frustration due to low volume and inability to hear
callers. The current system has reached its maximum
capacity. In addition to the hardware problems of our present telephone
system, NCCN identified some serious problems with our present
configuration and operation.
In the Police Department Detective Division, calls not answered are
currently forwarded to the Records Division or the Dispatch Center. In
some cases, the caller must wait up to three minutes before a call is
finally answered by someone. Calls have come into the Dispatch Center at
most inappropriate times. Crime Stoppers' calls also end up in the
Dispatch Center.
The demand on staff time in the Parks and Recreation Department to answer
telephone calls is horrendous. During registration periods, the number of
calls per day approaches 400. On days when we have inclement weather --
we do sometimes or at least we used to, have days when we had rain -- the
APPROVEC:
T140MAS A. PETERSON
City Manager
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.Purchase Telephone S� zm Equipment and Voice Processi„y System
December 4, 1991
Page Two
Parks and Recreation Department staff are overloaded by callers requesting
information. In the 1590-91 budget, we appropriated funds for some sort
of voice processing equipment to relieve this problem, but could not
integrate the equipment with our existing switch.
In other departments, the problem of disseminating information exists, but
not to the degree as in Parks and Recreation. The majority of calls
received by a secretary are for staff members who are frequently -
unavailable. The secretary must then take messages from callers who are
generally requesting information from staff or wish to leave information.
It would be considerably more efficient and easier to transfer the caller
to a personalized voice mail box rather than requiring the secretary to
set aside other work to take messages. In addition, staff will receive
much more detailed messages by voice mail, thus allowing staff to gather
pertinent information prior to returning the call. On the other hand,
callers simply want to leave information and do not require a return call.
The City has the following options regarding the telephone system:
1. Continue to "band-aid" the telephone system ane invest money into the
switch with the knowledge that it has reached capacity and will crash
with the overload;
2. Contract with Pacific Bell for Centrex services at a rate which
would far exceed the proposed upgrade costs; or
3. Upgrade the switch, replace antiquated equipment at various
department locations (MSC, White Slou;h, Hutchins Street Square,
Parks and Recreation, and Fire Station #2), and install a voice
processing system.
Option 3 was recommended by NCCN, and City staff agree, based on long
term projections of telephone needs and services. The City's existing
equipment is durable and will support the upgrade, thereby averting the
purchase of a new switch.
NCCN assisted in developing a request for proposals. The following
proposals were received from vendors and include '-he switch upgrade, a new
PBX at MSC, and new key systems for White Slough, Hutchins Street
Square, Parks and Recreation, and Fire Station 2.
Vendor
Pactel with Meridian Mail
Pactel with Octel Aspen
Executone with Meridian Mail
Executone with Octel Aspen
GTE with Meridian Mail
GTE with Octel Aspen
Proposal
$171,473
$182,379
$173,582
$179,157
$85,123
$139,788
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-Purchase Telephone System Equipment and Voice Processing System
December 4, 1991
Page Three
We are recommending the purchase
Octel Aspen voice mail option, It
the reason we chose Pactnl over
trained technicians to maintain the
maintained this equipment and are
school. For the slight increase in
the difference in cost.
and installation of Pactel with the
is not the least expensive. However,
Executone is that Pactet has 61
system upgrade. Executone has never
proposing to send 3 technicians to
price, we feel that we will recapture
We are recommending the Octel system because it is a more advanced
system and is more user-friendly. If we ever expand, the cost of adding 4
additional ports will be $5,395 with the Octel option and $27,546 with the
Meridian Mail option.
FUNDING: We are requesting authority to spend $200,000 on this
project. The costs are broken down as follows:
Cost of system $182,379
Consultants 7,000
Contingency 10 621
In order to finance this propject, we are recommending a variety of
sources. A portion of the funding will come from system savings, and a
portion from savings on first year maintenance costs. A full year of
maintenance on the old equipment is included in the bid price. We will
ask San Joaquin County to pay their fair share of the cost of the upgrade
and voice mail system. One-half of the cost of the voice mail system will
be charged to the unappropriated funds in the asset seizure fund, since
the Police Department will be a major beneficiary of that system. The
remainder of the system will be paid for from capital funds.
The breakdown of funding is as follows:
Eliminate MSC system
S 31.755
1 year maintenance cost savings
12,895
San Joaquin County
12,170
Police Asset Seizure
35,720
Sewer Capital
20,300
Water Capital
10,150
White Slough Capital
11,050
Library Capital
5,070
Capital Outlay Reserve
30,445
Electric Capital
30,445
$26b.W
The City is presently paying $815 for for off premise extension at
mSC. The lease purchase cost of the M9C system will be $875 per month.
x " . OA,�
r y L. enn
Assistant City Manager
ACKELE/TXTA.01V
RESOLUTION NO. 91-224
------------------------
------------------------
A RESOLUTION OF THE IODI CITY COUNCIL
AWARDING THE CONTRACT FOR CITY OF LODI TELEPHONE SYSIB4 UPGRADE
VVIIFRM in answer to notice duly published in accordance with
law and the order of this City Council, sealed proposals were received
and publicly opened on October 28, 1991 at 11:00 a.m. for the contract
for the purchase of City of Lodi telephone system equipment and voice
processing system; and
WHEREAS, said proposals have been compared, checked, and
tabulated and a report thereof filed with the City Manager as follows:
Vendnr
Proposal
Pactel with Meridian Mail $171,473
Pactel with Octel Aspen $182,379
Executone with Meridian Mail $173,582
Executone with Octel Aspen $179,157
GTE with Meridian Mail $185,123
GTE with Octel Aspen 9199,788
VVHQZEA$, the City Manager recommends that award of the contract
for said telephone system be made for the best proposal, Pactel with
the Octel Aspen voice mail option;
MOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Lodi City Council that
award of contract for said telephone system be and the same is hereby
awarded for the best proposal, Pactel with the Octel Aspen voice mail
option, in the amount of $182,379.
Dated: December 4, 1991
I hereby certify that Resolution No. 91-224 was passed and
adopted by the City Council of the City of Lodi in a regular meeting
held December 4, 1991 by the following vote:
Ayes: Council Members - Hinchman, Pennino, Sieglock, Snider
and Pinkerton (Mayor)
Noes: Council Members - None
Absent: Council Members - Hone
Alice M. Reimche
City Clerk
RES91224/TXTA.02J