HomeMy WebLinkAboutA015 - Resolution awarding contract to Petrotech Inc., of New Orleans, LA, for Combustion Turbine Controls Upgrade, in the amount of $1,213,252.67 (inclusive of sales tax)ITEM #:19
DATE:08-12-25
DEPT:ELEC
SUBJECT:COMBUSTION TURBINE CONTROLS UPGRADE 
COUNCIL ACTION FORM
BACKGROUND:
The existing controls systems on Combustion Turbines 1 (CT1) and Combustion Turbine 2
(CT2) are outdated and are in need of replacement. The hardware, software, system
architecture, and several pieces of instrumentation are antiquated, replacements are difficult to
find, and generally the systems no longer reflect best industry practices. Electric Department
staff worked with AP4 Energy Services, LLC to develop a specification for acquiring a
combined, updated controls system for both Combustion Turbines.
During the development of the specification and review of the existing infrastructure, it was
also determined the existing motor control center (MCC) for CT1 must be updated. The
existing MCC utilizes a proprietary communications protocol that is no longer supported by the
manufacturer and replacement parts are difficult to acquire, with only used parts available.
The most effective method of replacement is by swapping out the electrical "buckets".
Replacement buckets were obtained from the OEM, Eaton, following approval of City Council
at the February 13, 2024 meeting. These buckets have been received and will be installed
concurrently with the controls update to CT1. With the buckets and supporting documentation
delivered, the specification was finalized and prepared for the proposal process.
On March 24, 2025, a Request for Proposal document was posted on AmesBids by the City's
Purchasing division. On May 15, 2025, three proposals were received. An evaluation team
was formed by staff to review proposals. Proposals were evaluated on compatibility,
experience, support, the proposed timeline, cost, and the software/hardware solution, which
includes reliability and intuitiveness. Vendors did not include sales tax in their pricing. The
results of this evaluation are below.
VENDOR PRICE POINTS RANK
HPI Energy Services
Tomball, TX $995,000 365 1
Petrotech, Inc.
New Orleans, LA $1,133,881 341 2
Emerson Process Management
Freedom, PA $1,994,791 336 3
Presentations were then given by all three vendors. The presentations were evaluated on
experience of the project team, implementation plan, usability, and security, and training and
support.
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VENDOR POINTS RANK
Petrotech, Inc.
New Orleans, LA 451 1
Emerson Process
Management
Freedom, PA
430 2
HPI Energy Services
Tomball, TX 422 3
After evaluating the presentations and combining all the points, the final RFP rank appears
below.
VENDOR POINTS FINAL RANKING
Petrotech, Inc.
New Orleans, LA 792 1
HPI Energy Services
Tomball, TX 787 2
Emerson Process
Management
Freedom, PA
766 3
The top two firms, Petrotech, Inc. and HPI Energy Services, are separated by less than
0.7% difference in total points. The second ranked-firm, HPI Energy Services, provided
a pricing proposal that was $138,881 less than Petrotech. However, for the qualitative
scoring metrics, Petrotech earned higher scores. This is demonstrated in the
comparison below:
VENDOR PRICE POINTS FROM
PRICE
POINTS FROM
QUALITATIVE
FACTORS
TOTAL
POINTS
Petrotech, Inc.
New Orleans, LA $1,133,881 66 726 792
HPI Energy Services
Tomball, TX $995,000 75 712 787
The City's consultant for the project, AP4, has experience with all three of the companies
proposing on the project. AP4 highly recommended Petrotech over others due to their
experience as a company and continued history of performing projects within budget and on
schedule. Petrotech has extensive experience working on Pratt & Whitney FT4 (GT1) and GE
LM2500 (GT2) engines and a comprehensive implementation plan that minimizes outage
time. The schedule given in Petrotech’s proposal is the most detailed. Project phases and
tasks are broken down on a day-by-day basis and allow for a reasonable amount time for City
staff to review submittals. The schedules provided by other companies did not do the same.
Petrotech's proposed system offers an open architecture software operated on commonly
available industrial computing equipment that is reliable and easy for staff to use. System
features like a data historian, trend builder, and control logic builder will help Electric staff
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reliably operate and maintain the generating assets. Petrotech’s training course provides
training materials for more staff than the other companies proposing. Lastly, Petrotech has a
24/7 technical support line available for the life of the controls system, which is included in the
price of the proposal. This was not included by other companies. Their solution is cost-
effective, secure, and based on common industry practice. Therefore, staff determined that
the proposal from Petrotech, Inc., of New Orleans, LA is most acceptable.
Staff confirmed that this project is subject to Iowa Sales tax and that Petrotech is licensed to
collect and remit Iowa sales tax. Petrotech confirmed that their updated total including sales
tax would be $1,213,252.67. The approved FY 2021/22 CIP included $750,000 for controls
upgrades and the approved FY 2024/25 CIP included $600,000 for controls upgrades to GT1
and GT2. Additional funds in the amount of $1,500,000 were made available from the Ash
Pond project in FY 2023/24. A total of $2,850,000 in funds are available to perform the
Combustion Turbine controls upgrades. A project budget is shown below:
Expenses: Funding Sources:
Design (AP4)$149,670.00 CT Generation
Improvements
MCC Design (Zachry
Group)$96,000.00 2021/22 CIP $750,000
Control Equipment &
Installation (This
Action, Inclusive of
Tax)
$1,213,252.67 2023/24 CIP Ash Pond
Funds savings $1,500,000
Replacement Buckets
(Previous Action)$160,213.56 2024/25 CIP $600,000
Bucket Installation $11,914.45
TOTAL $1,631,050.68 TOTAL $2,850,000
ALTERNATIVES:
1. Award a contract to Petrotech Inc., of New Orleans, LA, for Combustion Turbine
Controls Upgrade, in the amount of $1,213,252.67 (inclusive of sales tax)
2. Award a contract to another vendor.
3. Reject all proposals.
CITY MANAGER'S RECOMMENDED ACTION:
The existing controls systems on Combustion Turbines 1 (CT1) and Combustion
Turbine 2 (CT2) are outdated and in need of replacement. The proposed solution from
Petrotech, Inc. of New Orleans, LA offers software and hardware that are reliable and
easy for staff to use. System features like a data historian and trend builder, control
logic builder, and technical support beyond the length of the warranty period will help
Electric Department staff reliably operate and maintain the generating assets for many
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years. Petrotech has extensive experience working on GE LM2500 and Pratt & Whitney
FT4 engines and a comprehensive implementation plan that minimizes outage time.
Their solution is cost-effective, secure, and based on common industry
practice. Therefore, it is the recommendation of the City Manager that the City Council adopt
Alternative No.1 as stated above.
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