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<br />Item No: 9I <br />Meeting Date: September 22, 2003 <br />Type of Business: Council Business <br />City of Mounds View Memorandum <br />To: Honorable Mayor and City Council <br />From: Charles Hansen, Finance Director <br />Item Title/Subject: Resolution 6103 Approving the Purchase of an Upgrade <br />to the Automated Water Meter Reading System <br /> <br />In the mid 1990s, the City of Mounds View installed remote read water meters operating <br />over the telephone lines in substantially all homes served by the water utility. A computer <br />system was purchased at the same time and from the same company to dial up the <br />meters and get the readings when needed for utility billing. <br /> <br />This computer system was based on Microsoft DOS, an older operating system than the <br />Microsoft Windows that is common today. Maintaining this operation requires us to take <br />an older PC, delete Windows and install DOS. This is getting harder to do as older PCs <br />are retired and new PCs are purchased. <br /> <br />Invensys Metering Systems, the vendor for the entire system, has developed a Windows <br />based version of the software and announced that they will stop supporting the DOS <br />version at some point in the future. <br /> <br />Given the City’s installed base of remote read water meters, there really is no alternative <br />to having a computer and software to accomplish the quarterly reading of water meters. <br /> <br />Purchase price for the upgraded software is $3,500, plus sales tax and shipping. Given <br />that the DOS version of the meter reading software lasted for eight or nine years and that <br />the Windows version will also last for many years, this isn’t a high price for software. A <br />new personal computer will also be needed to run the meter reading process and will cost <br />no more than $1,000. <br /> <br />The City has been paying Invensys Metering Systems an annual fee for ongoing system <br />support and that will need to continue. Funds for the purchase of the software and PC <br />can come from the existing capital outlay budget of the Water Fund. There is an item for <br />tuck pointing of Well #4 and reservoir for $10,000 that won’t happen in 2003. The <br />attached resolution authorizes the purchase. <br /> <br />Respectfully submitted, <br /> <br /> <br />___________________________ <br />Charles Hansen, Finance Director