Staff Report
City Council
Item No. {{section.number}}.E
Meeting Date: December 11, 2024
From: Michael Contreras, Fire Chief
Title: Purchase of Fire Department PSEC Radios
RECOMMENDATION:
To authorize the purchase of 24 portable and 15 mobile radios from Motorola Solutions in the amount of $431,253.91, and authorize the city manager or designee, to execute all necessary documents for the purchase.
BACKGROUND:
During the 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 budget preparation, Cathedral City Fire & EMS requested $160,000 for the first phase of the fire department's conversion to PSEC, including $30,000 for repeaters. The $160,000 is comprised of $65,000 in the FY 2024/2025 budget and $95,000 rolled forwarded from FY 2023/2024 budget (approved by City Council on 8/14/2024). With the urgent need for repeater upgrades already purchased this year, the fire department has a remaining $130,000 allocated in its 2024/2025 budget to apply towards the purchase of the radios. Due to the timing of a tight delivery schedule, a 35% discount provided by Motorola, and the need for improved communications and interoperability with the police department, the fire department is presenting this updated plan. Once all mobile and portable radios are purchased, there will be an ongoing annual maintenance fee to be budgeted and paid to the county. It is anticipated this annual fee will be approximately $60,125.00, depending on the number of users countywide.
To operate on PSEC, radios are required to broadcast on the TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access) bandwidth. The purchase of new Motorola radios would not only replace our outdated radio technology but will also be a significant step toward our transition to PSEC in FY 2025-2026.
DISCUSSION:
The purchase of these new radios is a necessity as our current handheld and mobile radios have reached their end of life. As of 2024, Motorola no longer produces our current radios and has discontinued support for the radios.
Motorola has provided pricing for portable radios APX NEXT XE at $9,274.45/radio and mobile radios APX 8500 at $8,534.02/radio. With the purchase of 24 portable radios and 15 mobile radios, the total cost is $431,253.91. The purchase of these radios is available through the Sourcewell contract, one of our cooperative (Coop) agreements, with a 35% discount. Staff has been informed that after December 31, 2024, the cost of the radios will increase.
The 24 portable radios/units and 15 mobile radios/units are detailed as follows:
UNIT # PORTABLE
RADIOS UNIT # MOBILE RADIOS
B1 2 T1 1
T1 4 M1 1
M1 2 E2 1
E2 4 M2 1
M2 2 E3 1
E3 4 M3 1
M3 2 E3R 1
WT 1 1 OES 351 1
Chief 1 1 4150 1
Tahoe 1
Stn 1, 2 & 3 3
Reserve Amb. 1
M4 2 1
TOTAL 24 15
JBC Electronics, a local Motorola authorized service center, has provided a preliminary quote of $1,200 per vehicle to install the new mobile radio equipment, including removal of the old radio equipment for a one-time cost totaling $18,000.00.
One Time Motorola Radio Purchase:
The total one-time purchase is $449,253.91, comprised of $431,253.91 for the radios and $18,000 for the installation of the mobile radios. The remaining $130,000 from the Fire Department General Fund (100) budget will be used to offset the cost incurred by the Equipment Replacement Fund (611), with a net impact of $319,253.91 to Fund 611.
FISCAL IMPACT:
DESCRIPTION GENERAL
LEDGER
ACCOUNT
CODES
PROJECT
CODE
AMOUNT ONE TIME or
ONGOING
2024-2025 Radios 611-000-000-
000-8800-8801 N/A 449,253.91 One-time
2024-2025 Annual
Maintenance
100-300-330-
332-8300-8301 N/A 60,125.00 On-going
FIVE-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN:
Goal E-2 – SAFETY
Objective: Continue to explore and utilize technology to promote public safety.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Motorola Quote
2. JBC Electronics Quote for Installation
3. Riverside County Annual Maintenance Estimate