8E
Date: September 15, 2026
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Alvin Papa, Public Works Director
By: Andy Darlak, Water Operations Manager | [email protected] Subject: Public Works – Authorize a Sole Source Purchase Order to Furnish Water Treatment Chemicals for the North Torrance Well Field Facility. Expenditure:
Not-to-Exceed $500,000. (Non-General Fund).
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation of the Public Works Director that City Council authorize a sole source purchase order with Carus Corporation of Peru, Illinois, for a total not-to-exceed amount of $500,000, to furnish water treatment chemicals for the North Torrance Well Field Facility for a one-year (1) period beginning October 1, 2026, and ending September 30, 2027.
FUNDING
Funding is available in the Water Fund’s fiscal year 2026-27 operating budget.
DISCUSSION
Torrance Municipal Water currently has a purchase order with Carus Corporation to provide water treatment chemicals for the North Torrance Well Field Facility. The facility is currently operating with all three groundwater wells online and provides an important source of local water supply for the City.
The water produced at the facility is substantially less expensive than imported water, providing a significant cost savings while reducing the City’s reliance on imported supplies.
ANALYSIS
Torrance Municipal Water is permitted to serve potable water through the State Water Resources Control Board. The City’s permit specifies the use of Carus 8500 to treat for manganese at the North Torrance Well Field Facility. Carus 8500 is a liquid water treatment chemical used to control corrosion and mineral buildup in municipal and industrial water systems. Carus Corporation is the sole source provider of this product. The Torrance Municipal Code (TMC) authorizes sole-source purchases under TMC Section 22.3.100 entitled “Exceptions to the Competitive Process” which states:
“The competitive selection processes set forth in this Chapter do not apply in the following categories however purchases shall be made in accordance with procedures and regulations established by the City Manager:
1 City Council
September 15, 2026
b) Competition does not reasonably exist because only one vendor possesses the unique ability or capability to meet the particular requirements of the solicitation, such as when a good or service is copyrighted, patented or otherwise only available from one license holder, including, for example, proprietary goods of original equipment manufacturers and/or their authorized exclusive distributors. No sole-source purchases may be made where to do so would show favoritism, improvidence, extravagance, fraud or corruption, or result in the waste of public funds, but may be used to only obtain the best economic result for the public.” Accordingly, it is the recommendation of staff to move forward with authorizing a sole source purchase order with Carus Corporation to provide water treatment chemicals. Due to market fluctuations for raw materials, Carus Corporation is only able to give pricing for a one-year period.
The term of the purchase order will be October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2027.
ATTACHMENT
1. Carus Sole Source Letter
2 Carus LLC
315 5th Street
Peru, IL 61354
Au
gust 19, 2026
M
r. Andy Darlak
City of Torrance
20500 Madrona Avenue
Torrance, CA 90503
D
ear Mr. Darlak,
T
his letter is to certify that
CARUS
™ 8500 water treatment chemical
is a
sole sourced proprietary
formulation designed to provide superior Sequestering and Corrosion Control benefits for potable water systems. CARUS 8500
is
manufactured by Carus LLC at its state -of
-
the-art production facilities located in
LaSalle, IL and Belmont, NC.
CARUS 8500
is
produced with high quality raw materials and specific blends of polyphosphate for exceptional stability and performance.
CARUS 8500
and the production facilities are
registered with NSF as compliant with NSF/ANSI standard 60-61 for contact with drinking water.
C
arus LLC is the leading supplier of phosphate -based Corrosion Control Programs for municipal water systems. We serve over 2,000 potable water systems and carry over 75 unique formulations and brands including the CARUS 8500 product.
In
addition to superior product quality and performance, Carus Corrosion Control Programs are supported (as needed) by the following services:
• Technical Service visits to insure proper application and compliance • Quarterly water sample collection and analysis for corrosion control parameters • Corrosion Coupon program including supply, installation, and maintenance CC racks • Product safety and application training for employees (for CEU credits) B
ased on current market conditions, CARUS LLC would like to propose the
below
for an annual contract
starting October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2027.
Product Price
CARUS™ 8500 water treatment chemical
in 275-gal totes
$1.63/lb.
W
e appreciate the opportunity to serve
Torrance/WRD
and look forward to continued success.
Pl
ease feel free to call me should you have any questions at 800-435
-
6856.
S
incerely,
B
arbie Smith
Bid & Sales Support Manager
ATTACHMENT 1
3