HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/20/2015 Automated Pay Station ReplacementMount Prospect Public Works Department
LL $/ INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM
TO: VILLAGE MANAGER MICHAEL J. CASSADY
FROM: STREETS & BUILDINGS SUPERINTENDENT
DATE: OCTOBER 13, 2015
SUBJ: AUTOMATED PAY STATION REPLACEMENT ($99,933)
Background
The Village of Mount Prospect currently utilizes automated pay machines for daily parking fee collection
at three commuter lots (east, west and Maple Street lots) and for designated commuter parking areas on
Prospect Avenue. The current pay stations have been installed since 2004. They allow commuters to pay
for daily parking using cash/coin or a proprietary debit card (non-bank issued) that can be purchased in
the train station. The machines are utilized by approximately 500 commuters on a daily basis.
The current machines have reached their ten (10) year life expectancy and have not been manufactured
for the last 5 years, making it very difficult to get parts. The remaining parts that exist are minimal and
have been salvaged from machines that have been removed in surrounding communities. The current
service and maintenance contractor has advised staff that enough parts exist to keep the machines
operational for approximately one more year.
The current software used in our machines is outdated and is no longer being supported or maintained by
the vendor. The existing software package does not possess a back office software package requiring
machines to be inspected on site to retrieve problem codes or warning messages.
Obtaining daily payment processing or usage data must also be manually collected at the pay machines.
Once collected, all payments must be processed manually.
Proposal Results
In August 2015, staff sent out three (3) proposals for purchase, installation and two (2) -year maintenance
of eight automated commuter pay machines. All three (3) companies submitted proposals that were
completed correctly.
Vendor
Proposal Amount
Total Parking Solutions
$88,960
Parkeon, Inc.
$90,848
Automated Parking Technologies
$115,187
Page 2 of 3
Automated Pay Station Replacement RFP Results ($99,933)
October 13, 2015
Discussion
All proposals were checked to ensure that the supplier was providing the necessary equipment in
accordance with the specifications. Individual meetings were conducted with each vendor, which included
a demonstration of the proposed parking machine and the back office software. After completing the
interviews and calling all references provided by each firm staff has determined that Parkeon, Inc.
provides the best solution for the Village.
Parkeon, Inc. is a French company with North American headquarters in New Jersey that has been in the
multi -space parking technology business for over 40 years. Parkeon has more than 20,000 multi -space
parking machines installed in over 250 cities in the U.S. Staff contacted all references provided and all
references indicated that Parkeon has performed satisfactory work and they would recommend using them
again.
Parkeon was the second lowest of the three firms submitting pricing with a cost of $90,848. Total
Parking Solutions (TPS) submitted a lower proposal of $88,960; however, the cost of the parking
machines extends well beyond the initial installation and two year maintenance period. The Village
foresees a minimum ten (10) year long relationship with the parking vendor. The associated annual costs
to maintain and support the machines for years three (3) through ten (10) are important to consider. The
two fees we compared are extended maintenance cost (parts, labor preventative maintenance) and
operational fees (cell charges, software agreements/license, back -end costs).
Annual Costs to Operate Machines in Years 3 —10
Vendor
Name
Extended Maint. Cost
Annual
Operational
Annual
Fees
Annual
Total
Year 3 - 10
Total
Parkeon
$6,000
$5,472
$11,472
$91,776
TPS
$8,640
$7,680
$16,320
$130,560
APT
$10,360
$8,640
$19,000
$152,000
When considering annual costs (see table above) associated with the machines in years three (3) through
ten (10) Parkeon is significantly cheaper over the life of the machine when compared to the other two (2)
vendors. Parkeon's total annual costs are $38,784 less than Total Parking Solutions total annual costs of
$130,560. Considering the purchase and installation costs of the parking machines with the associated
costs in years three (3) through ten (10) Parkeon's total cost is $36,896 less ($182,624 total cost)
compared to Total Parking Solutions' total cost of $219,520.
The existing machines are stand alone and work off an internal operating system storing all transactions
locally at each machine. The proposed machines represent a significant upgrade utilizing cellular
technology to operate limiting the need to store transactions locally. All new operating systems will be
accessible through a cellular network making parking transactions, financial/data information and critical
alarms or errors reporting in real time. All parking transactions are stored at an off-site server requiring
that transactions are only stored locally if the cellular connection is lost.
In conjunction with the cellular network the new machine will employ back office software that is lacking
with the current machines. The back office system will allow staff to control, update and maintain the
machines remotely without the assistance of the vendor. Currently updates to the parking machines must
be completed locally. Changes may include fee changes, special event messaging, software/firmware
Page 3 of 3
Automated Pay Station Replacement RFP Results ($99,933)
October 13, 2015
updates etc. In addition, all financial reporting and parking enforcement will be handled via the back
office software. Currently all reporting is run on receipt paper from the machines.
The existing machines accept payment via cash/coin or a proprietary debit card. The new machines
accept cash/coin payments and credit/debit payments from a bank issued card. The machines will no
longer accept the proprietary debit card. The credit card payments will be delivered nightly via the
internet to the village's authorized bankeard processor for authorization. All transactions will meet the
current Payment Card Industry Data Security (PCI) standards. In fact, Parkeon has earned the highest
rating of Level 1 PCI certification compliance.
In addition to the stated payment options the Village will implement a pay by phone application. The
application allows users to pay using a smart phone. All costs are borne by the user though a $0.35 per
transaction fee. There is no cost to the Village. This payment option will allow commuters to pay for
parking while waiting for the train or while riding the train, all transactions are recorded in real time
avoiding any potential issues with enforcement.
One of the significant benefits of the new machines is the ability to be continuously upgraded. The
machines are specifically designed to by upgraded; including hardware and software, as new technology
becomes available thus extending the life of the machines. We expect a minimum of ten (10) years out of
the machine, but a number of Parkeon machines older than ten (10) years are still in operation. Most
importantly the older machines have been upgraded to run the most current software and utilize current
hardware without complete replacement of the machine.
Based on the very favorable pricing and product design, staff is recommending the Village board award a
contract to Parkeon, Inc. for the installation and maintenance of eight automated parking machines.
Staff recommends including a 10% contingency fee in the award of this project. This contingency would
be reserved for solutions to unanticipated conflicts that arise during the removal and installation of the
new automated commuter pay stations. In this instance, the total recommended award would be $90,848
+ $9,085 (10% contingency) = $99,933 (recommended total award).
Recommendation
I recommend that the Village Board accept the proposal as submitted from Parkeon, Inc. in the amount of
$99,993.00. Sufficient funds for the proposed expenditure are available in the 2015 budget.
Director of Public Works
Cc: Director of Finance David Erb
Deputy Director of Public works Jason Leib
6;,) a.,,
Paul Bures
Superintendent of Streets & Buildings