TO: Board of Supervisors
FROM: Wendi Agans for Oscar Ortiz, Sheriff-Coroner
REPORT BY: Rollie Soria, Staff Services Analyst II
SUBJECT: Capital Asset Revision: ReconRobotics Throwbot 2
RECOMMENDATION
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Sheriff requests approval of the following actions for purchase of a replacement robot:
1. Establish of the Schedule of Approved Capital Assets in the Adopted Budget for Fiscal Year 2022-2023 to purchase a ReconRobotics Throwbot 2 in the amount of $17,370 in lieu of an Agilemesh Sentinel Camera for $20,000; and
2. A waiver of competitive bidding requirements and sole source award to ReconRobotics of Edina, Minnesota for purchase of a ReconRobotics Throwbot 2 in the amount of $17,370 pursuant to County Ordinance § 2.36.090.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Approval of today’s actions will allow the Sheriff’s Office to establish the Schedule of Approved Capital Assets in the Adopted Budget for Fiscal Year 2022-2023 to purchase a replacement robot (ReconRobotics Throwbot 2) for the Sheriff’s Office Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Team in lieu of an Agilemesh Sentinel Camera. The SWAT Team purchased a ReconRobotics Throwbot XT in 2015, which recently became non-operational and too costly to repair.
FISCAL & STRATEGIC PLAN IMPACT
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Is there a Fiscal Impact? |
Yes |
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Is it currently budgeted? |
Yes |
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Where is it budgeted? |
Sheriff’s Operations Budget (Fund 1000, Org 1360000, Obj 55400) |
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Is it Mandatory or Discretionary? |
Discretionary |
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Discretionary Justification: |
Sheriff’s Office purchased a robot (ReconRobotics Throwbot) in 2015 for the SWAT Team. It has recently become unserviceable and due to its outdated electronics, is too costly to repair. Therefore, the purchase of a new robot (Throwbot 2) is recommended. |
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Is the general fund affected? |
No |
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Future fiscal impact: |
Any future fiscal impact will be budgeted accordingly. |
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Consequences if not approved: |
If not approved, Sheriff’s Office will be unable to make this purchase according to County Purchasing Policy. |
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County Strategic Plan pillar addressed: |
Healthy, Safe, and Welcoming Place to Live, Work, and Visit |
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: The proposed action is not a project as defined by 14 California Code of Regulations 15378 (State CEQA Guidelines) and therefor CEQA is not applicable.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
The Sheriff’s Office Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Team is used in critical incidents to minimize danger to the public, employees and suspects. A “critical incident” refers to hostage negotiations, armed and/or barricaded subjects, sniper situations and other incidents that present a high degree of danger to life and/or property, search and rescue, crowd control (riot-type) events and any event requiring response of specially trained personnel. The SWAT Team is comprised of 10 deputies, trained in anti-sniper tactics, crowd control (riot-type) events, disaster assistance, methods of capturing armed and barricaded suspects, hostage rescue, special weapons and search and rescue. Team members are on-call 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The SWAT Team’s current robot (ReconRobotics Throwbot XT, purchased in 2015), has recently become non-operational and its outdated electronics are too costly to repair. This equipment is used in critical incidents to remotely gather video and audio information which helps determine the location of barricaded and/or armed subjects, the presence of hostages, and room/building configurations. The robot is a critical tool that allows for greater stand-off distance and provides SWAT with situational awareness, increasing officer safety.
The Schedule of Approved Capital Assets in the Adopted Budget for Fiscal Year 2022-2023 includes an Agilemesh Sentinel Camera System for the SWAT Team. Based on a demonstration of the Agilemesh system, the SWAT Team recommended to the Sheriff that a replacement robot would be a better use of funds.
The Sheriff requests to establish the Schedule of Approved Capital Assets in the Adopted Budget for Fiscal Year 2022-2023 to purchase a ReconRobotics Throwbot 2 in the amount of $17,370 in lieu of an Agilemesh Sentinel Camera System for $20,000. In addition, Sheriff requests a waiver of competitive bidding requirements and sole source award to ReconRobotics of Edina, Minnesota for purchase of the proprietary ReconRobotics Throwbot. The Throwbot 2 is the next generation of the Throwbot XT that the SWAT Team already has specialized training with and extensive expertise of. Retraining on a new system would incur substantial cost in time and money.