By Jim Bloch
Watson Brothers Service Company underbid Superior Heating and Cooling, Inc. by more than $100,000 to win the contract to replace the old dehumidification unit at the Port Huron Water Filtration Plant.
The city council voted unanimously at its regular meeting March 24 to award the work to Watson Brothers with its low bid of $136,220. The firm is based in Port Huron.
The bid of Superior, located in Columbus Township, was $243,250.
“The environment of the Water Filtration Plant’s chemical service building is controlled and maintained by a boiler heat system and an industrial dehumidification unit,” said City Manager James Freed in his memo to the council. “Recently, the dehumidification unit stopped working, quickly causing a humid environment and condensation buildup created by the temperature differential between the water and the building interior.”
If the dehumidifier was an automobile, it would qualify as an antique.
“The dehumidification unit was installed in 1999 on the roof of the chemical service building,” said Freed. “On average it removes 167 pounds of water an hour, or 480 gallons a day from the plant. It is an effective method of controlling humidity and moving air which in turn protects the integrity of the plant itself and the equipment it houses. If left un-addressed, in a very short time the condensation and moisture buildup will cause paint and protective coatings to peal from pumps, pipes and motors and moisture to build up in control panels and electrical equipment.”
The aging dehumidifier has had increasing mechanical problems.
“The recent failure of the unit comes after a series of breakdowns and repairs over the last two years,” Freed said. “A local heating, venting, and air conditioning company assessed the unit and recommended replacing the unit entirely given its age and repair history.”
Freed said the repair had not been budgeted. The city’s budget runs July 1-June 30.
“It will be a budgeted item in your July 1 budget,” said Freed, as heard on the recording of the meeting posted on YouTube. The lead time on the project is 20 weeks. Freed said the new dehumidification unit would likely arrive for installation in July.
Council members made no comment about the purchase and voted 7-0 to approve the contract award to Watson Brothers.
Jim Bloch is a freelance writer based in St. Clair, Michigan. Contact him at bloch.jim@gmail.com.
