At a special meeting on May 15, the board of the Southeast Alaska Power Agency (SEAPA) approved the purchase of 348 helicopter landing pad panels from Fibergrate Composite Structures of Dallas, Texas, for $135,360.
The 4-by-12 foot molded fiberglass grating panels are part of the Swan-Tyee Intertie Helipad Project, which will see the construction of 105 landing pads along the transmission lines' 261 towers. At its March 25 board meeting, SEAPA anticipated 40 to 50 pads can be set up this year, with the rest slated for next year.
The pads will be used to facilitate maintenance and easy access to the line for repair purposes. Over time, SEAPA operations manager Steve Henson explained, the pad network will be used by brushing crews as well.
The bid was not the lowest of the three submitted, which were evaluated based on competitive pricing, details in the Bidder Experience Record and the completeness and quality of bid documents. In its bid submission, Fibergrate Composite provided four examples of projects with fiberglass grating supply similar to the project specifications in scope, material and order size.
The lowest bid was submitted by J&S Service LLC of Anchorage for $130,798. However, none of the project examples it submitted were related to a supply of fiberglass grating.
In SEAPA's FY15 budget, $1.5 million was allocated for the project. Remaining funds will be dedicated to the next phases of the project, which will include installation of the helipads and ongoing quality control during installation. Once all the pads are completed, the total cost of their construction will amount to $3.3 million.
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