ITEM:            CONSENT CALENDAR

                                     

4.         CONSIDER APPROVAL OF SOFTWARE AND HARDWARE PURCHASES FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 

Meeting Date:           March 15, 2004                      Budgeted:  Yes

                                                                                    Program/Line Item No.:  Various

Staff Contact: Inder-Mohan Osahan            (See Below)

                                                                                    Cost Estimate:  $46,575.00

 

General Counsel Approval:   N/A

Committee Recommendation: The Administrative Committee reviewed this item at its March 10, 2004 meeting and recommended _____________________________________. 

CEQA Compliance:   N/A

 

SUMMARY: Staff seeks authorization to purchase new, upgraded and replacement hardware and software for use at the District for various information technology functions. This equipment consists of computers, software and other peripherals that are used by staff in their daily functions.

 

RECOMMENDATION:  Staff recommends approval of expenditures not-to-exceed $46,575.00 to purchase the items listed in the table below:

 

ITEMS DESCRIPTION

ESTIMATED COST

ESRI 3-D Analyst software

$ 2,700.00

ESRI Arcpress

 400.00

ESRI Mr. Sid license

 1,600.00

Trimble Geo XT DGPS upgrade

 2,300.00

Handheld pocket PC for GIS

 900.00

Laptop upgrades for field data collection equipment

 5,800.00

Desktop computer replacements/upgrades

 2,700.00

Pilot server for Windows 2003

 1,900.00

Pilot computer for Windows 2003

 900.00

Backup software upgrades

 1,000.00

Video surveillance equipment for Water Demand Division

 2,300.00

Software/Hardware upgrades: memory, renew licenses, monitor switch, cables, firewall support etc.

 4,200.00

LCD panel replacement for the computer room

 700.00

Printer replacements

3,200.00

UNIX server for database to web integration

 1,100.00

DVD-burner and recordable DVD media

 1,000.00

Windows 2003 and exchange server software upgrades

 2,700.00

Adobe Acrobat 6.0 professional licenses + media

 2,500.00

Adobe Photoshop 7.0 licenses and media

 3,500.00

Mini-trolls transducers, programming cable/kit, handheld pc

 3,675.00

Firewall upgrade

 1,500.00

TOTAL

$ 46, 575.00

 

IMPACT ON STAFF AND RESOURCES:  The hardware, software, data collection equipment, development tools and peripherals listed in the table above are included in the Fiscal Year 2003-2004 budget, that includes an additional amount of $27,600 that was added to the original budget during the mid-year budget adjustment process. There are sufficient funds remaining to pay for these items in Account Nos. 99-9160 (Computer Equipment & Programs), 4-7858.51 (Fisheries Program Expenditures) and 4/5-9130 (Machinery & Equipment). To have the work completed at a low cost, staff will be installing the new hardware and configuring the new software in-house with support from the manufacturers and vendors of the equipment.

 

BACKGROUND:  The District’s computer network and information technology infrastructure allows staff to perform their daily tasks to support many required District functions. Over time, and with constant use of the equipment, the equipment wears out and/or needs frequent software updates. Examples of important functions requiring up-to-date equipment are staff monitoring of data loggers in the field that collect data around the clock, daily use of databases and programs to issue permits and log conservation and inspections information, preparation and presentation of financial records and constant use of email and the internet for research and to share data with other agencies and the public.

 

Starting in September 2003, the District began work on a geographical information system/global positioning system (GIS/GPS) system. This system will allow staff to visually represent data that has been collected over time. It will also allow staff and the public to understand some of the complex datasets that are hard to comprehend when represented in table and chart formats. GIS allows data to be analyzed by location and time series to show various trends that might be taking place for a particular area of interest. An example of a GIS product that will be developed in-house is a District map showing the locations of all production wells. The system allows various sized wells to be represented with various different shapes and/or colors. Staff could use the maps to determine the effects of over-pumping in a certain region. To support and develop the GIS program at the District, a number of software tools for 3-D analysis/map generation need to be acquired along with proper hardware to run and use them. Some of these tools have been acquired over the past few months and the list above includes a few more that are needed.

 

Computer viruses and hacking into unprotected computer networks are now very common events.  Staff has been monitoring and keeping the firewall and virus updates current to stop such attacks and constantly monitors the entire network to keep it fully protected from outside attacks. The tools and hardware used for this purpose need modification and replacement over time. Additionally, to deal with spam, staff needs to start evaluating the new Windows 2003 based email server software in addition to spam filters that are available today.  Staff loses valuable time due to spam and frequently requests that something be done about it. IT staff has been researching spam filters available and other ways of reducing incoming spam.

 

Staff training is a very important aspect of computing. A tool or program can be fully utilized only if the person using it is fully trained. Staff has scheduled regular peer-to-peer training as time allows and has also gone to off-site training as a group to meet their needs.

 

Based on lapsed time and usage of computer equipment and software programs, staff conservatively budgets for the IT related expenses each year. Keeping the equipment and software updated is necessary to have a 24 hour day, 7 day week, error free computing environment at the District.            

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