Brian J. McCarthy – Maintenance Services Manager – City of Los Altos
650-947-2879 – bmccarthy@losaltosca.gov
In person interview with Joe Bingold
Brian is responsible for purchasing all equipment for Los Altos municipal use. He buys equipment ranging in price from a couple hundred dollars to three hundred thousand dollars (sewer cleaning trucks). The purchase of a lawn mower is not the big of deal for him. He writes up the purchase agreement and submits it to the city council. He needs approval for purchases over 25K. The city council normally rubber stamps a purchase like this … although if Brian had chosen an unknown brand, that might raise some eyebrows. Further, the city council would probably not be pleased if Brian submitted a request to buy an automated mower that didn’t have a track record of success and could potentially cause harm to constituents.
The three biggest considerations in Brian’s mind when purchasing a piece of machinery are:
1. Operator Safety (or in the case of autonomous mowing, the safety of park users)
2. Reliability
3. Cost
Brian sees this technology as a big risk management concern. There are kids in the fields – super liability.
The purchasing decision follows this routine:
1. Division supervisor determines need for a new piece of equipment and gets Brian’s approval to pursue options.
2. Equipment vendors bring in their equipment for demonstrations.
3. Equipment operators provide their feedback on the different models.
4. Division manager recommends a model to Brian.
5. Brian, who has been closely involved in this process, determines what equipment to buy.
6. Brian brings an authorization request before the City Council for the equipment. Money has likely already been budgeted.
7. City Council Approves
8. Brian signs the purchase agreement.
The labor rate for the Los Altos operators is $80/hr fully allocated and $27/hr just labor.
Without some sort of special grant money to try out an automated mower, Brian does not see himself purchasing one of these.
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