The Wood County Board of Developmental Disabilities has awarded a contract for a new fire alarm system.
At the May 15 board meeting, members approved Laibe Electric, Perrysburg, to update the fire alarm system on all buildings.
MDA Engineering, which did the design work, indicated in March that bids may come in above budget, said Scott McKeown, health and safety coordinator, at the meeting.
Laibe Electric’s low bid was $324,830 with $7,790 for alternate work to install a sleeve on existing underground duct work, said Scott McKeown, health and safety coordinator.
The total bid of $332,620 was well below the estimate, McKeown said.
The project was included in the 2023 Capital Plan with an estimate of $380,000.
Of the three bids received, Laibe was the “clear and obvious low bidder,” he said.
“They do feel they can complete the work without any difficulties,” McKeown said.
The two other bids totaled $379,395 and $414,600.
McKeown reported in March that the current fire alarm system was approximately 25 years old.
Control panels will be replaced as will pull stations, audio and visual alarm devices, smoke and heat detectors and annunciators.
Additional devices also will be placed as needed to bring the three campus buildings up to code.
Unlike the current systems, which are independent, the new system will have all three building fire alarms connected and able to communicate with the others, he said.
The largest per-building expense will be for the replacement of the fire alarm system at the school, where new requirements include voice notification and instructions instead of the traditional bell/buzzer alarm sound.
Also at the meeting, the board learned the Ohio House has revised Gov. Mike DeWine’s budget to allow for a wage of $17 in fiscal year 2024 and $18 in fiscal year 2025 for Home and Community Based Service providers in an effort to address the continuing shortage of direct support professionals.
