Title: Smart Waste & Recycling Solutions

Background: Aurora, Illinois Technology Procurement

The City of Aurora is a city of 200,000 located in the Fox Valley in northwest, Illinois. Aurora is known as the City of Lights because in the 1800s the leaders of our city were implementing the latest technology when they decided to use electric streetlights throughout town – making Aurora one of the first cities in the nation to do so.

Part of the current strategic plan to continue Aurora’s growth is to be a leader in technology and innovation, embracing new ideas and initiatives to change. Mayor Richard Irvin’s goal is to make Aurora the technology leader of the Fox Valley region and the State of Illinois.

As part of that plan, Aurora has a Technology Strategic Plan to guide us through those initiatives and programs. Our guiding principles for the technology strategic plan are straightforward and align with the vision for our city – 1) to create and embody One IT, through shared products, processes, people, and partners; 2) Customer Experience, through providing quality solutions and services that ensure customer confidence and satisfaction; and 3) Agility & Smart Sourcing, by using the most efficient and effective blend of resources to meet our city’s ever changing business demands. Our mission is to deliver innovation, smart solutions, services and provide first class customer service.

In supporting those plans, Aurora has partnered with Marketplace.city to support technology procurements. For technology topics areas, Marketplace.city manages the process to provide Aurora with the market landscape of companies and solutions, comparable implementations, contracts and pricing options, and various procurement options. The City of Aurora then picks the solution, vendor and procurement vehicle that best fits their needs.

This process helps us achieve our goals to use technology to best serve our citizens while providing use with speed, efficiency, and transparency throughout the process. Through it we seek to shorten timelines, lower the resources used by both The City and the vendor community and achieve fair partnerships. Intergovernmental (piggybacking) language is included as part of our standard contract, to increase scalability for the market via Marketplace.city, and avoid other governments having to perform the same due diligence. Aurora seeks to use piggyback contracts and buy directly wherever possible.

The following is an opportunity overview and associated vendor response form for interested vendors to read and complete to be included in the reporting and selection process. Thank you in advance for your participation in the process.

Aurora requires all awarded vendors to be registered with the city and additional information may be requested at the time of the award. An overview of the process and information can be found here.

Please see here for complete bidding information for the City of Aurora.

An example of a standard City of Aurora contract can be found here.

The City of Aurora may cancel any or all parts of this bid and reserves the right not to proceed with a contract. The City has the right to terminate any agreement with the vendor, in whole or in part, for any reason or if sufficient funds have not been appropriated to cover the estimated requirement of the Services not yet performed, by providing vendors with thirty (30) days’ notice specifying the termination date.

Any information shared with The City of Aurora through this process is subject to the Illinois Freedom of Information Act.

For any questions about the content or the process, please email [email protected].

The City of Aurora seeks a comprehensive waste management solution that incorporates modern IoT technology to streamline waste collection, monitoring, and removal. Project leaders plan to initially deploy "smart" garbage bins at the Phillips Park, Golf Course and Zoo, before expanding their footprint throughout the City depending on need & success.

This is a city-wide initiative led by the Department of Information Technology supporting Public Facilities and Parks & Recreation.

City leaders originally evaluated connected garbage bins in 2019 and early 2020, but the pandemic and shifting internal priorities led to that project being placed on hold. In advance of summer 2023, with full utilization of public spaces, this project has been given new priority.

Currently, Aurora maintains standard waste management infrastructure at Phillips Park. During peak months Phillips Park hosts nearly 100 customer-facing 50-gallon garbage drums with open-air tops, leaving them exposed to weather and pests. These are emptied 4 times per week regardless of time of year, event schedules, and nearby activities at substantial cost to the City. Fluctuating customer levels and uneven use of the available garbage bins means that set pick-up schedules are not perfectly responsive to need.

The City of Aurora seeks a comprehensive waste management solution that incorporates modern IoT technology to streamline waste collection, monitoring, and removal. Project leaders would like to receive notification when fill levels are reached so they can be emptied on demand, provide tracking and trending data to staff, and provide a cleaner environment for residents.

To assist your proposal design, Aurora project leaders are including the below ArcGIS image of Phillips Park, Golf Course, and Zoo, where white dots represent existing standard waste receptacles:

As with many other of its technology procurements, the City of Aurora prefers an "As a Service" model rather than purchasing the hardware outright. Project leaders are looking for a partner to provide, install, and maintain the Smart Garbage stations at a set recurring cost. Additionally, the chosen solution must provide a portal to monitor the status and "fill levels" of all installed garbage bins. This system must be able to push alerts to designated email addresses and mobile phone numbers. A hardware warranty and periodic cleaning is expected.

Project leaders anticipate needing between 30-40 connected garbage bins, and would like to work with a partner to identify the correct breakdown of quantity and bin type. For example, they would like some installations to include side-by-side recycling units/compartments. Additionally, they prefer high-capacity bins with the capability to "compact" the trash within for storage efficiency until pickup. Ideally, they will also provide the ability for "hands-free" operation. The City may also wish to consider advertising options on selected bins as a source of revenue.

Beyond the benefits of Smart Garbage containers, project leaders are interested in other potential benefits that emerge from connected devices. Specifically, they are interested in converting Phillips Park, Golf Course, and Zoo, into a "smart park" where residents would have access to a public Wi-Fi network supported by hubs installed in the selected waste bins.

Vendors who do not provide Wi-Fi support options with their connected garbage bins solutions are still encouraged to submit a proposal.

• Capabilities
• Prior Experience
• Price & Model
• Approach & Implementation
• Value-Added Services

This Request for Qualification was released on Friday, March 3, 2023.

The City may require additional meetings or demonstrations to clarify points of the proposal. Qualified vendors will receive an invitation to respond to a Request for Proposal at a later date.

We will be accepting responses through Friday, March 24, 2023 at 5:00 pm.

The City of Aurora has partnered with Marketplace.city to support technology procurements. For selected topics areas, Marketplace.city provides The City of Aurora with the market landscape of companies and solutions, comparable implementations, contracts and pricing options, and various procurement options. The City of Aurora then picks the solution, vendor and procurement vehicle that best fits their need.

For this support and access to Marketplace.city, The City of Aurora has an MOU with Marketplace.city that they will include language in their contracts developed through the Marketplace.city process stating the vendor will pay Marketplace.city an administrative fee of 7% of the initial contract value, collected when vendor receives payments. The complete MOU can be found here.

Marketplace.city will confirm that agreement through a separate agreement with selected vendor(s).