HomeMy WebLinkAboutRESPONSE - RFP - 7495 ROAD WEATHER INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR MAX BRT1
PROPOSAL FOR:
City of Fort Collins
Guardian Road Weather Information System
RFP #7495 MAX BRT
A. Vaisala Company History and Experience
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Table of Contents
A. Vaisala Company History and Experience 3
B. Scope of Work Compliance 6
C. Company Representatives 8
D. Vaisala RWIS Customer References 9
E. Proposed Products and Services 10
F. Completed Cost Summary Sheet 28
G. Equipment Specification Brochures 31
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A. Vaisala Company History and Experience
Vaisala understands and acknowledges all of the requirements in the City of Fort Collins RFP
Scope of Work Section. The Vaisala Guardian non‐invasive RWIS solution that we are
proposing for this project meets and exceeds these requirements. Guardian is an extremely
reliable, accurate and cost effective solution that will enhance the ability of the City of Fort
Collins Streets personnel to monitor and respond to adverse winter weather conditions
along the City’s MAX Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) on the Mason Corridor.
Vaisala is the largest manufacturer of weather monitoring instrumentation in the world.
We manufacture RWIS products for our Roads Division that are specifically designed to
withstand and remain operational in the extreme environmental conditions found at RWIS
stations (next to roadways) anywhere in North America.
Vaisala originally provided (under other contracts) the 8 RWIS sites that the City of Fort
Collins currently operates. With the installation of these 2 new sites, Vaisala will continue
to provide the City with excellent warranty response time utilizing our local Field Engineer
who lives in Longmont, CO. Vaisala also employs 5 more Field Service Engineers out of our
US headquarters Boulder offices. This pool of Service personnel is also qualified and
available to perform warranty work, should our Longmont Field Engineer be on vacation or
engaged elsewhere.
The cornerstone to the Vaisala approach to RWIS program development and maintenance is
built around the data and information the system provides. Tremendous amounts of
research and development have gone into developing solutions that provide value added
information derived from the observations captured from professional grade precision
instruments that form the backbone of the system. These value added data elements like
pavement forecast models, storm severity index, and maintenance performance
measurement tools take existing raw meteorological data and turn it into useful
information for maintenance operation teams. Those teams can then use that information
to make more efficient and effective maintenance decisions which results in lower costs and
higher levels of service.
The following proposal is built around that cornerstone approach. We will demonstrate
how the instruments we will provide meet or exceed the specifications in the request. We
will also demonstrate our capabilities for managing and delivering the project and how the
products and services we will provide are the latest state of the art technology with a
proven track record globally.
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Vaisala designs and manufactures 95% of all environmental sensors for our packaged RWIS
systems. This insures each system sensor meets the stringent requirements set forth by our
systems engineers. Other system vendors are integrators and are forced to compromise
their proposed system solutions by utilizing other vendor sub‐components and sensors.
One of Vaisala core strengths is retaining the design and engineering of key system
components in‐house. This way we can then control and engineer the type of quality and
design improvements necessary to keep up with demands of today’s RWIS market.
It is the policy of Vaisala to test every new RWIS site shipped as a complete system. Each
RWIS site including all electronics and environmental sensors is assembled in our Boulder
production facility and tested together to insure a seamless, reliable implementation in the
field. During this testing process, each complete RWIS site is operated for a specified test
period to insure reliable operation without failure. If a component fails during this test, it is
repaired and the testing process starts over. By following stringent QA/QC and ISO 9000
procedures, manufacturing and testing procedures the following benefits are realized by
the customer:
• Products that meet or exceed specification and accuracy
• Dependable operation in the field
• All levels adjusted before and after a burn‐in period to assure consistent operation
in the customer’s application
• Products that are matched together properly and tested as a unit
• Assurance that the product is standard and not a used or experimental prototype
• Equipment is backed by a premium warranty program
• Vaisala provides 24/7 customer help line via a toll free number or email submission.
As a leader and innovator in Road Weather Information, Intelligent Transportation Systems
(ITS) Systems, Vaisala is the only RWIS system provider with experience in installing and
supporting RWIS systems on the global scale, in diverse environments and for various
specific applications. Our RWIS products, services and activities meet and exceed the
requirements of our customers. Customers' perception of how well RWIS requirements are
met is our measure for Vaisala convincing quality and customer satisfaction.
Vaisala quality system is ISO9001 and AQAP‐110 certified. We utilize IEC and EN standards
for approvals and performance testing of our products. Our Accredited Calibration
Laboratory for pressure, temperature and humidity handles instrument calibration and
trace‐ability of measurements. All our members carry the responsibility of complying with
defined quality procedures and practices in all of Vaisala business areas. Everyone is
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responsible for quality in their own roles in business processes within Vaisala. We measure,
review, and improve our performance systematically and continually.
The Vaisala RWIS group is fortunate to supply our customers with meteorological sensors
and systems that are considered an industry standard in all other areas of environmental
measurements. Make no mistake about it, Vaisala sensors and systems are the preferred
choice of highly credited governmental agencies, including the National Weather Service,
the Meteorological Services of Canada, and all branches of the United States Military. Visit
our web site at www.vaisala.com for more information about our activities.
Vaisala has been instrumental in raising the awareness of pavement weather monitoring
technology and its use in transportation winter maintenance and highway operations
throughout the world. As the demand for RWIS technology has grown, Vaisala has grown
from a small entrepreneurial company to a world‐recognized leader in RWIS technology
that includes ITS applications. Vaisala has RWIS installations in over 46 U.S. states, six
Canadian provinces, and multiple European and Asian countries. These installations consist
of over 5,000 weather stations that use a variety of communication types including direct
wire, phone line, LAN, WAN, radio, radio/microwave, satellite, spread spectrum, fiber optics
and CDMA.
Vaisala as an organization was established in 1936 in Helsinki, Finland, and incorporated in
1944. Vaisala is the world’s largest meteorological systems manufacturer and weather
solutions provider in the world. Currently we operate in 20 offices and 6 manufacturing
facilities around the world employing over 1,400 people.
Vaisala maintains the largest Research and Development facility for meteorological sensors
and systems in the world in Helsinki, Finland. Vaisala expertise in design, installation, and
maintenance of road weather information systems has been established during the last 40
years of continuous involvement in the measurement of weather data necessary for
protecting the environment.
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B. Scope of Work Compliance
All of the equipment components and software hosting Vaisala intends to supply for our
Guardian Solution under this contract meet and exceed the specifications as described in
the City of Fort Collins RFP document, specifically the Scope of Work RWIS Requirements
section. Vaisala is in receipt of Addendum No. 1, and we have read and understand it.
Vaisala proposes to supply our completely non‐invasive Guardian system at both of the new
RWIS locations as outlined in the RFP. Vaisala will install and commission the Guardian
equipment, and implement a hosted solution to archive and display the RWIS data in our
Navigator platform. The new RWIS site data will be seamlessly integrated, by our Data
Services Group, with the existing City RWIS sites already displayed in Navigator. Alternately,
Vaisala can configure the existing City of Fort Collins SCANWeb server to collect and display
the new RWIS site data.
The Vaisala Guardian solution has been specifically engineered for monitoring and
displaying pavement surface conditions, surface friction, pavement temperature and
roadway video images, from the 2 locations as specified in the RFP.
The Guardian non‐invasive pavement sensors (not installed in the road surface or pavement
structure) shall be mounted onto 2 existing round pole structures, at locations as specified
by the City of Fort Collins. These sensors will continuously monitor and report roadway
surface status conditions including dry, moist, wet, slush, frost, snow and ice. They will also
report the reduction in friction caused by these conditions in a range of .01 to 1.0. Each
Guardian site shall also have an integrated still frame video camera for capturing images of
the roadway surface during inclement weather. These snap‐shot images along with the
surface condition, friction and temperature data shall be transferred via IP cell phone to the
Vaisala hosting servers. The information from the Guardian site shall be collected by,
managed and displayed (hosted) by Vaisala. The City of Fort Collins Street Department
personnel will access the RWIS data via web browser with secure login over the Internet.
Vaisala is proposing to supply our standard “one‐year on‐site warranty” to cover all RWIS
hardware and software to satisfy the requirements of the City of Fort Collins RFP. The one‐
year Vaisala warranty will commence from the day of commissioning of a new site. The
proposed on‐site warranty Vaisala is proposing is identical to our standard factory warranty,
except it includes on‐site services to affect any repairs necessary to bring the system back
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into operation during the first year. A copy of our written standard factory warranty is
provided below.
Vaisala hereby represents and warrants all products manufactured and supplied by Vaisala
and sold hereunder to be free from defects in workmanship or material during a period of
twelve (12) months, from the date of completion of commissioning, except for products for
which a special warranty is given. If a product proves to be defective in workmanship or
material within the period herein provided, Vaisala will repair or at its option replace the
defective product or part thereof free of charge and otherwise on the same conditions and
with the same warranty as for the original product or part.
The warranty is a factory warranty meaning that it covers all expenses, labor, and parts
required to bring the equipment up to its normal operating condition and delivered back to
the agency by the Vaisala factory. During the term of the warranty period, all parts supplied
by Vaisala, including 3rd party equipment, which have been replaced as part of the warranty,
and in accordance with the requirements of this section, shall be placed at the disposal of
Vaisala. This equipment warranty does not apply when the defect has been caused
through;
an act of god, or any traffic and non‐traffic accident that resulted in equipment
damage;
misuse or other unsuitable or unauthorized use of the product or negligence or error
in storing, maintaining or in handling the product or any equipment thereof;
wrong installation or assembly or failure to service the product or otherwise follow
Vaisala installation and service instructions, including any repairs or
modifications or changes of the Product as well as any adding to it without Vaisala
prior notification;
This warranty is expressly in lieu of and excludes all other conditions, warranties and
liabilities, expressed or implied, whether under law, statute or otherwise, including
without limitation ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR OF FITNESS
FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE and all other obligations and liabilities of Vaisala or its
representatives with respect to any defect or deficiency applicable to or resulting
directly or indirectly from the products supplied hereunder, in which case
obligations and liabilities are hereby expressly cancelled and waived.
Vaisala liability shall under no circumstances exceed the invoice price of any product for
which a warranty claim is made, nor shall Vaisala in any circumstances be liable for lost
profits or other consequential loss whether direct or indirect or for special damages.
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C. Company Representatives
The primary contacts at Vaisala that will be responsible for responding to questions
regarding company proposals and for coordinating demonstrations, interviews, etc. are:
Mark Feldman
Western Regional Business Manager
(314) 705‐0522
Mark.feldman@vaisala.com
Matt Krueger
Project Management Team Leader
(303) 402‐4788
matthew.krueger@vaisala.com
Steve Held
Vaisala Field Service Engineer
(303) 402‐4720
steven.held@vaisala.com
Rhys Campbell
Data Services Manager
(303) 262‐4054
rhys.campbell@vaisala.com
Mark Feldman will provide presale business support to the City including system software
consultation, hardware configuration, solution pricing and RWIS site survey support prior to
project implementation. Matt Krueger is the manager of our Project Management Office in
Boulder. His team will support the City by coordinating the delivery, installation and
commissioning of the new RWIS sites. Steve Held will supply installation, servicing and
warranty support for all RWIS equipment in the field. Rhys Campbell is the manager or our
Data Services Group in Boulder. His team will support the City by implementing, furnishing
and maintaining the Navigator hosted software solution.
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D. Vaisala RWIS Customer References
Idaho Transportation Department – 94 statewide RWIS sites provided, installed and data
hosted, featuring 88 Non‐Invasive Pavement Sensor locations.
Dennis Jensen
Maintenance Quality Specialist
PO Box 7129
Boise, ID 83707
(208) 334‐8472
dennis.jensen@itd.idaho.gov
Alaska Department of Transportation – 55 statewide RWIS sites provided, installed and
maintained statewide.
Jack Stickel
Highway Database Management Supervisor
3132 Channel Drive
Juneau, AK 99801
(907) 465‐6998
Jack_Stickel@dot.state.ak.us
Nevada Department of Transportation – 75 statewide RWIS sites provided, featuring 20
Non‐Invasive Pavement Sensor locations.
Jon Dickenson
ITS Project Manager
1301 Old Hot Springs Road
Carson City, NV 89706
(775) 888‐7560
jdickinson@dot.state.nv.us
Washington Department of Transportation – 90 statewide RWIS sites provided, featuring 4
Non‐Invasive Pavement Sensor locations.
Jay Wells
Maintenance & Operations Staff Superintendent
1301 310 Maple Park Avenue SE
Olympia, WA 98504‐7358
(360) 705‐7863
wellsj@wsdot.wa.gov
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California Department of Transportation District 11 San Diego – 6 RWIS sites provided,
data hosted and serviced in District 11, featuring 2 Non‐Invasive Pavement Sensor locations
Brad Hegner
Maintenance Area Supervisor
24171 Japatul Valley Road
Descanso, CA 91901
(619) 445‐2673
brad.hegner@dot.ca.gov
E. Proposed Products and Services
Vaisala proposes to supply our completely non‐invasive Guardian system at both of the new
RWIS locations as outlined in the RFP. Vaisala will install and commission the Guardian
equipment, and implement a hosted solution to archive and display the RWIS data in our
Navigator platform. The new RWIS site data will be seamlessly integrated, by our Data
Services Group, with the existing City RWIS sites already displayed in Navigator.
Vaisala will be glad to assist the City of Fort Collins Street Department personnel with the
siting of the 2 new Guardian locations, at no cost to the City. Once the locations are picked
Vaisala will partner with the City as follows to install the sites:
Vaisala Project Manager will coordinate delivery, installation & commissioning
details with City.
Equipment for both locations will be shipped to City Street Department.
Vaisala Field Engineer will install Guardian packages on round poles.
City will supply any traffic control required for installation or warranty work.
Vaisala will provide bucket truck for all work unless City desires to provide it.
City will have 120VAC power installed and wired into RoSA RPU enclosure.
Vaisala will activate IP cell modems (most likely on Verizon).
Vaisala Field Engineer will align, calibrate and commission Guardians into operation.
Vaisala Data Services will add new sites to Navigator hosted display.
Vaisala will provide 2 hours of on‐site User Training to City Street personnel.
Vaisala will provide 12 months of data hosting and cell service (from date of
commissioning).
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Vaisala will perform any on‐site warranty service work required on all equipment,
for 12 months from date of commissioning.
A complete set of electronic manuals on CD will be provided to the City at time of
equipment delivery. These manuals may include, software user guides, individual
equipment user guides and RWIS site maintenance manuals. Vaisala is proposing to provide
these electronic manuals incidental to the items in our proposal.
Each Guardian shall include all hardware, software, and licenses provide the following:
Shall accurately determine the following surface conditions: dry, moist, wet, slush,
frost, snow and ice
Shall independently measure and report the amount (thickness) of water,
frost/snow and ice, in any mixture of these, on the road surface
Shall measure and report the water equivalent of snow up to 0.78 inches
Shall report a grip value corresponding to changes of friction caused by water, ice
and a combination of them.
Shall use an eye‐safe class 1 laser to measure readings.
Shall report a level of grip that correlates with the coefficient of friction within ±0.10
(RMS) of absolute friction value.
Shall detect the onset of slippery conditions and shall detect ice layers as thin 10 µm
Shall provide a surface temperature resolution of 0.2 ºF in the range ‐40°F to 140°F
with accuracy of 0.5 ºF in typical freezing conditions
Shall provide good quality color video images of the roadway with a resolution of
640 pixels by 480 pixels.
Shall provide air temperature readings.
Shall provide relative humidity readings.
Shall provide dew point temperature readings.
Each Guardian site:
Shall operate successfully without any moving parts
Shall have sensors of a weatherproof design and provide stable operation over a
temperature range of ‐40°F to 140°F and 0‐100% RH, non‐condensing.
Shall conform to Vibration standard IEC 68‐2‐6, Global Outdoor, 2G
Shall have electronics, other than the sensors themselves, enclosed inside a NEMA 4
non‐corrosive metal enclosure that is resistant to damage by weather.
Shall operate with power provided in a range of 100‐130 VAC at 50‐60 Hz.
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Each Guardian Camera:
Shall be environmentally protected with a housing to allow for successful operation
in winter weather in temperatures from ‐10°F to+120°F. The housing shall keep the
camera and lens free of rain and snow or other roadway contaminants.
Shall operate with power provided by the Guardian
Vaisala Navigator Hosted Data Management and Web Site Service will include the following:
Data and image collection from each Guardian site every 5‐15 minutes, 365 days a
year
Data Quality monitoring and reporting
Data storage and archiving
Data and image display via Vaisala hosted Web site.
The Web site will be designed to display all the parameters reported by the
Guardian in a user friendly graph and tabular format.
The Web Display shall show water, ice and frost/snow amounts (thicknesses) and
grip/friction on the same graph for a minimum of a 24‐hour period.
The Web display shall provide ‘outcomes’ information based on parameters
reported by the sensors in order to ensure simple understanding of the data
As previously stated, Vaisala proposes to supply our state‐of‐art non‐invasive technology
including the DSC‐111 Pavement Condition Sensor and DST‐111 Pavement Temperature
Sensor to fulfill this requirement of the City of Fort Collins RFP.
It is important to note that the Vaisala DSC‐DST sensors have been formally reviewed by
multiple agencies with flying colors with respect to accuracy, reliability and functionality.
Copies of these reviews are available upon request from Vaisala. Also paramount, is our
satisfied customer installation base, which is huge in comparison to other vendor non‐
invasive pavement sensors. And finally, the reliability of the DSC‐DST sensors has been
nothing short of phenomenal. Less than one percent of all sensors shipped come back for
repair. This is what differentiates the Vaisala DSC‐DST sensors from the competition.
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Vaisala Guardian Sensor Installation
Vaisala is the first company in the
world to introduce and operationally
deploy a non‐invasive pavement
sensor with friction measurement and
reporting capability. Our DSC & DST
sensors have been tested, evaluated
and compared to in‐site pavement
sensors by various third party
scientific organizations, transportation
research groups, and transportation
departments interested in non‐
invasive monitoring. The success in reliability, pavement condition accuracy, and friction
information accuracy has led many transportation departments to abandon the installation
of “invasive” in‐road pavement sensors, and instead deploy Vaisala DSC/DST pavement
sensors. Other transportation departments are now experimenting with our sensors in a
mobile environment for data collection and spreader control applications. The City of Fort
Collins has also purchased one of our DSP310 Condition Patrol mobile sensor packages.
Vaisala has successfully implemented over 1500 roadway DSC‐DST installations worldwide,
including the following US DOT RWIS systems:
Idaho DOT
Nevada DOT
Utah DOT
Wyoming DOT
Colorado DOT
City of Fort Collins
City of Longmont
City of Denver
The above customer list is only a small portion of the total DSC‐DST deployment. A full list of
deployments is available upon request.
The DSC‐111 & DST‐111 both are designed with a protective barrel which recesses the
lenses, and comes with a durable protective housing that keeps the lenses virtually free of
dirt build up caused by traffic and weather conditions. Additionally, these sensors have an
auto‐compensation algorithm to automatically adjust the readings taken to compensate for
minor dirt build‐up on the lenses. Vaisala experience with lense dirt buildup causing
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reading errors (necessitating lense cleaning) has been virtually non‐existent at the hundreds
of installations deployed across the US. We also have deployed these same sensors with
identical housings on our mobile DSP310 platform, and have not had any problems with
dirty lenses in this application either. Vaisala does however strongly suggest lense cleaning
as part of a normal RWIS preventative maintenance routine once a year as a standard.
Vaisala offers an optional aiming laser tool kit to initially align the DSC‐DST pair to the exact
measurement footprint location on the roadway surface, and for use with periodic
maintenance or re‐alignment. Sensor calibration is accomplished by software command on‐
site or remotely when the roadway is dry. Calibration is automatic upon command.
Surface Condition Sensor DSC‐111
The unique DSC111 sensor eliminates the
service disruption, which was previously
associated with the installation of road weather
stations. Remote installation means that there is
no requirement to slot‐cut the surface or close
the road. The sensor may be installed in a
remote location on a pole adjacent to the road,
or as an addition to the RWIS station. The
spectroscopic measuring principle enables
accurate measurement of the amounts of water,
ice, and snow. Water and ice are measured
independently of each other, enabling DSC111 to
accurately report the surface states. DSC111
provides an accurate measure of the presence of
ice crystals well before they cause the road to become slippery. Winter maintenance
personnel are therefore able to carefully monitor all of the weather elements, which create
a hazardous driving surface, in order to take the appropriate remedial action.
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Surface Temperature Sensor DST‐111
The unique DST111 sensor provides a remote
alternative to measuring road surface
temperature. By measuring the infrared
radiation emitted by the surface and applying
intelligent signal processing, DST111 provides a
reliable remote surface temperature
measurement. DST111 provides reliable results
in conditions where most of the commercially
available infrared sensors fail. At night time,
when the road surface is cooling under a clear
sky, conventional infrared sensors provide an
error of up to ‐3 deg C, due to emissivity
conditions of the road surface. DST111 compensates
for this error by its unique design. Installation of DST111 is easy, requiring no slot cutting or
closure of the road. Supplied with solar/gsm options, the sensor is ideal for stand‐alone
operation in remote or in‐fill locations and on bridge decks. The sensor is simply installed on
a mast, or existing structure beside the road. DST111 can also be installed alongside an
existing Vaisala Road Weather Station. Together with DSC111, which measures surface
state and the DST111 form a versatile stand‐alone weather station.
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Guardian Data Logger (RoSA)
Vaisala will supply a basic RoSA Remote Processing Unit (RPU) platform with IP cell modem
for each Guardian system. The RoSA RPU has been successfully deployed at many
transportation agencies worldwide. The RoSA is an NTCIP 1204 compliant data logger with
extremely low power requirements. The RoSA data logging system was designed
specifically for measuring, collecting and pre‐processing environmental and pavement
surface data for the transportation industry. It measures data from a selected set of
analogue and digital sensors, calculates extremes and averages on a selected time basis,
records data on solid state memory, and transmits data in adjustable intervals and message
formats as required. The RoSA electronics along with the IP cell modem will be housed in a
weatherproof BOX322, to provide physical security and protection from the elements. The
RoSA will provide stable operation over the temperature range –40ºC to +60ºC and will not
be damaged by temperatures of –40ºC to +70ºC within the cabinet.
Navigator Hosted Software
Vaisala is proposing our Navigator II cloud based, hosted software solution. Vaisala has a
long history in data acquisition and display from RWIS networks. For the City of Fort Collins
RWIS project, Vaisala proposes to utilize an emerging Visualization platform, Navigator,
which is designed to supply observations and forecast information (if available) in one
multi‐featured application. This platform is well‐suited for the support of the City of Fort
Collins maintenance and operation activities during hazardous weather conditions.
Visualization techniques emphasize the use of novel strategies in order to create intuitive
displays that are easy to navigate and comprehend.
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The examples that follow in this section demonstrate some of the functionality currently
employed in the system. This
system shall be further augmented
to meet the future needs of the
City of Fort Collins. The interface
between the end user and road
weather station, Navigator, is an
integral part of the RWIS network.
The ability of the user to effectively
navigate through the available
weather information in order to
make appropriate operational
decisions is a major factor in the overall success of the system. Early on Vaisala realized the
importance of designing a user interface that was powerful, yet easy to use. Today, the
Vaisala RWIS server and Navigator software are capable of performing various data
collection and display functions, and offer interface capabilities for integration with other
relevant devices or third party service providers.
Navigator Login & Fully Configurable Station Map View
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The Navigator user interface software allows our customers to utilize a simple web browser
to access and manipulate data. The application of web browser ensures ease of use, as well
as, enables better future training of the RWIS application software to new users. Navigator
software sets the standard in the industry for a reliable, easy‐to‐use RWIS interface.
Vaisala has three data centers globally with two located on different electrical grids in the
United States for the highest resilience. These centers work together, and to date have
offered 99.9% uptime, for over a decade, and for all systems housed in these data centers.
Our data centers provide highest levels of redundancy, and our primary data center is
manned 24/7/365.
Vaisala data servers and IT services act in a primary, secondary and tertiary pattern.
Primary and secondary are auto‐sensing, and aware of any network or component
failure. In the event of such a failure, no human intervention would be required to
move to secondary systems. Our tertiary co‐location center offers full disaster recovery
capability utilizing separate communication providers in addition to being on a separate
power grid.
We take the confidentiality, integrity and availability of data very seriously, and adhere
closely to the Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) and relevant National
Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) policies and recommendations. We believe
these standards are critical in defining good data management practices.
Thee Vaisala data servers will poll the new Guardian sites directly to collect and store data.
Vaisala intends to provide the City with a 24/7/365 data hosting and display service. This
service is monitored and maintained 24 hours a day ensuring the continuous provision of
sensor and forecast data. In addition, we
offer a toll free 24/7 helpdesk facility
should users encounter any issues or
require assistance. The Navigator web
based interface application consists of a
set of dynamic web pages that can be
viewed with a simple Internet
connection. The UI software resides on
the Vaisala hosted server, and provides users access to RWIS data, via a password protected
website, from any computer with internet and web browser. Some of the services offered
by Navigator have already been described in the previous sections, but also include:
Menus provide easy access to the station summary pages and station group maps,
with additional links for groups containing traffic sensors and temperature data
probes.
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Depending on the equipment installed on an RPU, the user interface is capable of
displaying data from sensors providing pavement, sub‐surface pavement,
temperature, precipitation, wind, relative humidity, dew point, visibility, barometric,
solar radiation, water level, snow depth, traffic, and air quality information.
Device control capabilities are available within the software to allow manual
activation of devices such as bridge sprayers and variable message signs. Software
display provides information such as activation times and device status.
Advanced bridge sprayer capabilities are provided (if applicable) allowing the user to
monitor and configure automatic activation parameters from the application.
Historical data is viewed in either a table or graph format allowing users to analyze
the data over a user specified time period.
Capability to view station summary data, detailed station data, and view station
warnings from a mobile device such as a BlackBerry or other handheld device
equipped with a suitable web browser.
The main principle of the Vaisala Navigator display is to ensure critical information is never
more than a click or two away. The Camera Wall page is another significant application
available in the Navigator II. Users are able to view all of the most recent images, as well as,
zoom in on each individual location, if required.
Camera Wall Page
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Individual Camera Image Zoom
Real‐time RWIS data and information for a single site is readily available via the interface.
The following illustration shows an example for a specific site. Here, again, the end user is
able to quickly ascertain how a specific location is being impacted by weather and
pavement conditions.
Data can be viewed in graphical and tabular formats. The graphs are configurable, so that
users can add as many or as few parameters as needed.
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Another key feature in the Navigator User Interface is the ability to compare and contrast
road weather information with other relevant data, including weather radar, satellite and
traffic counting data, all in the same application. With all this data in the same place you
can easily see how the weather affects traffic flow, and plan your actions accordingly. In
addition, some features can be conveniently animated for easy representation of moving
weather events and developing situations that need monitoring.
Radar and Satellite Data Overlay Display
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As part of Vaisala data hosting and management capabilities, we have developed
automated data quality and control software, which scans through the collected data and
immediately identifies any faults or abnormal data sets detected by the system. The
software generates a report summary and forwards it to Vaisala Service personal and to the
end user, if required.
The unique capability of automatic RWIS
data and sensor monitoring, 24 hours a
day, has enabled Vaisala to:
provide real‐time visibility of data
quality from deployed ESS
help maintain high levels of
equipment performance and achieve
quick response to detected faults
be proactive with high level of service
offering to our customers during
severe weather conditions
If, and when, a fault is detected by the Vaisala RWIS monitoring software, a service request
will be created and assigned to a Field Engineer. Because the system is monitored on a
continuous basis, the Vaisala service team is aware of and already solving the problem,
before The City of Fort Collins is even aware of problem.
Vaisala will provide 2 hours of Navigator User Training as part of our proposal, to be
performed at the City of Fort Collins Street Department offices after the new sites are
operational.
Optional Tailored Reports
In addition to the automated pre‐set reports offered, we also work with clients to ensure
the development and deployment of system and operational reports. Depending on the
optional modules that may also be selected (Forecasting, MDSS, salt management etc) a
variety of reports can be generated and offered through the software.
A good example of partnering with our clients to produce tailored reports is the Storm
Performance Index, which was developed by Idaho Transportation Department, and
automated into Navigator by Vaisala. The adoption of winter maintenance performance
measures has created the ability for ITD to quantify storm event severity, index the
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response into a measureable efficiency and then allow the ITD districts to make
adjustments to improve winter operations that were not previously recognizable or
quantifiable. In the words of ITD, this has been highly beneficial to themselves and the
traveling public. In fact ITD has experienced a reduction in fatal vehicle accidents and also
reduced winter maintenance costs since the introduction of the index.
The Storm Performance
Index report can be
generated on demand using
Navigator software or
automated, so that an Excel
report is emailed to the user.
It should be noted that data
from a Vaisala remote
surface condition sensor
(DSC111) is required to
produce the report.
Operator Alert Feature
The alarm component of the Vaisala software offers several features to warn users of
potentially hazardous road conditions. The system supports several warning alternatives,
including warning lights, variable message signs, and cellular communication systems. The
alarm feature generates alarms upon receipt of new RWIS data, dependent on user‐defined
criteria. Alarms may be localized to the user’s workstation or transmitted to a remote
communication device. In addition, e‐mail information can be sent to the specified address
warning that an alarm was generated.
Navigator allows users to set a variety of alarms, which can involve single or multiple
parameters of data from the RWIS sites. The system is user configurable and thresholds can
easily be set by simply clicking on pre‐set drop down boxes, using a color coded slider or
typing in their threshold values.
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Alarms are activated when the
user defined thresholds are met
with warning lights, accompanied
by sound, appearing on the
screen. However each user can
also set the system to send email
or SMS alerts. These may be
enabled or disabled at any time.
Such feature makes it easy to use
a different set of alarms overnight
or during the weekend
for example.
Future Options
As a complete solutions provider, Vaisala has considerable experience in the area of
Decision Support Systems. Our experience in this area was gained through close interaction
with decision makers in other weather critical transportation sectors, including road
departments, aviation administrators, and military personnel. In all cases, decision makers
need weather and/or pavement observations and forecasts to support effective and
efficient operations. However, “lessons learned” have shown that decision makers many
times receive information which, in reality, is not pertinent to their operations. Working
with these customers as a partner, Vaisala has constructed an approach that is designed to
focus on those weather‐related elements that are of most value to decision makers, in
terms of both tactical and strategic operations. This and other modular additions to the
software package make the Vaisala offering a true one stop shop. Other options include:
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Maintenance Decision Support System (MDSS)
Additional GUI layers, such as radar, satellite, lightning etc
Site specific weather forecasts (including the import of weather forecasts from 3rd
party suppliers)
Pavement weather forecast graphing
Specialized reports, such as salt management
The Vaisala Navigator II platform also supports collecting, storing and displaying mobile
RWIS data from our DSP310 mobile RWIS platform.
Vaisala acknowledges that all data collected from the City of Fort Collins RWIS sites are the
property of City. Vaisala makes no claim on this data, or will we utilize the data in any way
outside of our contract obligations to the City of Fort Collins.
Optional Vaisala Manager MDSS Services
Vaisala’s proposal reflects the fact that a successful solution for any transportation agency
must include a partnership between the solution provider and the agency. Vaisala feels this
philosophy is what makes all the difference between a true solution for a customer and just
another product for the customer. Vaisala takes great pride and extends great effort to
partner with agencies in order to build complete RWIS equipment and service based
solutions that can be used year round as decision support tools. A robust decision support
tool encompasses many aspects, but in summary can help saves lives, increase public
safety, improve and mitigate traffic congestion issues, and can save money through
effective decision making. Vaisala understands operations are performed continuously
during winter storm events with a large number of DOT/City agency plows and considerable
chemical usage. Each agency’s winter operations can include a variety of anti‐icing and de‐
icing materials and the MDSS service can be used to provide treatment recommendations.
Vaisala’s MDSS solution encompasses the Federal MDSS prototype which is being utilized by
a number of customers across the snow belt of the US.
Optionally, the City of Fort Collins may choose to contract with Vaisala to upgrade to our
Manager Road MDSS as a complete winter operations solution. Manager MDSS includes
weather forecasting, predictions of pavement conditions prior to and during a winter
weather event, and recommendations for anti‐icing or deicing application times, rates and
material selection. The City could utilize the MDSS both as a strategic tool prior to the start
of a winter weather event and a tactical tool during an event. The information will be made
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available 24/7 via a web based internet accessed by username and password, through the
hosted Navigator Visualization package.
In addition to the Vaisala’s real‐time forecasting services, the Vaisala MDSS solution will
include treatment start/stop times for various chemical types such as (NaCl, MgCL2, CaCl2,
CaliberTM, IceSlicerTM), and other chemical materials as well as chemical amount. The
Vaisala MDSS solution will also support user defined treatment scenarios. The Vaisala
MDSS Treatment recommendations are a 24 hour prediction, and include:
Anti‐icing (pre‐treating) recommendations
Deicing application times
Deicing application rates
Proper chemical to use
User defined treatment recommendations
Optional MDSS Mobile Observation and Consultative Services
The Vaisala Manager MDSS solution also supports mobile observation data ingestion.
Mobile observations can drastically improve MDSS effectiveness. The Vaisala hosted
Navigator solution supports and encourages mobile observation ingestion. The mobile
DSP310 unit that the City of Fort Collins has already purchased will be integrated into
Navigator for real‐time map and tabular data display.
Vaisala can also optionally offer a graphical display solution within the Manager MDSS
Solution. Vaisala recognizes that the MDSS treatment recommendations and real time
forecasts need to be tailored to an individual agency’s maintenance area based on the
following criteria;
Separate sets of forecast/recommendation data will be available for each agency
end user that elects to participate in this program.
MDSS shall be available to managers and supervisors via web based internet access.
The total number of users will be determined by the number of users that elect to
participate.
Pavement predictions will be based on the typical existing roadway pavement
section within each region. Each user will provide the pavement as‐built information
as required.
Treatment recommendations and forecast of pavement conditions will be
determined using average plow cycle times and available application rates for the
deicers used by the agency. Each end user will provide this plowing information.
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The Vaisala solution includes an expert available at all times via phone or email to
provide additional details or clarification of forecasts and treatment
recommendations.
Vaisala understands that agency end users may or may not have AVL/GPS in
vehicles; however Vaisala will have the future capability to expand delivery of the
MDSS service to the plows through separately obtained in‐cab hardware/software
and also accommodate optional mobile weather sensors as mentioned above.
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www.vaisala.com
Vaisala – Your Road Weather Partner