The City of Sugar Land’s Department of Innovation (DOI) recognizes the importance of building bridges that spark creativity and help innovation thrive in our community. The department’s Forming Unique and Strategic Engagements (FUSE) partnership program created an opportunity to work with Fort Bend Independent School District (FBISD) through internships, externships, and mentorships. This partnership has helped establish relationships, expose students and educators to local government services, and provide real-world experiences to students in the community. Recently, DOI worked with FBISD’s James Reece Career and Technical Center to provide internships to two students in the City’s Fleet Services Division. The partnership creates an avenue for career development and recruitment opportunities in skilled positions like Fleet Maintenance positions. The internship demonstrates the importance of aligning classroom learning with real-world experience. At the James Reece Career and Technical Center, students in the Transportation, Distribution, and Logistics course pathway learn in a fully equipped and functioning automotive facility. This opened up the possibility of another partnership with the City’s Fleet Services Division related to preventative maintenance.

The Fleet Services division of the Environmental and Neighborhood Services Department (ENS) is responsible for repairing and maintaining the City’s fleet of vehicles and equipment. The Fleet Services division currently supports an array of vehicles and equipment, which are used for critical emergency response and those that provide essential City services. The vehicles and equipment used for such purposes vary significantly; however, they all require preventative maintenance services at specific intervals based on the manufacturer’s recommendations. The Fleet Services division currently performs such services in-house. However, partnering with FBISD and providing the students an opportunity to experience real-time training for preventative maintenance services on specific vehicle types within the James Reese Career Technical Center will benefit both parties through this pilot initiative. The Fleet Services division will be able to re-position staff and assign alternate tasks with time saved by coordinating preventative maintenance through FBISD. In addition, the City can benefit by reducing extended downtime for vehicles that need non-complex, routine preventative maintenance services.

The Agreement includes the following for the City of Sugar Land:

• The City will contact the Center’s Shop Manager to schedule vehicle service and provide requested information such as the vehicle operator’s name, telephone number, unit information, and any other information requested by the Center;
• The City will be responsible for providing parts and fluids for the service of its vehicles;
• Designates the City’s F-150 vehicles as the white fleet to be serviced; and
• Sets up an inventory at the Center in an area designated for it by the Center. The City’s initial inventory would consist of vehicle oil, 10 air filters, 10 cabin filters, 1 set of tires, and transmission fluid, among other items.

The Agreement includes the following for FBISD:

• The Center, through its students, will provide preventative maintenance services for the City’s white fleet;
• The Center will use the City’s Auto Fleet Preventative Maintenance Checklist when performing maintenance on any City vehicle;
• The Center will provide appointment availability for the City to schedule services;
• The Center will attempt to meet a 1-hour maximum wait time for routine preventative maintenance services and/or state inspections;
• Provide services for the pricing agreed upon and incorporated in the Agreement;
•  The Center’s Shop Manager will generate one (1) pricing sheet/invoice monthly and forward it to the City’s Fleet Manager for review and payment processing; and
• Will allow the City to store one (1) vehicle on-site at the Center for use by City employees while their vehicle is being serviced.

It is in the intent of the Parties that the Agreement shall automatically renew annually for four (4) successive one-year unless earlier terminated through 30-day written notification.

The partnership is being funded through the Fleet Services division’s annual repair and maintenance account. The pilot program will be launched upon approval of this Agreement. 

The Environmental and Neighborhood Services Department and the Department of Innovation recommend the City Council authorize an interlocal agreement between the City of Sugar Land and Fort Bend Independent School District for a pilot program to provide preventative maintenance service to designated City fleet vehicles.