PORT OF SEATTLE 
MEMORANDUM 
COMMISSION AGENDA             Item No.      6a 
Date of Meeting     July 12, 2011 

DATE:    June 30, 2011 
TO:     Tay Yoshitani, Chief Executive Officer 
FROM:    Dave Soike, Director, Aviation Facilities and Capital Program 
Wayne Grotheer, Director, Aviation Project Management Group 
SUBJECT:  Design and Construction of Airfield Lighting Control and Monitoring System 
Upgrades at SeaTac International Airport (CIP #C800415) 
Amount of This Request: $2,109,000       Source of Funds: Airport Development Fund 
State and Local Taxes: $48,000          Jobs Created: 30 (Total Project) 
Total Estimated Cost: $2,109,000 
ACTION REQUESTED: 
Request Port Commission authorization for the Chief Executive Officer to 1) proceed with the
design of phase 1 of the Airfield Lighting Control and Monitoring System (ALCMS) project; 2)
execute purchases and authorize Port Construction Services (PCS) and Port crews to selfperform
work for phase 1 of the project; and 3) execute a contract for the phase 2 consultant,
hardware purchase, and resulting software upgrades. The total cost of the ALCMS Upgrades
project at the SeaTac International Airport (Airport) is $2,109,000. This request seeks a single
Commission authorization to move forward with design and construction of phase 1, selection of
a phase 2 design consultant, execution of a phase 2 contract, purchase of hardware, and
necessary final testing. 
SYNOPSIS: 
Airfield lighting is a vital component of infrastructure that is necessary to operate the runways at
night or in challenging low visibility conditions, such as heavy fog in the early fall. It is a key
component of an all-weather Airport. This project will increase the reliability of the airfield
lighting control system. This authorization is for both phases of the project. Phase 1 includes
design and construction work in two areas; installing improved communication cable in a looped
arrangement beneath the airfield, and raising a radio antenna to improve emergency back-up
communication capability if the underground cable system ever fails. The phase 1 field work
includes both design and construction because the work is weather dependent and needs to be
completed during the dry season of this summer and fall. Phase 2 of the project is not weather
dependent and includes programming design, hardware purchase and installation, and necessary
final testing.

COMMISSION AGENDA 
Tay Yoshitani, Chief Executive Officer 
June 30, 2011 
Page 2 of 6 
Long winter nights in Seattle and a high degree of low visibility weather such as fog in the
Seattle area warranted installation of an all-weather aircraft landing radar Instrument Landing
System (ILS) by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on all three runways at the Airport
by 2005. The FAA owns and operates the radar component of these instrument landing systems,
while the Port owns and operates the airfield surface lighting systems that work in concert with
the ILS. Without such systems during periods of low visibility, flights must be re-routed. 
The proposed upgrade of the airfield lighting control system will greatly reduce the possibility of
a system failure during low visibility weather that would result in aircraft being diverted to
Portland, Moses Lake, or Vancouver, BC, which would cause disruption to travelers and extra
costs for our customer airlines in Seattle. Improvement of the Airport's lighting system is
necessary to boost reliability and compliance with FAA regulations. This request is for a total
project estimated at $2,109,000.
BACKGROUND: 
Since 2008, the constantly evolving airfield has seen many features added to the control system
such as the third runway's lighted stop bars, beacon, emergency generators, and additional
control stations. In addition, runway safety status lights elsewhere on the airfield have been
added as have many additional lighting circuits and regulators. The overall lighting system was
designed in 1999 and installed by 2005 during the long third runway construction. The lighting
system is experiencing periodic interruptions and must be upgraded to meet FAA response
requirements. The system is beyond its design limitations and has a demonstrated history of
interruptions in the Aircraft Traffic Control Tower (ATCT). This has resulted in over $100,000
of additional maintenance staffing costs since 2008. 
To ensure reliability of the system in low visibility conditions, it is necessary to perform the
phase 1 field work during the fair weather summer months. As a result, this request includes
both design and construction work to occur this season. This season's work includes design,
ordering necessary equipment, trenching for additional electrical and communication cables,
raising the height of the back-up communication antenna to ensure it has adequate line-of-sight 
connectivity above large aircraft to the ATCT, and various connections to equipment and control
stations. The phase 2 work will be accomplished during the following year as it is not weather
dependent. 
As part of phase 1, PCS and maintenance crews and small works contractors will install new
single-mode fiber optic cable and patch panels on the airfield and ramp tower. PCS crews will
install a new Airfield Lighting Vault radio antenna at a higher location. The Port Electric Shop
will relocate the existing transmitter and receiver on the airfield lighting vault to the new
antenna, which will improve the backup radio communications between the Lighting Vault and
the ACTC.
Phase 2 work consists of programming and hardware installation. Staff will advertise, select and
contract with a consultant to perform the phase 2 work during the following year. This
authorization includes the approval and budget to award contracts. 
These ALCMS upgrades and improvements must be in compliance with FAA requirements.

COMMISSION AGENDA 
Tay Yoshitani, Chief Executive Officer 
June 30, 2011 
Page 3 of 6 
PROJECT JUSTIFICATION: 
This project to upgrade the existing ALCMS is necessary in order to stabilize the system's
performance and ensure compliance with FAA regulatory requirements. It improves ALCMS
infrastructure and equipment, brings system and operating software and equipment up to date,
and ensures system control and monitoring meet FAA requirements. 
The existing multi-mode fiber cable and the radio communication have distance limitations. The
multi-mode fiber is not capable of adequately transmitting the increasing amount of necessary 
data over the current length of cable. Radio communication no longer has direct line of sight to
all antennas as a result of the new lighting vault location. This creates intermittent
communication outages and system lockup. 
Existing ALCMS communication monitoring, as designed in 1999 and installed by 2005, is
inefficient and does not accurately reflect airfield conditions in real time as required by FAA
Advisory Circular 150/5345-56. The Airport's ALCMS software code needs to be redesigned to
improve reporting capabilities to meet the FAA Advisory circular.
Past airfield projects did not consistently upgrade the ALCMS hardware and software resulting
in a lack of ALCMS processing speed and storage. Past projects used varying programming
logic and architecture, which ultimately has affected system performance and reliability while
adding undue complexity to the system. Past software upgrades did not meet program
documentation requirements, thereby making future ALCMS program designs more difficult.
The result is a system that intermittently does not meet the regulatory intent of Federal Aviation 
Regulation 139 regarding the reliability of airfield lighting controls.
Existing Allen-Bradley ALCMS software has limited development capability and has reached
the end of its support cycle by the manufacturer, Rockwell Automation. Development software
varies by location and version due to incremental expansion of the system over multiple years. 
An upgraded level of development software will be required (Phase 2 work) to meet the demands
of future programming. 
PROJECT SCOPE OF WORK AND SCHEDULE: 
Scope of Work: 
The project is divided into two phases, each with a separate defined scope and schedule. They
are as follows: 
Phase 1: Existing multi-mode fiber will be replaced with single mode, and the existing 
radio antenna mounted on the north wall of the Airfield Lighting Vault will be relocated 
to a new 60-foot antenna. This work will be performed by Port crews and small works
contractors. Estimated Cost: $965,500. 
Phase 2: An FAA-certified consultant will be selected to optimize the ALCMS 
programming to comply with existing FAA requirements. The design and hardware
purchases would be extensively supported by the Facilities and Infrastructure Department 
and the Electric Shop. Estimated Cost: $1,143,500.

COMMISSION AGENDA 
Tay Yoshitani, Chief Executive Officer 
June 30, 2011 
Page 4 of 6 
Schedule: 
Phase 1 Design                        July 2011 
Procurement of Material                  July-August 2011 
Phase 1 Complete                      October 2011 
Phase 2 Consultant Procurement             July 2011-March 2012 
Phase 2 Complete                      September 2012 
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: 
Budget/Authorization
Summary: 
Original Budget                                $1,125,000 
Revised Budget                              $2,109,000 
Previous Authorizations                                $0 
Current request for authorization                      $2,109,000 
Total Authorizations, including                       $2,109,000 
this request 
Project Cost Breakdown:           This Request          Total Project 
Construction Costs                        $945,000               $945,000 
Sales tax                                 $48,000                $48,000 
Outside professional services                  $863,000               $863,000 
Aviation PMG and other soft                $253,000              $253,000 
costs 
Total             $2,109,000             $2,109,000 
Budget Status and Source of Funds: 
This project was included in the 2011-2015 capital budget and plan of finance as a business plan
prospective project, under CIP #C800415 with a budget of $1.125 million. The budget was
increased because staff decided to provide airfield lighting control redundancy by encircling the
entire airfield with fiber optic cable, updating the original budget to reflect material inflation, and
applying new markups to reflect current procedures. The budget increase has been transferred
from CIP #C102166, Aeronautical Renewal & Replacement, resulting in no change to the
Aviation capital budget. The funding source will be the Airport Development Fund.

COMMISSION AGENDA 
Tay Yoshitani, Chief Executive Officer 
June 30, 2011 
Page 5 of 6 
Financial Analysis and Summary: 
CIP Category              Renewal/Enhancement 
Project Type               Renewal & Replacement 
Risk adjusted Discount rate      N/A 
Key risk factors              N/A 
Project cost for analysis         $2,109,000 
Business Unit (BU)           Airfield 
Effect on business performance   NOI after debt service will increase 
IRR/NPV              N/A 
CPE Impact              CPE will increase by $0.02 by 2013, but no
change to business plan forecast as this
project was included. 
Lifecycle Cost and Savings: 
Based on this information, the additional operating and maintenance costs currently incurred will
be significantly reduced by completion of this project.
ENVIRONMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY:
The new single mode fiber optic cable will transmit data more efficiently and reliably than the
existing multi mode fiber, requiring less maintenance. Computers and touch screen monitors
will be Energy Star compliant.
STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES: 
This project is directly aligned with the Airport's strategic goal of "operating a world class
international airport". The project enhances and improves the Airport's ALCMS performance,
reliability, control, reporting, monitoring capabilities and equipment. The system will comply
with the latest FAA Advisory Circular 150/5345-56 design specifications.
TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE SUMMARY: 
Upgrading the lighting system to be compliant with FAA regulations ensures consistent
operations for our airline business customers and travelers within our community, while also
benefitting our environment by minimizing the diversion of aircraft to other airports which in
turn requires a greater amount of fuel burn.
ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS: 
ALTERNATIVE 1: Proceed with design for the ALCMS airfield and radio upgrades (phase 1),
issue an RFP for a software consultant for phase 2 and award phase 2 contract. This request
seeks Commission authorization to move forward with design and construction of phase 1 and
phase 2. This is the recommended action.

COMMISSION AGENDA 
Tay Yoshitani, Chief Executive Officer 
June 30, 2011 
Page 6 of 6 
ALTERNATIVE 2: Do nothing: This option fails to correct the ALCMS control problems,
monitoring issues, and lack of FAA reporting capabilities. This is not the recommended
alternative.
OTHER DOCUMENTS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS REQUEST: 
None. 
PREVIOUS COMMISSION ACTIONS OR BRIEFINGS: 
None.