015. JOFOC Data Device Corporation Rev 2b.pdf

PR: 4200733431

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION (NASA)

GEORGE C. MARSHALL SPACE FLIGHT CENTER

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION (JOFOC)

For Data Device Corporation (DDC) MIL-STD-1553 PCI Express Input/Output (I/O) Boards

1. Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.303-1(b)(1) – Identification of theagency and the contracting activity, and specific identification of the document as a “Justification for other than full and open competition.”

This document is a justification for other than full and open competition prepared by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC): The procuring agency is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the contracting activity is MSFC.

2. FAR 6.303-2(b)(2) – The nature and/or description of the action being approved:

This justification provides the rationale for contracting by other than full and open competition to award a sole source purchase order with Data Device Corporation (DDC) for the MIL-STD-1553 PCI Express Input/Output (I/O) boards in support of the avionics system testing and development within the Integrated Avionics Test Facilities (IATF) which includes the System Integration Labs (SIL), the Software Development Facilities (SDF), and the System Integration Test Facilities (SITF). These labs perform the integration and testing of the avionics systems and flight software for the new launch vehicles.

3. FAR 6.303-2(b)(3) – A description of the supplies or services required, to meet the

Agency’s needs (including the estimated value):

The proprietary hardware DDC brand name MIL-STD-1553 PCI Express boards are required to support the MSFC IATF labs under the Vehicle Integration project within the Space Launch System (SLS) program. The total estimated cost of this effort is $758,232.00, and the estimated lead-time for delivery is 12 to 14 weeks.

4. FAR 6.303-2(b)(4) – An identification of the statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition:

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 10 U.S.C.

2304(c)(1), as implemented by FAR 6.302-1, for acquisition of supplies or services from only one source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.

5. FAR 6.303-2(b)(5) – A demonstration that the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited:

The rationale supporting the use of 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1) is for acquisition of supplies or services from only one source as described below.

The MIL-STD-1553 PCI Express I/O boards are DDC’s proprietary hardware. DDC designs, manufactures, and sells direct the MIL-STD-1553 boards with their proprietary design implementation of the MIL-STD-1553 protocol and embedded AceXtreme ®.

These 1553 boards will be used with other existing equipment to support the development of Advanced Real-Time Environments for Modeling, Integration, and Simulation (ARTEMIS) real-time simulation software and test avionics models and/or real avionics. These DDC boards provide multiple Remote Terminals (RTs) per channel;

proper operation of interrupts in the RedHawk Linux real-time operating system; and the ability to support multiple boards per real-time system. These features allow the DDC boards to provide 1553 real-bus traffic to support the ARTEMIS C-1 Block 1B Cargo mission, Explorer Upper Stage (EUS) builds, and existing Integrated Avionics Test Facilities (IATF) labs. DDC boards are currently deployed throughout the IATF labs with an established compatibility with the real-time operating system of the Concurrent computers and other hardware in the IATF labs, development, and test lines. No other product is available to meet all the requirements without requiring extensive re-design and re-writing of software code that would severely impact the condensed schedule supporting EUS and other ongoing IATF work.

6. FAR 6.303-2(b)(6) – A description of the efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as practicable, including whether a notice was or will be publicized as required by Subpart 5.2 and, if not, which exception under 5.202 applies:

A notice to the Government Point of Entry (GPE) website (beta.sam.gov) was published on September 23, 2020 through October 7, 2020, in accordance with FAR Subpart 5.2.

This posting informed potential sources of NASA’s intent to award this sole-source brand- name purchase order to DDC. The results of this synopsis are summarized in Section 10 below.

7. FAR 6.303-2(b)(7) – A determination by the contracting officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable:

The Contracting Officer’s signature on this document indicates that the Contracting Officer has determined that the anticipated cost to the government will be fair and reasonable. The Contractor shall be required to submit a proposal to be evaluated and negotiated by the Government. Prior to execution of the contractual instrument, a proposal analysis will be performed. The proposal analysis will ensure that the final agreed-to price for the contract action is fair and reasonable. Pricing will be determined fair and reasonable based on results of comparison of the proposed price with catalog, public list and historical prices.

8. FAR 6.303-2(b)(8) – Description of the market research conducted, and the results, or a statement of the reasons a market research was not conducted:

Market research and product evaluations were conducted by the ES53 Simulation Development engineers based on internet resources, in-depth market knowledge, and product evaluations. Candidate 1553 boards from AIM, Alta Data Technologies (AltaDT), Condor (GEFaunc), and DDC were obtained and tested for evaluation from February 2007 through April 2009. The primary requirements tested for real-time applications in the SIL included:

1) reproducing the AF-1 bus as defined by the IP&CL spreadsheets, both as a Bus Controller (BC) and a Remote Terminal (RT)

2) performance of bus analyzers in relation to information captured and the timing accuracy of the captures

3) usage as a Bus Monitor in the data recorders DDC 1553 boards met these primary requirements without issue. The research and evaluation demonstrated the 1553 boards meeting the requirements necessary by this acquisition were not available from another manufacturer. The evaluation determined DDC is capable of meeting all the Government requirements.

Additionally, NASA MSFC has purchased approximately seven hundred and seventy five 1553 DDC Boards through over eight previously awarded procurements. Market research has been conducted for each of the previous purchase orders through the GPE website, and no request for consideration has been received to date.

9. FAR 6.303-2(b)(9) – Any other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition:

Other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition, such as technical data packages, specifications, engineering descriptions, statements of work, or purchase descriptions suitable for full and open competition are not viable due to the proprietary nature of DDC’s design implementation and embedded AceXtreme ®. The DDC 1553 boards are manufactured in their facilities. DDC incurred the expense of internally designing a board with the MIL-STD-1553 protocol using their software and electrical circuits. DDC does not sell their AceXtreme ® software as a standalone product. Other vendors using the MIL-STD-1553 protocol cannot provide the same capabilities as the 1553 board designed internally at DDC. The DDC 1553 boards are utilized throughout the IATF labs, test, and development lines. This DDC 1553 board has been used within the IATF labs since the first lab creation over nine years ago. The Government has a substantial investment in the capabilities of its existing labs, test, and development lines.

Because of the proven compatibility and functionality of the DDC 1553 boards with the real-time operating system of the Concurrent computers, AltaDT boards, Microgate boards, Curtiss-Wright boards, and IATF written software code; all of the existing hardware and software would have to be re-evaluated with a competing product. This re-evaluation to determine the acceptability of another product would result in a multi-year SLS launch schedule slip. In addition, the re-evaluation, re-coding, and redesign would exceed $7M using currently estimated man hour costs, and the Government would not expect to recover that additional cost.

10. FAR 6.303-2(b)(10) – A listing of the sources, if any, that expressed an interest in writing in the acquisition:

A notice of NASA’s intent to award this sole-source action was synopsized on the GPE website (beta.sam.gov) per FAR Subpart 5.2 (See Section 6 above). The synopsis was posted on September 23, 2020, and closed on October 7, 2020, with no request for consideration being received.

11. FAR 6.303-2(b)(11) – A statement of actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before any subsequent acquisition for the supplies or services required:

The Agency will continue to examine the market in the future for alternative solutions or new sources before executing any subsequent acquisitions for the same requirements.

Space Launch Systems (SLS)/Data Device Corporation Sole Source

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

SIGNATURE PAGE

I hereby certify the facts in this justification and any supporting data used for this justification are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge.

Digitally signed by ANITA CROSS Date: 2020.10.13 12:19:29 -05'00'

Anita Cross Avionics & Software Ground Systems Test Branch, ES53 Technical Representative

I hereby certify that the above justification is complete and accurate to the best of my knowledge and belief. In addition, I hereby determine that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable.

Hervie B. Williford Contracting Officer

CONCURRENCE:

Jason T. Detko Procurement Officer

APPROVED:

Carl P. Jones Center Competition Advocate

ANITA CROSS