1.5.1 DSS-WISE JOFOC-signed.pdf

U.S. Department of Homeland Security Washington, DC 20472

Justification for other than Full and Open Competition

Test Program for Certain Commercial items for procurements exceeding the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (> $250,000) pursuant to FAR Subpart 13.5, including Brand Name

SSJ No.: FIMA-ACM-001

Date: September 10, 2020 PR Number: WX04538Y2020T

Pursuant to the requirements of the Competition in Contracting Act of 1984 (“CICA”), Title 41 U.S.C. §253, et seq., as amended, and under the authority of 41 U.S.C. §1901, et seq., as amended, as implemented by Federal Acquisition Regulation (“FAR”) 13.501 and consistent with the content requirements of FAR 6.303-2, this Justification for other than Full and Open Competition (JOFOC) sets forth in detail the basis, reasoning, and authority for the subject JOFOC, as noted below.

1. Agency and Contracting Activity.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Office of Chief Procurement Officer (OCPO) 500 C Street, S.W., Washington, DC, 20472, henceforth referred to as the “FEMA”.

2. Nature and/or description of the action being approved.

Nature of action. FEMA intends to procure on a sole source basis the DHS-tailored version of the Decision Support System for Water Infrastructural Security (DSS-WISE) software package, which provides automated dam-break flood simulation capability, from The University of Mississippi National Center for Computational Hydro-science and Engineering (UM-NCCHE). This will be a Firm Fixed Price (FFP) contract with an estimated total value of $270,000, with a Period of Performance of twelve (12) months with no options. This contract will be funded with FY20 one-year funds.

The DSS-WISE services were previously awarded under contract number HSFE60-15-C- 0036. The National Dam Safety Program will be continuing these services using the 12-month contract for which this justification supports, while it researches other systems, products and services that can support NDSP objectives.

Name and address of the contractor(s). University of Mississippi address on www.sam.gov is 113 Falker, University, MS 38677-9704. The Contractor’s Dun and Bradstreet Number or DUNS number is 067713560 and their Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code is 4B836. The Contractor’s URL is. https://www.olemiss.edu

3. Description of Supplies/Services.

The requirement is to provide a web-based automated dam-break flood simulation, mapping and human consequence assessment system for dam infrastructure in the USA using the Decision Support System for Water Infrastructural Security (DSS-WISE™) Lite system that UM-NCCHE developed under a 2015 contract between UM-NCCHE and FEMA. FEMA currently seeks to add capabilities to the DSS-WISE™ and develop an accompanying technical hotline. This will allow FIMA and the National Dam Safety Program to continue supporting dam safety and preventing dam failure nationwide.

Currently, there is no other example of a geospatial, web-based automated dam-break flood simulation, mapping and human consequence assessment system. The requirement will make improvements and add enhancements to the existing web-based application DSS- WISE™ Lite and its access portal DSS-WISE™ Web. The copyrights belong to the University of Mississippi and the development team at NCCHE has the intellectual property rights.

4. Identification of the authority permitting other than full and open competition.

The authority permitting the use of non-competitive procedures is located at 41 U.S.C.

§3304(a)(1), et seq. as amended, and FAR 6.302-1, “Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.”

5. Demonstration that the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited.

DSS-WISE™ Lite is web-based automated dam-break flood simulation and mapping system for any storage dam in the USA. From February 22, 2012 to November 14, 2014, it operated with the access provided by a graphical user interface called “DSS-WISE Prep” running under DSAT (Dams Sector Analysis Tool), which resides on a server hosted by Argonne National Laboratory. DSAT/DSS-WISE™ Lite capability is the result of a joint effort between the UM-NCCHE, the Dams Sector-Specific Agency of the Office of Infrastructure Protection at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) National Protection and Programs Directorate (NPPD), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and Argonne National Laboratory (ANL).

DSS-WISE™ Lite system is fully automated and operates without human intervention. It is available 24/7 and free of charge to authorized users. The statistics show that for 91% of simulations with 30m cell size and 81% of simulations with 10m cell size the results are sent to the user within one hour. The DSAT/DSS-WISE™ Lite system was in operation for 34 months and handled on the average 4 to 5 simulations per day. A total of 105 users from 41 states submitted 3020 simulations. A total of 952 dams were simulated, some of them for multiple scenarios.

Because of its excellent computational performance, DSS-WISE™ Lite has been used not only as a tool for screening and prioritizing dams but also as a real-time operational tool for emergency management. It has already been used as a decision making and emergency planning tool by dam safety engineers, flood emergency managers and decision makers. The testimonials from various states compiled by the ASDSO provides various examples of the use of during emergency situations.

DSS-WISE™ Lite is a unique system not only in the USA but also globally. There is no other example of a web-based automated dam-break flood simulation and mapping system that operates without human intervention. The system has been developed by the UM- NCCHE and has several unique characteristics:

The entire system relies on a code derived from a proprietary, state-of-the-art numerical model, called DSS-WISE™ (Decision Support System for Water Infrastructural Security) software, which is an integrated software for dam/levee break/breach flood simulation, mapping and GIS-based consequence analysis.

DSS-WISE™ was developed by the UM-NCCHE within the framework of SERRI (South East Region Research Initiative) Program, funded by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) and monitored by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). The University of Mississippi holds the copyrights and the development team at UM- NCCHE holds the intellectual property rights. The DSS-WISE™ Lite is not available from any other source.

The numerical model is unique and not commercially available from any other source. It uses a finite volume discretization to solve conservative form of shallow water equations on complex natural topography using a shock capturing scheme that is based on the HLLC (Harten, Lax, and van Leer – Contact) approximate Riemann solver to compute intercell fluxes. Because of this approach, the DSS-WISE™ Lite solve can handle mixed flow regimes and wetting and drying in a robust manner. Since it uses a regular Cartesian computational mesh, which can be directly a Digital Elevation Model (DEM), it does not require mesh generation and is particularly suited for automated processing.

The numerical model is parallelized to take advantage of the multi-core architecture of modern commodity computers. To further increase the computational speed, special data structures and special algorithms are implemented to track and compute only wet cells and their neighbors. In fact, as it was proven during a benchmark workshop organized by the ICOLD (International Congress on Large Dams), it is most probably the fastest shallow water solver available.

DSS-WISE™ Lite solver has been verified and validated using analytical solutions, laboratory experiments, and field data from past dam failures. DSS- WISE™ Lite solver has been verified and validated by two sets of blind tests carried out in collaboration with the USACE-MMC. The first blind test was performed using five dams. The second and more comprehensive study was performed using 25 dams.

DSS-WISE™ Lite is not just a numerical solver. It is important to note that there are a number of auxiliary modules that use special algorithms, artificial intelligence techniques, and metaheuristics in order to be able to process simulation requests automatically and generate all the input data for the model.

Some of these special algorithms include removal of the Dam area based on the dam type, estimating the unknown bathymetry of the reservoir and burning it into the DEM, and removal of the bridges.

DSS-WISE™ Lite system has been operational from February 2012 to November 2014. During this 34-month period, the development team has gained a unique experience on the automated handling of dam-break flood simulations and developed even special heuristics to correct some small user errors using heuristic methods. No other development team has this experience and a working set of models.

In conclusion, DSS-WISE™ Lite system is a unique capability in the USA and in the world together with its state-of-the-art, extremely fast and robust solver, and auxiliary programs to automatically handle dam-break simulations.

6. Description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as is practicable.

In accordance with FAR 5.101(a)(1), the current action was synopsized, and a sources sought notice was posted on September 3, 2002 on the Government Point of Entry, the website (beta.sam.gov). The posting closed on September 19, 2020. No interested party responded to the agency for this requirement.

7. Determination by the Contracting Officer that the anticipated cost to the

Government will be fair and reasonable.

The contractor’s proposal will be evaluated for price reasonableness based on the techniques described in FAR 13.106-3.

8. Description of market research conducted.

In February 2020, the agency reviewed existing DHS-wide and Multi-Component Contract Vehicles with DHS Strategic Sourcing Program Office in addition to vendors DHS FEMA FIMA has utilized for past DAM safety related requirements. While these organizations may be capable of performing dam/levee break simulation and consequence assessments, they do not have the existing web-based, analytic platform that can deliver rapid, automated dam-break flood simulation and mapping. To satisfy the Program requirements, the organizations identified in the market research would be required to develop such an analytical platform. The effort would not be in the best interest of the government, considering the invest made by DHS S&T, through SERRI, to the University of Mississippi to develop DSS-WISE Lite.

9. Any other facts supporting the justification.

The DSS Wide Lite system applicable to this acquisition is trademarked and copyrighted. It is not commercially available through other organizations. Market research would not uncover any other sources that would be able to provide this system and/or it’s respective abilities. The only other source with the emergency management experience and expertise necessary to develop a similar system to DSS-WISE™ Lite is Argonne National Laboratory. However, the costs to redevelop a dam mapping and assessment system would far outweigh the costs associated with soliciting a sole source contract to UM-NCCHE to continue DSS-WISE™ Lite services.

10. A listing of the sources, if any that expressed, in writing, an interest in the acquisition.

Argonne National Laboratories provided a Strategic Partnership Proposal on 01/14/2020. The agency evaluated the proposal and determined ANL did not have the existing web-based, analytic platform that can deliver rapid, automated dam-break flood simulation and mapping to meet the agency’s technical requirements. No other sources have expressed interest in this action.

11. A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before any subsequent acquisition for supplies or services required.

In order to increase competition for future acquisitions that are the same or similar in nature, FIMA has limited this procurement to a 12-month base structure. Over the course of the next 12 months, FIMA intends to continue market research and re-evaluate what other systems, services and products may be available before entering into a five-year contract with the university or another entity to as a follow on to this contract. The market research will include soliciting a Request for Information, and possibly utilizing other acquisition tools (i.e. industry days) to increase the potential of competition for any subsequent acquisition for this action.

12. Technical/Requirements Personnel Certification.

I certify this requirement meets the Government’s minimum need and that the supporting data, which forms a basis for this justification, is complete and accurate.

Gokhan Inci Date Contracting Officer Representative (COR)

13. As the Contracting officer for the subject action, I hereby certify that the justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

William Sanfilippo Date Contracting Officer (FEMA)