P06 FAR-13-Brand-Name-Justification_redacted.pdf

United States Department of Agriculture Limited Source/Brand Name Justification

FAR 13.106-1(b)(1) – Simplified Acquisitions Control No. (if applicable) FY25-FPAC-Justification-020

1. Identification of the agency and the contracting activity.

Requesting Activity Agency: Requiring Agency: U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Florida

Contracting Activity: FPAC Acquisition Division, 1400 Independence Ave SW, Washington, DC 20250

2. Description of supply or service required to meet the agency’s needs.

Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) requires Video Conferencing equipment to be installed at their Florida State Office.

3. The rationale or circumstances for limiting competition.

Brand Name: USDA FPAC requests approval of a brand name justification for the procurement of teleconferencing equipment for the issuance of a firm fixed delivery order for Cisco or Polycom teleconference equipment. The teleconference service in use by the USDA is managed and controlled by the Department’s Customer Experience Center. This Center has reviewed and certified ONLY Polycom and Cisco devices for use in the USDA. This requirement is not flexible or waiverable. Therefore, any new components that are purchased by the component Agencies within USDA MUST comply with that standard.

4. A description of the market research conducted and the results or a statement of the reason market research was not conducted.

Findings from market research revealed that there is other teleconference equipment available but Cisco and Polycom are the only brands that are certified by CEC to be compatible and secure for use by USDA. CEC has an extensive program to review and certify hardware (for compatibility and security) for these services. As more equipment becomes available through the certification process, CEC will add that to the acceptable standards. As more equipment becomes available from different vendors, the explicit need for a brand name will decrease.

5. Recommended source(s).

Global Com Inc.

Colossal Contracting LLC

Certifications

Supporting data that is the responsibility of technical or requirements personnel and which form the basis for this justification are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge.

Jessica Holmes Business Support Specialist

The information contained in this justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief and in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 13.106-1(b)(1), I hereby determine the circumstances described above deem only one source, or limited sources, reasonably available and competition is precluded for the reasons indicated in this document.

Nancy Harris Contracting Officer