19GE5025P0109-JOFOC-signed.pdf

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

SECTION 1: IDENTIFICATION OF THE AGENCY AND THE CONTRACTING ACTIVITY

Department of State Contracting Activity Office of Acquisition Management

Requiring Activity

The requirement is to provide commercial grade systems furniture, office casegoods, ancillary furniture, equipment, and accessories for the Paris Lease Fit-Out project at Capital 8 to meet government furnished contractor installed (GFCI) requirements.

Mission France has sixty-nine (69) displaced employees with no permanent workstation until the Capital Lease Fit-Out (LFO) is complete. Any procurement slippage will extend severe overcrowding in the Chancery and incur landlord/general contractor (GC) liquidated damages.

SECTION 2: NATURE AND/OR DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTION BEING APPROVED

This is a justification to award a new, firm-fixed price contract on an urgent and compelling sole source basis to Absolute Office at 6 Rue Biscornet, 75012 Paris, France for the supplies and/or services described in Section 3 on behalf of the Requiring Activity. This contract is for Absolute Office is to furnish, deliver, and install the complete FF+E package for the LFO project. The action is required immediately to keep the LFO on the critical path and avert daily delay penalties.

SECTION 3: DESCRIPTION OF SUPPLIES/SERVICES REQUIRED TO MEET THE AGENCY’S NEEDS

The requirement is to provide a complete package of commercial-grade systems furniture, office casegoods, ancillary furniture, equipment, and accessories. The FF+E package is required to fulfill the government-furnished, contractor-installed (GFCI) requirements for the Paris Lease Fit-Out project.

The total estimated value of this requirement is . The required delivery date is October 2025 to align with the overall project schedule and building occupancy. This action will reduce the sever overcrowding in the existing Chancery and avoid liquidated damages due to schedule delays.

SECTION 4: IDENTIFICATION OF THE STATUTORY AUTHORITY PERMITTING OTHER THAN

FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

This statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 41 U.S. Code 1901 as implemented by FAR 13.501(a) and FAR 13.106 (b) ; specifically, this authority permits contracting on a sole-source basis.

SECTION 5: DEMONSTRATION THAT THE PROPOSED CONTRACTOR’S UNIQUE

QUALIFICATIONS OR THE NATURE OF THE ACQUISITION REQUIRES USE OF THE AUTHORITY

CITED

Award to any source other than Absolute Office would result in unacceptable schedule delays and substantial additional costs to the U.S. Government. The use of cited authority is justified for the following compelling reasons:

The Paris LFO construction project is being expedited using an unconventional approach - Landlord Fit Out -due to the dire urgent needs for the mission. The furniture procurement was initially expected to be the landlord/contractor’s responsibility; however, an unforeseen obstacle arose when the landlord advised the project team that furniture procurement is not permitted under their lease contract. This introduced the need for an extremely urgent USG procurement of furniture. Due to the late notification, this left the project minimize the financial impact of this late change, the Government must now sole source the identical, fully coordinated furniture package t

-driven the critical path of the Mission France recovery effort following the eviction of sixty-nine (69) staff members shoehorned into existing Embassy space; the remaining two thirds are working under a temporary telework waiver that expires in December 2025 rowding, erodes productivity, and jeopardizes mission readiness.

Delays would result in liquidated damages that allows the landlord and the GC to levy daily delay charges per day package drives final commissioning and move in, any re-procurement or redesign of the furniture would trigger a full re-coordination effort of electrical, data, and life safety systems. Such a redesign would push the schedule by a minimum of two hundred (200 the Government would incur $2 million; at the upper bound, the exposure reaches $6 million, or almost nine post Facilities Management staff, extended construction administration, and the lost productivity associated with protracted telework and overcrowded swing space.

the furniture and infrastructure is already fully integrated redesign for the entire project, negate months of technical coordination, and require infrastructure relocation —activities that specific shop drawings, factory orders, and installation sequences that allow furniture delivery to dovetail with the GC’s milestone dates.

dealer already services another Embassy section within the building, allowing common spare parts second furniture platform would compel the Embassy to stock redundant parts, double the technician training burden, and complicate future churn moves—hidden costs that are estimated at $12,000 per year, or $60,000 net present value over five years.

- Delay beneficial occupancy by at least six months, immediately triggering liquidated damages of up to $30,000 per day and exposing the Government to $6 million in avoidable penalties;

- Extend the Embassy’s overcrowding crisis, forcing 46 displaced employees to remain in substandard telework or swing space conditions at demonstrable loss of productivity; and

- Impose duplicative redesign, procurement, and lifecycle costs that cannot be recovered through competition.

–(B): competing the requirement would cause “unacceptable delays in fulfilling the agency’s requirements” and “substantial duplication of cost to the Government that is not expected to be recovered through competition.” Consequently, an urgent and compelling

SECTION 6. DESCRIPTION OF EFFORTS TO ENSURE THAT OFFERS WERE SOLICITED FROM AS

MANY POTENTIAL SOURCES AS IS PRACTICABLE, INCLUDING WHETHER A NOTICE WAS OR

WILL BE PUBLICIZED AS REQUIRED BY FAR SUBPART 5.2 AND, IF NOT, WHICH EXCEPTION

UNDER FAR 5.202 APPLIES

Due to the urgent need to avoid schedule delays, financial impacts, and the unique nature of the requirement detailed in Section 5, soliciting offers from other sources was determined to be impracticable. Other potential sources, including GSA Global Supply, were considered but determined to be unsuitable because their offers do not meet the existing, unique technical requirements mandated by DOS/OBO for this project, nor would they prevent the costly delays associated with re-coordination of the project design.

SECTION 7. DETERMINATION BY THE CONTRACTING OFFICER THAT THE ANTICIPATED COST

TO THE GOVERNMENT IS FAIR AND REASONABLE

The Contracting Office has determined that the anticipated price(s) will be fair and reasonable based on GSA contracts and pricing agreements. By signing the justification, the Contracting Officer makes a determination that the to the Government is expected to be fair and reasonable.

SECTION 8. DESCRIPTION OF THE MARKET RESEARCH CONDUCTED (SEE PART 10) AND THE

RESULTS OR A STATEMENT OF THE REASON A MARKET RESEARCH WAS NOT CONDUCTED

Market research was conducted and determined that a competitive procurement was not feasible for this specific requirement. This research consisted of:

Leveraging prior OBO-wide research: The requiring office reviewed the results of the extensive market research from the FY25 OBO BPA recompete solicitation. That research established that only a few select manufacturers, including Knoll, could satisfy the Government’s unique technical and performance requirements for FF+E package.

Local Market and Project-Specific Assessment: A review of the local market and project needs identified Absolute Office as the certified Knoll dealer who has already been integrated into the project’s critical path planning with the general contractor.

Consideration of Alternatives: Other sources were deemed unable to meet the specific technical and standardization requirements without causing unacceptable delays and costs.

SECTION 9. ANY OTHER FACTS SUPPORTING THE USE OF OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN

COMPETITION

The eviction of 69 Mission France staff created an urgent, mission-threatening workspace deficit requiring resolution via the Capital 8 LFO project. Continued overcrowding within the existing Chancery presents continued strain on mission resources and is detrimental to continued operations. An urgent, compelling sole-source award is the only viable mitigation.

SECTION 10. LISTING OF SOURCES, IF ANY, THAT EXPRESSED A WRITTEN INTEREST IN THE

ACQUISITION

To date, no other sources have expressed a written interest in this acquisition.

SECTION 11. STATEMENT OF THE 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

For the reasons set forth in Paragraph 5, the OBO Interior Design Division has no plans at this time to compete future contacts for the types of supplies/services covered by this document. If another potential source emerges, the OBO Interior Design Division will assess whether competition for future requirements is feasible.

SECTION 12. CERTIFICATIONS

All reviews and approvals should be completed in the order listed unless otherwise authorized or required.

TECHNICAL AND REQUIREMENTS CERTIFICATION (FAR 6.303-2(b))

I certify that the facts and representations under my cognizance which are included in this Justification and its supporting acquisition planning documents, except as noted herein, are complete and accurate to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Technical Cognizance:

SIGNATURE:

Requiring Official Name: Danielle Sines

OBO/PDCS/DE/ID

SinesDS@state.gov 202-374-5054

Requirements Cognizance:

SIGNATURE:

Andra Balta Contract Specialist

GA/AM/DMS/RPSO

David Machen Branch Chief

GA/AM/DMS/RPSO

Requiring Official Name: Dan

8/6/2025

DAVID D MACHEN

Digitally signed by DAVID D

MACHEN

Date: 2025.08.26 09:59:20 +02'00'

CONTRACTING OFFICER CERTIFICATION (FAR 6.303-2(a)(12)) I certify that this submission is accurate to the best of my knowledge, and that it contains complete information necessary to enable other officials to make an informed recommendation for approval or disapproval.

Travis Keon (Acting) Director Regional Procurement Support Office (Frankfurt)

GA/AM/DMS/RPSO

Mobile: +1 (202) 812-4806

LEGAL SUFFICIENCY REVIEW

This J&A is hereby determined to be legally sufficient.

SIGNATURE:

Kathleen D. Martin Senior Legal Advisor Office of the Legal Adviser, Buildings and Acquisitions (L/BA)

SECTION 13. APPROVALS

COMPETITION ADVOCATE

SIGNATURE:

Trena Mills Competition Advocate

GA/AP

Travis C Keon Digitally signed by Travis C Keon Date: 2025.08.26 12:53:36 +02'00'

Kathleen D Martin

Digitally signed by Kathleen D Martin Date: 2025.08.27 09:34:18 -04'00'