25-111-002-5500 Scintrex Justification.pdf

Department of Enterprise Services – C&P Page 1 of 5 June 2024

Sole Source CONTRACT Filing Justification Template Division or Region: Washington Geological Survey (WGS) Date: April 16, 2025 Solicitation Number: 25-111-002-5500 Company Name: Scintrex Limited / Micro-G Lacoste Sub-object good/services will be charged once approved: JCC060 Funding Source (federal/state/local): State Vendor FIN/TIN (Federal ID#/ Taxpayer ID#):104749817

Use the following justification template for preparing to file sole source contracts in the Sole Source Contracts Database (SSCD). Once completed, copy and paste the answers into the corresponding SSCD question and answer fields. You will also need to include a copy of this completed form in the documents you post to your agency website and in WEBS.

What is a sole source contract?

"Sole source" means a contractor providing goods or services of such a unique nature or sole availability that the contractor is clearly and justifiably the only practicable source to provide the goods or services. (RCW 39.26.010)

Unique qualifications or services are those which are highly specialized or one-of-a-kind.

Other factors which may be considered include past performance, cost-effectiveness (learning curve), and/or follow-up nature of the required goods and/or services. Past performance alone does not provide adequate justification for a sole source contract. Time constraints may be considered as a contributing factor in a sole source justification, however will not be on its own a sufficient justification.

Why is a sole source justification required?

The State of Washington, by policy and law, believes competition is the best strategy to obtain the best value for the goods and services it purchases, and to ensure that all interested vendors have a fair and transparent opportunity to sell goods and services to the state.

A sole source contract does not benefit from competition. Thus the state, through RCW 39.26.010, has determined it is important to evaluate whether the conditions, costs and risks related to the proposal of a sole source contract truly outweigh forgoing the benefits of a competitive contract.

Providing compelling answers to the following questions will facilitate DES’ evaluation.

https://sscd.des.wa.gov/Logon/Logon.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2f https://sscd.des.wa.gov/Logon/Logon.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2f https://pr-webs-customer.des.wa.gov/

Department of Enterprise Services – C&P Page 2 of 5

Specific Problem or Need

• What is the business need or problem that requires this contract?

The Washington Geological Survey (WGS) requires a portable, land-surface-based relative gravimeter for high-precision geophysical field surveys. The instrument must be robust enough to endure rugged field environments, compact and lightweight enough to be carried by field personnel through wilderness, while still providing high-resolution and repeatable gravity measurements.

Sole Source Criteria

• Describe the unique features, qualifications, abilities or expertise of the contractor proposed for this sole source contract.

Scintrex Limited manufactures the CG-6 Autograv gravimeter, the only known unit meeting WGS's rigorous field and accuracy standards, including: rugged portability, operation from -40°C to +45°C, sub- 12 lb weight, 0.1 µGal resolution, ≤5 µGal repeatability, and quartz sensor technology.

• What kind of market research did the agency conduct to conclude that alternative sources were inappropriate or unavailable? Provide a narrative description of the agency’s due diligence in determining the basis for the sole source contract, including methods used by the agency to conduct a review of available sources. Use DES’ Market Research Template if assistance is needed.

WGS conducted market research via internet search, WEBS vendor lookups, and supplier outreach. No other manufacturers were found to meet all technical specifications. Detailed documentation is provided in the Market Research Worksheet.

Additionally, the maker of the CG-6 gravimeter, Scintrex, is no longer permitted to sell through third party vendors, due to new government procedures, limiting our ability to purchase the gravimeter from any other vendor.

• As part of the market research requirements, include a list of statewide contracts reviewed and/or businesses contacted, date of contact, method of contact (telephone, mail, e-mail, other), and documentation demonstrating an explanation of why those businesses could not or would not, under any circumstances, perform the contract; or an explanation of why the agency has determined that no businesses other than the prospective contractor can perform the contract.

We looked into the following companies and determined that all but one were not appropriate for purchase of the gravimeter. See table below.

Vendor Meets Specification?

Reason for disqualification

Department of Enterprise Services – C&P Page 3 of 5

ZLS Corporation No The gravimeters do not meet our specifications

Corporate Consulting Service Instruments, Inc

No They do not sell gravimeters

GWR Instruments, Inc. No The gravimeters do not meet our specifications

Non-Linear Systems No They do not sell gravimeters Tuthill Corp. No They do not sell gravimeters Devtech Sales, Inc. No They do not sell gravimeters Worden Gravity Meter Co.

No The gravimeters do not meet our specifications

Controls and Meters, Inc. No They do not sell gravimeters iNoex LLC No They do not sell gravimeters Davis Instruments No They do not sell gravimeters Gasch & Associates, Inc. No They do not sell gravimeters Micro-g LaCoste Yes Scintrex’s U.S. office Great Plains Industries, Inc.

No They do not sell gravimeters

Eagle Eye Power Solutions, LLC

No They do not sell gravimeters

• Per the Supplier Diversity Policy, DES-090-06: was this purchase included in the agency’s forecasted needs report?

This gravimeter was included in the agency fiscal note provided to and funded by the Washington State Legislature upon passage of SB-6039.

• Describe what targeted industry outreach was completed to locate small and/or veteran-owned businesses to meet the agency’s need?

WEBS and OMWBE were searched using relevant commodity codes and keywords. No small or diverse vendor offerings were found that met required specifications. Scintrex/Micro-g LaCoste is the only purveyor of the gravimeter that meets our specifications.

• What considerations were given to unbundling the goods and/or services in this contract, which would provide opportunities for Washington small, diverse, and/or veteran-owned businesses. Provide a summary of your agency’s unbundling analysis for this contract.

Department of Enterprise Services – C&P Page 4 of 5

This gravimeter is a single instrument and cannot be unbundled.

• Provide a detailed and compelling description that includes quantification of the costs and risks mitigated by contracting with this contractor (i.e. learning curve, follow-up nature).

Choosing Scintrex allows field staff to complete gravimeter surveys in roadless areas.

Using any alternative gravimeter would result in sub-par or non-functional data.

• Is the agency proposing this sole source contract because of special circumstances such as confidential investigations, copyright restrictions, etc.? If so, please describe.

No copyright or investigative restrictions apply.

• Is the agency proposing this sole source contract because of unavoidable, critical time delays or issues that prevented the agency from completing this acquisition using a competitive process? If so, please describe. For example, if time constraints are applicable, identify when the agency was on notice of the need for the goods and/or service, the entity that imposed the constraints, explain the authority of that entity to impose them, and provide the timelines within which work must be accomplished.

No delays, but competitive procurement would not yield a responsive vendor capable of providing a compliant instrument.

• What are the consequences of not having this sole source filing approved? Describe in detail the impact to the agency and to services it provides if this sole source filing is not approved.

WGS would be unable to carry out scheduled geophysical surveys with the required precision or areal coverage. Substandard or delayed data collection could impact geothermal research, delaying multiple agency initiatives funded by the legislature.

Sole Source Posting

• Sole Source Posting on Agency Website - Provide the date in which the sole source posting, the draft contract, and a copy of the Sole Source Contract Justification Template were published on your agency’s website.

- If failed to post, please explain why.

• Provide the date in which the sole source posting, the draft contract, and a copy of the Sole Source Contract Justification Template were published in WEBS. May 7, 2025

Department of Enterprise Services – C&P Page 5 of 5

- If failed to post, please explain why.

• Were responses received to the sole source posting in WEBS?

No responses received.

- If one or more responses are received, list name of entities responding and explain how the agency concluded the contract is appropriate for sole source award.

Reasonableness of Cost

• Since competition was not used as the means for procurement, how did the agency conclude that the costs, fees, or rates negotiated are fair and reasonable? Please make a comparison with comparable contracts, use the results of a market survey, or employ some other appropriate means calculated to make such a determination.

Pricing was compared to previous Scintrex models and industry benchmarks. Scintrex CG-6 pricing is relatively consistent with historical purchase of the same model. WGS has reviewed the price proposal and deemed it fair and within scope for high-precision scientific instruments of this specification.