26F8035_E2FOM_LCS14_EM_0053_SAM.pdf

Exception to Fair Opportunity Template Update DEC 2025

JUSTIFICATION for an EXCEPTION to FAIR OPPORTUNITY for the placement Of an order > $15,000 under a Multiple Award Contract (MAC)

Upon the basis of the following justification, I, the assigned Contracting Officer of Southwest Regional Maintenance Center, hereby approve the Justification for an Exception to Fair Opportunity Pursuant to FAR 16.505(b)(2).

JUSTIFICATION

l. Agency and Contracting Activity. Department of the Navy, Southwest Regional Maintenance Center.

2. Nature/Description of Action. This is a fair opportunity exception to place an order with prospective Multiple Award Contract (MAC) holder under LCS SEC WEST PT. III MAC number N00024- 25-D-4217 (Delphinus Engineering, Delphinus). The Delivery Order Number is N55236-26-F-8035 in support of the USS MANCHESTER (LCS-14) FISCAL YEAR 2026 (FY26) EMERGENT

MAINTENANCE AVAILABILTY (EM); SSP: SSSD-HM&E-26-0053.

3. Description of Supplies/Services. The following seven (7) work items have been created to accomplish urgent repairs on the USS MANCHESTER (LCS-14):

- Work Item 123-10-001, Fuel Service Tank; repair

- Work Item 137-11-001, Flight Deck Structural Repair; accomplish

- Work Item 237-11-001, Azimuthing Thruster Hydraulic System Flush; accomplish

- Work Item 436-11-001, Data Acquisition Unit (DAU) Cable Replacement;

accomplish

- Work Item 584-16-001, Stern Door Repairs; accomplish

- Work Item 612-21-001, Flight Deck Safety Net Frame Filler Bar; repair

- Work Item 631-21-001, Aircraft Securing Fitting Preservation; accomplish

The estimated value of this work is based on the Independent Government Estimate (IGE) from the SWRMC Project Manager. Funding will be FY26 OM&N D4 in support of the repairs. The availability schedule is The Government's minimum needs have been verified by the certifying technical and requirements personnel.

4. Identification of the Exception to Fair Opportunity. (FAR 16.505 (b)(2)(i)(C))

Identification/Justification for Exception:

a. The agency need for services is of such urgency that providing fair opportunity would result in unacceptable delays.

b. Only one such awardee is capable of providing such services required at the level of quality required because the services ordered are unique or highly specialized.

c. The order must be issued on a sole-source basis in the interest of economy and efficiency as a logical follow-on to an order already issued under the MAC, provided that all the awardees were given fair opportunity to be considered for the original order.

The original Delivery Order was awarded competitively under the LCS SEC WEST PT. III MAC IDIQ Contract. Delphinus was awarded the delivery order to accomplish the Continuous Maintenance (CMAV) in support of the USS MANCHESTER (LCS-14) based on lowest price technical acceptable (LPTA) criteria. The USS MANCHESTER (LCS-14) now has an Emergent Maintenance requirement to repair (7) as follows:

Work Item 123-10-001, Fuel Service Tank; repair During the refueling of MPDE Fuel Oil Service Tank and GTRB Fuel Oil Service Tank

, Ship’s Force conducted walkthroughs and discovered leaks in both tanks. Refueling was immediately secured. Following an inspection, it was determined that both tanks require repairs before returning to service. The loss of these tanks severely limits the USS Manchester's fuel capacity, rendering the ship unable to meet mission requirements.

Work Item 137-11-001, Flight Deck Structural Repair; accomplish During AVCERT, Ship’s Force discovered a hole in the flight deck. This deficiency creates a significant safety hazard, as it allows water intrusion and provides a path for leaked fuel to flow into the Mission Bay, endangering personnel. Until the flight deck is repaired and returned to full operational status, the USS Manchester's flight deck operations are restricted, rendering the ship unable to complete its mission requirements.

Work Item 237-11-001, Azimuthing Thruster Hydraulic System Flush; accomplish An HPM flush was in progress during the CNO Availability; however, the process was suspended after a fault was discovered in the HPM engine. A Diesel Engine Inspection (DEI) is currently in process to restore the engine to service. Once repairs are complete, the HPM will still require a full flush before the Azimuthing Thruster can be operated. Until the HPM is fully functional, the USS Manchester’s navigational maneuverability is significantly degraded, posing a risk to the ship while underway.

Work Item 436-11-001, Data Acquisition Unit (DAU) Cable Replacement; accomplish During a walkthrough, Ship’s Force discovered that cable had been damaged and previously spliced. As a spliced cable is considered a temporary repair, a full replacement is required to meet safety and operational standards. A failure of this cable would disable 12 remotely operated valves, rendering multiple components in Main Engine Room (MER ) non-operational. Such a failure would result in the loss of MER , potentially putting the USS Manchester in a Dead in Water (DIW) condition.

Work Item 584-16-001, Stern Door Repairs; accomplish The Stern Door is currently secured in the open position using temporary clips. These clips are designed to maintain the door's position only in sheltered or calm water conditions. Consequently, the USS Manchester is . Should the vessel encounter heavy seas, these temporary clips could fail, allowing the doors to swing freely. This poses a severe risk of structural damage or total loss of the doors, rendering the ship unable to meet its primary mission requirements.

Work Item 612-21-001, Flight Deck Safety Net Frame Filler Bar; repair During AVCERT, a broken Gap Filler Bar was discovered on the flight deck safety netting. This deficiency creates a void large enough for a person to fall through, posing a significant safety hazard to personnel.

This discrepancy prevents the ship from passing AVCERT, rendering the flight deck non-operational.

Without a certified flight deck, the USS Manchester is unable to fulfill its mission requirements.

Work Item 631-21-001, Aircraft Securing Fitting Preservation; accomplish During AVCERT, Ship’s Force discovered cracks in 13 flight deck tie downs. This deficiency creates a significant safety hazard, as it allows water intrusion and provides a path for leaked fuel to flow into the Mission Bay, endangering personnel. Until the flight deck tie downs is repaired and returned to full operational status, the USS Manchester's flight deck operations are restricted, rendering the ship unable to complete its mission requirements.

In accordance with FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(C), this order is being issued on a sole-source basis to the incumbent contractor, Delphinus, as a logical follow-on in the interest of both economy and efficiency.

Awarding this emergent work to a different contractor would introduce significant operational inefficiencies. A new contractor would require a separate mobilization period on top of the additional required time it would take to solicit this work to all MAC holders, delaying the start of this critical CASREP repair and threatening the ship's scheduled completion date. Furthermore, introducing a second contractor into the same machinery space would create conflicts in coordinating safety, access, and temporary services, disrupting the productivity of both prime contractors and further extending the overall timeline. From an economic standpoint, a competitive award would lead to a duplication of costs that would exceed any potential cost savings. The Government would incur a second set of costs for mobilization, and other overhead costs such as project management, supporting rentals, and temporary services already covered under the incumbent’s order, estimated at a total of over for temporary services alone.

Given the critical need to correct the without delay and the significant duplication of costs and operational inefficiencies associated with awarding this work to another contractor, it is determined that issuing a sole-source order to Delphinus is the most efficient and economical method to complete this work.

This action constitutes a logical follow-on to an existing order and is in the best interest of the U.S.

Government.

d. It is necessary to place an order to satisfy a minimum guarantee.

e. For orders exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold, a statute expressly authorizes or requires that the purchase be made from a specified source.

5. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Cost.

A thorough review and analysis, with regard to price and scope, of the pricing information provided by Delphinus will be conducted by the Project Team (PT) and verified by the Contracting Officer.

Determination of fair and reasonable costs will primarily be accomplished by use of parametric methods used to determine reasonableness of labor hours, materials, and times proposed by Delphinus, in accordance with FAR 15.4041(b)(2)(iii). Furthermore, application of rough yardsticks will be utilized for significant inconsistencies that warrant additional pricing inquiries in addition to reviewing any historical pricing information for Delphinus that is available, as well as similar work accomplished by other contractors. This analysis will be accomplished in conjunction with comparison of all proposed labor hours and material by the PT with verification by the Contracting Officer.

The Contracting Officer has determined that to the Government for this Acquisition will be fair and reasonable based on FAR 15.404-1(e)(1), technical analysis from the PM, FAR 15.404-1(b)(2)(i) – comparison of proposed prices of labor and material burden rates received in response to the solicitation, and FAR 15.404-1(b)(2)(v), comparison with the IGE.

6. Description of Efforts Made to Solicit Offers From as Many Offerors as Practicable:

All offerors under the LCS SEC WEST PT. III MAC were given fair opportunity to submit a proposal in response to the solicitation of the availability basic work package. As this is new work there would be unrealistic contractual expectations to overcome barriers that have led to this exception. Furthermore, if the work is not performed during this window of availability, USS Manchester (LCS-14) will not fulfill its current operational obligations and would thus incur mission risk to the Government.

7. Actions Taken to Remove or Overcome Barriers that Led to the Exception to Fair Opportunity:

As noted above, these urgent repairs could not have been identified earlier as each are considered a

. Each requires immediate resolution to ensure USS MANCHESTER (LCS-14) stays above operational REDLINE’s and continues to train deploying crews. While standard procedures would follow the typical solicitation process providing fair opportunity to the LCS SEC WEST PT. III MAC IDIQ contract holders, it is in the Government’s best interest to incorporate this critical maintenance work in order to meet and support the USS MANCHESTER (LCS-14) operational readiness. This is an atypical event and could not be planned or forecasted, accordingly, the ACO determined that this course of action is the most prudent way forward in this unique instance