36C10B19Q0661-002.pdf

Vocera B3000N Dual Band Black Badge Phones TAC-19-56480

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

1. Contracting Activity: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Procurement Acquisition and Logistics

Technology Acquisition Center 23 Christopher Way Eatontown, New Jersey 07724

2. Description of Action: The proposed action is for a firm-fixed price contract for brand name Vocera Communication, Inc. (Vocera) B3000N Dual Band Black Badges and associated equipment needed at the Hampton VA Medical Center Nursing Services.

3. Description of Supplies or Services: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Hampton VA Medical Center (VAMC) Nursing Services has a requirement for the procurement of 200 brand name Vocera B3000N Dual Band Communication Badges, 200 device licenses, 400 batteries and accompanying accessories to replace old badges and expand communication capabilities throughout the VAMC. Equipment shall include 2-Year Warranty Protection covering parts and labor / repair on-site. No installation or configuration services are required under the proposed effort.

4. Statutory Authority: The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(1) as implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 6.302-1 entitled, “Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.”

5. Rationale Supporting Use of Authority Cited Above: Based on market research as described in paragraph 8 of this document, the Government anticipates limited competition among resellers of the brand name Vocera B3000N Black Badges and associated equipment. The Vocera communication system is currently installed and operational at the Hampton VAMC, and only Vocera communication badges are interoperable and compatible with the existing system due to Vocera’s proprietary software and firmware source code. The use of any other brand name badges would require a complete replacement of the existing communication system due to the proprietary nature of the Vocera infrastructure. Additionally, only Vocera provides wearable, wireless, hands-free, voice activated communication badges.

This functionality is critical to the improvement of medical staff services to Veterans.

Furthermore, only the Vocera wearable communication badges have FIPS 140-2 certification for the wireless voice activation which is one of a kind for voice activated communication badges. Without FIPS 140-2 certification, the Information Systems Security Officer will not allow this communication system to be installed on the VA Intranet. Instead it will need to be installed on a separate infrastructure network, which will require new cabling throughout the entire VAMC significantly increasing the cost of the communication system by several million dollars. If the Vocera badges and associated equipment is not procured, VA’s existing Vocera

Vocera B3000N Dual Band Black Badge TAC-19-56480 communication system will continue to degrade until it is virtually unusable and Nursing Services at the Hampton VAMC will face difficulties in its ability to maintain acceptable levels of communication and patient care and vital patient information would be further compromised due to human error and delays. Additionally, the lack of a wearable, hands-free, and voice activated communication badges will increase risk of contamination within the hospital and response times to medical emergencies such as cardiopulmonary arrest, inclement weather, bomb threats, or active shooter scenarios would be delayed causing unnecessary loss of life.

6. Efforts to Obtain Competition: Market research was conducted, details of which are in the market research section of this document. This effort did not yield any additional sources that can meet the Government's requirements. However, it was determined that limited competition is viable among resellers for the requested equipment. In accordance with FAR 6.302-1(c)(1)(ii)(c) and 5.106(a)(6) this justification shall be posted with the solicitation. In accordance with FAR 5.202(a)(13), the resulting award will not be announced on the Federal Business Opportunities Page since the estimated value of this action is less than Simplified Acquisition Threshold.

7. Actions to Increase Competition: The Government will continue to conduct market research to ascertain if there are changes in the market place that would enable future actions to be competed.

8. Market Research: Market research was conducted by Government technical experts during August 2019 to ascertain the ability of any other source besides Vocera to provide communication badges. Government technical experts conducted thorough reviews of product information via web searches for similar solutions from Cisco Systems, MINITOR, Honeywell, and RMS Omega Healthcare Technologies.

Through this market research, the Government technical experts determined that due to the unique patented design, only the Vocera solution can provide FIPS 140-2 compliant wearable wireless hands-free voice activated communication devices which are critical for increasing patient care and safety. Furthermore, only the Vocera communication badges can integrate with the existing Vocera communication system at the Hampton VAMC. Therefore, only name Vocera B3000N Black Badges and associated equipment can meet the Government’s requirements.

Furthermore, Government representatives directly contacted Vocera to determine the availability of authorized resellers. Vocera responded that it has two Service- Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB), Alvarez, LLC (Alvarez) and Government Marketing and Procurement (GMP), as its sole authorized resellers to the Federal Government such that limited competition exists.

9. Other Facts: None.

Vocera B3000N Dual Band Black Badge TAC-19-56480