4_5_3_Sole Source for Orders Exceeding MPT up to SAT_Redacted_20251217.pdf

www.uscis.gov

Rev: 10/13/2023

Sole Source (including brand name) Justification, using Simplified Acquisition Procedures, Exceeding the Micro-purchase Threshold and up to the Simplified Acquisition Threshold, OPEX FALCON+ Scanner Maintenance and Software Licenses

REFERENCE: Justification Log Number: FY26-0018 and PR Number: SCO260001 & IQD260001

1. Agency and Contracting Activity.

The Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Office of Contracting, proposes to award a purchase order, on behalf of Service Center Operations Directorate (SCOPS) and the Office of Intake and Document Production (OIDP).

2. Nature and/or description of the item/service being procured and anticipated cost.

USCIS intends to procure on a sole source basis post warranty maintenance service for OPEX Falcon+ scanners and applicable licenses for five (5) Falcon scanners. Required maintenance includes on-call service and preventative maintenance including parts and labor for normal wear and tear. This requirement is to provide maintenance services for five (5) existing OPEX Falcon+ scanners that support SCOPS and OIDP. The scanners were awarded under contract 70SBUR22F00000292, which included one-year of maintenance, through December 31, 2023.

Purchase order 70SBUR24P00000008 was issued for maintenance and software licenses beginning on January 1st, 2024, and expiring on December 31st, 2025.

The scanners are located at the SCOPS Texas facility and the OIDP facilities in Minnesota and Missouri. The maintenance service includes six (6) preventative maintenance visits/inspections per scanner per year, and replacement of all parts necessitated by normal wear and tear.

Replacement parts are OPEX certified parts. The service also includes unlimited calls with a four

(4) hour response time. The purpose is to ensure the scanners remain operational and experience little or no downtime because of requiring repair.

In addition, annual license fees are included as follows:

a. Barcode annual license

b. VRS Technology annual license

c. ScanLink annual license

d. CertainScan Edit and Transform annual license

e. CertainScan annual software license (for customer PC)

f. MICR+ annual license

Sole Source (including brand name) Justification, using SAP, Exceeding the MPT and up to the SAT, OPEX FALCON+ Scanner Maintenance and Software Licenses Justification Log Number: FY26-0018

g. Certain Scan PDF24 annual license (Per Site)

h. QR Code Reader annual license

All of the scanners already have the above software with the exception of the QR Code Reader.

That particular software is installed on the three scanners in Texas but not on the others. This action includes the initial purchase of the QR Code Reader software for the scanners in Minnesota and Missouri.

The contractor is:

OPEX Corporation 305 Commerce Drive Moorestown, NJ 08057 SAM.gov Unique Entity ID (UEI): TPUHSANK6X84 or CAGE: IGQ20

The contract type is firm-fixed-price.

The Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE) for this requirement is comprised of one (1) twelve (12) month Base Period. The price of maintenance and associated licenses for one (1) year of service is estimated at $83,617.00.

The initial delivery date for the licenses is 01/01/2026. The anticipated Period of Performance (PoP) for the order is: Base PoP: Twelve (12) Months 01/01/2026 – 12/31/2026.

3. Identification of the authority and rationale.

The proposed procurement will utilize simplified acquisition procedures and will be awarded on a sole source basis in accordance with FAR 13.106-1(b)(1) and as specified below.

Only one source reasonably available:

☒ Other. Only one source is capable.

Rationale:

SCOPS, OIDP, and OCON intend to award a sole source purchase order to OPEX Corporation for the procurement of proprietary software licenses and maintenance services.

The scanners requiring maintenance are high-speed digital scanners used for the intake and processing of immigration applications/petitions and play an important role in the USCIS mission.

The scanners use proprietary service diagnostic software that OPEX Corporation has not released or licensed to third parties. Without the proper diagnostic tools other contractors would likely not be able to diagnose issues as quickly, resulting in longer downtime and increased costs for the agency. The replacement parts that OPEX Corporation uses are OPEX Corporation certified parts that are pre-tested to quality standards and meet the manufacturer’s specifications. OPEX Corporation does not distribute parts through third parties. Other contractors would not have

Sole Source (including brand name) Justification, using SAP, Exceeding the MPT and up to the SAT, OPEX access to these parts and as a result would not be able to repair the scanners if replacement parts are required. Any downtime of the scanners would limit the ability to scan the applications/petitions which would cause a delay in processing, potentially creating a backlog of applications/petitions. It is imperative that the scanners experience as limited downtime as possible.

The following software licenses are proprietary to OPEX Corporation and are being procured under this purchase order:

1D Barcode Annual Software License.

VRS Technology Annual Software License.

ScanLink Software Annual License.

Certain Scan Edit & Transform on external OPEX PC Hardware & Software Annual License.

QR Code Reader Annual License – this includes the initial purchase and installation of the software for the scanners located in Minnesota and Missouri and the continuation of the licenses for the scanners located in Texas.

Certain Scan PDF24 Annual Software License Fee, Per Site.

While OPEX Corporation authorizes certain resellers to sell initial software licenses, the ongoing maintenance, updates, and technical support for these products are proprietary to OPEX Corporation and cannot be purchased, performed, or fulfilled by third-party resellers. The Government must obtain the maintenance directly from OPEX Corporation in order to maintain system operability, cybersecurity integrity, and full compatibility with existing OPEX Corporation imaging and scanning equipment. Because the required annual maintenance and support services are inseparable from the associated software licenses, as no other manufacturer’s software is compatible with OPEX Corporation scanners, and because third-party vendors are not permitted to provide or bundle maintenance for these products, all listed items will be procured in a single action directly from OPEX Corporation. Procurement from any other source would result in loss of technical support, potential equipment failure, system incompatibility, and violation of OPEX Corporation’s licensing and maintenance restrictions. Accordingly, OPEX Corporation is the only responsible source capable of fulfilling the Government’s requirement, and the supplies and services are being procured without competition pursuant to FAR 13.106-1(b)(1)/FAR 6.302-1, as applicable.

Further market research was conducted by searching the internet for OPEX Falcon+ maintenance.

No sources were found other than OPEX Corporation. OPEX Corporation confirmed that they still do not authorize third parties to perform maintenance on OPEX equipment as confirmed through a sole source proprietary letter dated September 24, 2025. In addition, the only OPEX maintenance requirements found on SAM.gov were procured on a sole source basis to OPEX Corporation.

Sole Source (including brand name) Justification, using SAP, Exceeding the MPT and up to the SAT, OPEX

4. The anticipated price will be determined fair and reasonable based on one or more of the price analysis techniques described below in accordance with FAR Part 13.106-3(a)(2).

☒ Market Research;

☒ Comparison of the proposed price with prices found reasonable on previous purchases;

☐ Current price list;

☐ Comparison with similar items in a related industry;

☒ Comparison to Independent Government estimate;

☐ Contracting Officer’s personal knowledge; or ☐ Other reasonable basis.

The Contracting Officer (CO) will be able to determine fair and reasonable pricing by a comparison to market research, a comparison of the proposed price with prices found reasonable on previous purchases, and a comparison of current price lists and the IGCE, which was derived from market research.

5. Other Information.

USCIS intends to comply with the public display and synopsis requirements in FAR 13.105(a) unless an exception in FAR 5.202 applies.

APPROVAL:

Joshua S. Riley Contracting Officer USCIS, Office of Contracting Joshua.S.Riley@uscis.dhs.gov mailto:Joshua.S.Riley@uscis.dhs.gov