CLPS__JOFOC.pdf

COMMERCIAL LUNAR PAYLOAD SERVICES (CLPS)

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION (JOFOC)

(In accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.3 – Other than Full and Open Competition)

1. This document is a justification for other than full and open competition prepared by National

Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Headquarters (HQ).

The procuring agency is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the contracting activity is NASA Headquarters (HQ), Washington, D.C.

2. The nature and/or description of the action being approved:

This justification provides the rationale for using other than full and open competition to award Indefinite

Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Multiple Award Contracts to domestic sources that provide domestically manufactured space vehicles including landers/transporters for the CLPS procurement.

3. Description of the supplies or services required, including an estimated value:

The purpose of this requirement is to acquire end-to-end commercial payload services between the Earth and the lunar surface for NASA. The contractor shall provide all activities necessary to safely integrate, accommodate, transport, and operate NASA payloads using contractor-provided assets, including launch vehicles, lunar lander spacecraft, lunar surface systems, Earth re-entry vehicles, and associated resources.

The maximum value for all contracts awarded is $2.6 billion cumulatively for a ten-year effective ordering period.

4. Statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition:

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(3), as implemented by Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.302-3 Industrial mobilization; engineering, developmental, or research capability; or expert services.

5. A demonstration that the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited:

The rationale supporting the use of 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(3) and FAR 6.302-3 is described below.

FAR 6.302-3(a)(2)(i) – Full and open competition need not be provided for when it is necessary to award the contract to a particular source or sources in order to…maintain a facility, producer, manufacturer, or other supplier available…to achieve industrial mobilization.

Pursuant to FAR 6.302-3(b)(1)(v), use of this exception is appropriate when, as here, NASA has determined that creating or maintaining required domestic capabilities for production of critical space transportation services and vehicles to perform those services by limiting competition to capabilities manufactured in the United States or its outlying areas by domestically-owned and controlled entities is consistent with and necessary to implement United States space policy.

First, the Space Policy of the United States of America (“National Space Policy”) dated June 28, 2010 (as amended), sets forth the goal of energizing and enhancing a competitive U.S. domestic space industrial base. In furtherance of this goal, federal agencies are charged with “strengthen[ing] U.S. leadership in space-related science, technology, and industrial bases” which includes “encourage[ing] an innovative and entrepreneurial commercial space sector” and ensuring “the availability of space-related industrial capabilities in support of critical government functions.” The National Space Policy also charges agencies with “improv[ing] space system development and procurement,” and in doing so, must

“[i]mprove timely acquisition and deployment of space systems through enhancements in…industrial base capabilities.”

Additionally, the National Space Transportation Policy (“NTSP”) dated November 21, 2013 enunciates substantially similar goals of “promot[ing] and maintain[ing] a dynamic, healthy, and efficient domestic space transportation industrial base” as well as “encourag[ing] and facilitat[ing] the U.S. commercial space transportation industry to increase industry robustness and cost effectiveness, foster innovation-driven entrepreneurship and international competitiveness, and benefit the U.S. economy.” In furtherance of these goals, NASA specifically shall, among other things, “rely upon U.S.-manufactured space transportation vehicles as the foundation for access to space” and “acquire space transportation capabilities and services, and ensure the ability to develop, operate, and enhance space transportation-related capabilities.” Moreover, NASA must “purchase and use U.S. commercial space transportation capabilities and services and facilitate multiple U.S. commercial providers of space transportation services.” Finally, in order to “promote a healthy and efficient United States Government and private sector space transportation industrial base,” the NTSP requires NASA to “make space transportation policy and programmatic decisions in a manner that considers the health of the U.S. space transportation industrial base” and must “pursue measures such as public-private partnerships and other innovative acquisition approaches that promote affordability, industry planning, and competitive capabilities, infrastructure, and workforce.”

Finally, in accordance with the Presidential Memorandum on Reinvigorating America’s Human Space

Exploration Program (“National Space Policy Directive 1”) dated December 11, 2017, the United States should “lead an innovative and sustainable program of exploration with commercial and international partners” and that “the United States will lead the return of humans to the Moon for long-term exploration and utilization.”

These space policy mandates, when read in concert, require NASA to promote, support, and maintain a domestic industrial base of space transportation capabilities to the lunar surface. In order to fulfill these mandates, CLPS space transportation service provider prime contractors, as well as all firms that construct, produce, manufacture or otherwise provide space transportation vehicles for the purpose of the prime contractor’s performance of CLPS must qualify as domestically owned and controlled as defined by the CLPS solicitation. Additionally, all CLPS space transportation service provider prime contractors shall provide a CLPS that utilizes domestic end products for all space transportation vehicles required for performance of this contract, inclusive of any launch vehicle and any other space transportation vehicle used to deliver payloads to the lunar surface. Components include any intellectual property necessary to produce or manufacture the space transportation vehicle. The cost of each component includes transportation costs to the place of incorporation into the CLPS and any applicable duty (whether or not a duty - free entry certificate is issued).

6. Description of the efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as practicable, including whether a notice was or will be publicized as required by Federal

Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 5.2:

A Special Synopsis Notice was posted to the Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOpps) website and published on August 3, 2018 in accordance with FAR Subpart 5.2. This posting informed potential sources of NASA HQ’s intent to limit CLPS competition to domestic sources for the purposes of industrial mobilization, and provided them with the opportunity to comment by August 18, 2018. The results of this synopsis are contained in section 10 below.

7. A determination by the contracting officer that the anticipated price to the Government will be fair and reasonable:

CLPS task order requirements will be competed among the multiple prime contractors that are awarded

CLPS master contracts. These fixed-price task order competitions and task order price evaluations will result in fair and reasonable prices. Additionally, any non-competitive tasks or task order modifications will be evaluated by the Contracting Officer’s Representative and the Contracting Officer to determine that the direct labor rates, direct labor hours, skill mix, other direct costs, indirect costs, and fee(s) are fair and reasonable.

8. Description of the market research conducted, and the results or a statement of the reasons market research was not conducted:

Market research was performed for the CLPS requirement. A RFI was posted on May 2, 2017 and a

Sources Sought Notice on December 28, 2017. NASA also sponsored an Industry Day at NASA HQs on

May 8, 2018, which also included 15-minute one on one meetings with 16 companies (foreign and domestic). The results were clear that there is a significant interest in the CLPS procurement.

9. Other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition:

None

10. Sources, if any, that expressed an interest, in writing, in the acquisition:

As stated above in Section 6, in accordance with the requirements of FAR Subpart 5.2, a notice of NASA

HQ’s intent to award this limited source action was synopsized on the FedBizOpps website. The synopsis notified all interested sources that the CLPS solicitation would be limited to domestic sources for the purpose of industrial mobilization and provided them an opportunity to submit their comments to the Contracting Officer within 15 days of the synopsis publication and NLT 8/18/2018.

Two companies, Deltek and Astrobotic, responded with timely inquiries.

On August 3, 2018, Deltek sent an email inquiry asking if CLPS was a sole source solicitation or is the competition limited to a select few vendors. NASA CO responded on August 6, 2018 clarifying the procurement strategy is to select multiple domestic source contractors for the purposes of industrial mobilization.

On August 17, 2018, Astrobotic sent an email inquiry providing support of NASA’s approach to limit the eligibility of Commercial Lunar Payload Services Program providers to United States domestic commercial providers only. NASA responded on August 19, 2018 that NASA is proceeding with a

“Less than Full and Open Competition” for the CLPS procurement; and service providers will be limited to United States domestic commercial sources.

11. The actions the Agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before any subsequent acquisition for the supplies or services required:

The Agency will continue to examine the state of the market for alternative solutions or new sources before executing any subsequent acquisitions for the same or similar requirements. The Agency will also continue to examine the state of the U.S. industrial base for space transportation capabilities when considering whether to limit competition to domestic sources in the future.