Justification and Approval (J&A) for Other Than Full and Open Competition

This is a Justification and Approval document for a non-competitive modification to an existing purchase order. The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Aerospace Systems Directorate, is modifying purchase order FA2396-25-P-B046 with Potomac Electrical Services, LLC to add a six-month extension clause (FAR 52.217-8) under the authority of FAR 6.302-1 for "Only one responsible source" acquisitions. The contract modification will extend the period of performance from March 10, 2026 through September 9, 2026, valued at approximately one-third of the original purchase order's price based on an equal cost-per-month calculation. The modification is categorized as an Individual J&A with an estimated contract cost of less than $750,000 and was coordinated on February 12-13, 2026, with approval anticipated shortly thereafter.

The acquisition covers continuation of highly specialized Emergency Electrical Response (EER) services for AFRL's electrical infrastructure, including operation, maintenance, testing, troubleshooting, and emergency repair. The incumbent contractor must be a NETA-accredited company with Level II, III, and IV certified personnel capable of managing over 2,000 pieces of complex electrical equipment and 100,000 horsepower of rotating equipment. The Government conducted a Sources Sought competition from October 1 through November 1, 2024, which identified multiple capable vendors, and is pursuing a full and open competitive solicitation (COMBO-AFRL-PZLEQ-2025-0007) for the follow-on requirement. The J&A justifies the modification as necessary to prevent unacceptable delays and mission-critical gaps while the competitive procurement process for the subsequent contract is finalized, as transitioning to a new contractor would require three to six months of familiarization with the facility's unique, undocumented system configurations and pose significant risk to advancing aerospace propulsion and vehicle systems R&D programs.