B08__ATTACHMENT_ONE_REDACTED_Brand_Name_Justification.pdf

BRAND NAME JUSTIFICATION

PR: 0040658699

1. Contracting Agency and Activity.

The Department of the Interior, United States Geological Survey plans to contract by means other than full and open competition. This document sets forth the justification and approval for award of for dissolved oxygen and temperature data loggers on a limited source basis as required by FAR 13.106-1

2. Nature of Action Being Approved.

Purchase for new firm fixed price type contract to Precision Measurement Engineering, Inc.

(PME), Vista, CA 92081.

3. Description of Supplies or Services.

This requisition is to replace and expand dissolved oxygen and temperature data loggers for Lake

Erie Biological Station (LEBS) scientific missions integral to the USGS Great Lakes Science

Center, as well as provide meaningful data important for collaborating agencies (e.g., US-EPA, NOAA). This purchase will supply all necessary hardware (i.e., integrated water quality loggers with initial calibration, sensor cleaning apparatus while deployed in the field, anti-fouling equipment, and mounting brackets), as well as product support and/or software updates to LEBS.

This purchase will provide equipment to expand our current understanding of bottom dissolved oxygen within the central basin during season lake stratification and provide data for experimental hypoxia forecasting models.

[1] PME miniDOT Part Number 9190 20 units: - miniDOT logger.

- miniWIPER wiping apparatus for miniDOT logger.

- Bracket attachment for miniWIPER and miniDOT logger.

- Anti-fouling kit.

4. Estimated Dollar Value.

5. Statutory Authority. The proposed action may be awarded under the authority

FAR 13.106-1

6. Rationale Supporting Use of Citation in No. 5.

Precision Measurement Engineering, Inc. is the only vendor that manufactures the requested equipment for the following reasons:

• Precision Measurement Engineering equipment and software are currently being used for successful data acquisition at USGS LEBS and cooperative external agencies. Lake Erie Biological Station has made significant investments to develop temperature and dissolved oxygen data acquisition using PME miniDOT data loggers.

By continuing to use the same instruments, it would drastically reduce, if not eliminate, instrument biases. This water quality measurement system is critical to the continuity of long-term data sets in which USGS has made significant investments over several years.

• PME miniDOT temperature and anti-fouling equipment as well as software are proprietary and not based on an open standard. PME miniDOT software is customized for their custom-made water quality loggers and not currently open source.

There are no known alternative services to customize, update, and integrate the current electronic data acquisition system from their water quality profilers. Most importantly, the PME miniDOT logger array is the only company that has remotely deployed data loggers for dissolved oxygen that can physically clean themselves of biofilm via the miniWIPER apparatus.

7. Other Information.

• Failure to obtain PME services compatible with existing LEBS equipment and protocols will (1) increase risks of instrument biases between disparate shipboard instruments, and (2) increase costs to complete mandated research.

o (1) Fisheries science fieldwork involves a wide range of sensors, data streams, and outputs. These hardware systems have been modified through time to improve performance. Not incorporating PME scientific hardware and software will drastically increase potential instrument biases between disparate systems and ultimately increase the likelihood of bias between years if different sensors are utilized.

o (2) LEBS has been using PME miniDOT loggers since 2019. Lake Erie Biological

Station does not have the ability to provide a comparable or alternative system for obtaining long term dissolved oxygen and temperature data sets. New equipment would require ground-up development and testing with no support for continuity of operations during the interim period, risking significant data incompatibility for

LEBS and cooperative external agencies.

8. The Efforts to Identify Additional Sources Including the Market Research Conducted.

• GSA Advantage catalog searches for “dissolved oxygen”, “data logger”, “dissolved oxygen meter”, “water meter” resulted in no comparable items.

• Online catalogue searches through YSI resulted in no comparable items.

• Online catalogue searches through HACH water quality testing and analytical instruments resulted in no comparable items.

• Online catalogue searches through FONDRIEST water quality sensors resulted in no comparable items.

9. Actions to Overcome Barriers to Competition.

Future requirements will undergo market research and be competed to the maximum extent possible. Market research will pay particular attention to dissolved oxygen loggers that can clean themselves of biofouling.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) considers employee signatures to be Personal Information and therefore all employee signatures have been redacted. By posting this document, the

Contracting Officer attests all appropriate signatures have been obtained.