C01 Redacted JA.pdf

CONTROL NUMBER

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, NJ 07724

2. Description of Action:

The proposed action is for a nine-month, firm-fixed price (FFP) sole source contract with Varian Medical Systems Inc, 3100 Hansen Way, Palo Alto, California 94304, for the procurement of FullScale on Premise, an application Information Technology (IT) hosting solution that provides a single point of responsibility for support of Varian software applications and underlying server infrastructure. The initial purchase of this product was obtained through Network Contracting Office (NCO) 10 via Contract Number 36C25022P0903, awarded on June 6, 2022, which expired on September 30, 2024. Task Order 36C10B25C0003 was awarded through the Technology Acquisition Center (TAC) to allow continuation on services. This contract renewal is set to expire September 30, 2025.

3. Description of the Supplies or Services:

The Department of Veterans Affairs Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center (RLR VAMC), Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) regional area 10 (VISN 10) has a requirement for the renewal of the FullScale on Premise application and software maintenance. This product shall work alongside ARIA Oncology Information System and Eclipse (already installed Varian products in VISN 10 facilities) to support the clinical needs of patients and the workflow needs of the care teams involved in their journey. FullScale on Premise features shall improve clinical availability by providing 24/7/365 monitoring for cyber threats, system maintenance and interruptions. Due to the restrictions placed on cloud usage, FullScale on Premise involves server equipment to be placed on VA property which shall be maintained and serviced by authorized Varian employees. This product includes faster and more frequent updates to underlying technology required to support Varian applications. Therefore, software upgrades and firmware patches for Varian products shall only be implemented by Varian personnel.

The total estimated value of the proposed action is for a period of performance of (9) nine months.

4. Statutory Authority:

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is Section 41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(1) as implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.302- 1(a)(2), entitled “Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.”

5. Rationale Supporting Use of Authority Cited Above:

There are two companies that could potentially be able to fulfill this requirement, Varian and Elekta AB headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. Choosing to utilize Elekta for this procurement would involve a significant amount of money, time, and retraining of VA

Varian FullScale on Premise Renewal Control Number facility staff. Elekta and Varian hardware and software products are not interchangeable. A large amount of equipment would need to be replaced with the Elekta version including two Linear Accelerator (LINAC) treatment machines, estimated to be with of site preparation each. The estimated cost to switch to Elekta software is The most recent end-of-life replacement for the Varian LINAC machine took approximately two and a half years. It would take, at minimum, a year and a half for the Elekta equipment to be purchased and for installation to begin. During this installation, the service would drop to one machine which could potentially lead to patient care issues or delays if a problem occurred. After the installation, extensive retraining would be needed for staff because the operating systems between Elekta and Varian differ. This is also costly and would delay the completion. More than a dozen employees would need to be sent for retraining, with an estimated travel cost of If training credits are not included in the contract, this cost could potentially double to Due to current staffing levels and hiring restrictions, careful consideration would be needed when sending employees to classes. In total, electing to switch vendors to utilize Elekta on this procurement could cost approximately and take five years to accomplish. These costs would not be recouped through competition. Based on the above reasoning, it is logical to continue to utilize Varian for this procurement.

6. Efforts to Obtain Competition:

Market research was conducted, details of which are in the market research section of this document. Given the highly specialized nature of the software and equipment and inability to work with other systems, this effort did not yield any additional sources.

There is no competition anticipated for this acquisition. In accordance with FAR 5.201(b) and 6.302-1(d)(2), the award notice for this action will be synopsized on www.SAM.gov and the justification will be made publicly available within 14 days of award.

7. Actions to Increase Competition:

The Government will continue to conduct market research to ascertain if there are changes in the marketplace that would enable future actions to be competed.

8. Market Research:

The Government’s technical experts conducted market research by attending radiation oncology trade shows, conducting internet searches, and reviewing industry trade publications. The most recent market research was an internet search in August 2025.

While reviewing comparable applications to FullScale on Premise, research identified Elekta as the only other vendor to provide a similar IT hosting application. Based on reviews of the products offered by Elekta, the Government’s technical experts determined that the transition to these products would be costly and require extensive replacement of equipment. On July 16, 2025, the Government contract specialist posted a Request for Information (RFI) on SAM.GOV under North American Industry Classification System code 811210; Electronic and Precision Equipment Repair and Maintenance. The RFI closed on July 22, 2025 with no responses received. Therefore, the Government’s technical experts have determined that only Varian FullScale on Premise can meet the full requirement and be eligible for award within the time constraints to avoid a break in service

Varian FullScale on Premise Renewal Control Number

Based on the results set forth above, there is not a reasonable expectation of competition. Therefore, it has been determined by the Contracting Officer that the subject solicitation will be released as a sole source action to Varian Medical Systems Inc.

9. Other Facts:

Varian has provided a proprietary letter to the Indianapolis Supervisory Physicist explaining that only Varian can install or provide upgrades to their systems. Varian does not train third party service providers in the commercial marketplace.