E21 - Redacted Sole Source Justification.pdf

MEMORANDUM

Subj: SOLE SOURCE JUSTIFICATION MEMORANDUM FORLEASE OF NUYTCO ADS

SYSTEM WITH BACKUP AND TRAINING

1. Identification of the agency and the contracting activity, and specific identification of the document as a “Sole Source Justification.”

This is a sole source justification. Contracting activity is NSWC-PCD, Code 024, 110 Vernon Ave., Panama City, FL, 32407.

2. Nature and/or description of the action being approved.

This action will award a firm fixed price contract to Nuytco Research Ltd. for the equipment lease and technical training services listed in Paragraph 3 of this document.

3. A description of the supplies or services required to meet the agency’s needs (including the estimated value).

The required services include the lease of a Nuytco Atmospheric Diving System (ADS) with Backup for deep diving operations at Lake Ponderielle, alongside a Maintenance and Technical Training Course for ADS Operations conducted at Nuytco Works in North Vancouver, BC, Canada. The training is estimated to take up to 6 days. The contractor will provide all labor, material, equipment, and support for operational setup, training preparation, and course facilitation.

Operational Training and Material Development

Materials and development for Lake Ponderielle deep diving operations.

Training Preparation Labor abor for training preparation ahead of the Lake Ponderielle deep dives.

Operational Training On-site operational training at Lake Ponderielle.

Maintenance and Training Material Development

Curriculum and training material development for the Technical Training Course.

Facility Set Up for Training Technical facility preparation and hardware setup at Nuytco Works.

Facilitate Training Course facilitation and technical instruction delivery at Nuytco Works.

This acquisition will be conducted using simplified acquisition procedures with a total estimated greater than $25,000. The Government's minimum needs have been verified by the certifying technical and requirements personnel. This memo does not authorize acquisition for other requirements.

4. Identification of the justification rationale and, if applicable, this acquisition is conducted under the authority of FAR 12.102(a), Restricting Competition for Commercial Acquisitions Below the Simplified Acquisition Threshold. The determination has been made that only one source is reasonably available to meet the Government's minimum needs.

Nuytco Research Ltd. is uniquely qualified as the developer, manufacturer, and sole proprietary owner of the Atmospheric Diving System (ADS) technology (specifically their patented hard-suit diving systems, such as the Exosuit ADS). Nuytco possesses the proprietary drawings, engineering data, specialized manufacturing capabilities, and safety certifications necessary to lease and provide training on these highly technical, deep-diving life-support systems.

No other vendor has the specialized technical expertise or OEM-certified personnel required to operate, maintain, and troubleshoot the Nuytco ADS in a field environment, nor do they have access to the certified training facilities at Nuytco Works required to host the technical maintenance course. Attempting to utilize a third-party contractor would void system safety certifications, introduce unacceptable technical and life-safety risks during deep-submergence testing, and result in severe, duplicative costs and delays to the government. Additional corporate capabilities and proprietary equipment overviews can be accessed on their website at Nuytco Research Ltd.. As such, it is highly advantageous to the Government to award on a sole-source basis to Nuytco Research Ltd.

5. A determination by the ordering activity contracting officer that the order represents the best value consistent with FAR 12.102(a).

The Contracting Officer has determined that the order represents the best value and results in the lowest overall cost alternative (considering price, special features, administrative costs, etc.) to meet the Government’s needs.

6. A description of the market research conducted among schedule holders and the results or a statement of the reason market research was not conducted.

For the reasons specified in paragraph 4 above, Nuytco Research Ltd. is the only source that can meet the Government's technical, safety, and certification needs for this equipment. This requirement will be synopsized in the government point of entry sam.gov because it is estimated to be greater than $25,000.00.

7. Any other facts supporting the justification.

None.

8. A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers that led to the restricted consideration before any subsequent acquisition for the supplies or services is made.

As stated in paragraph 4 above, Nuytco Research Ltd. is the proprietary OEM and the only source that can meet this safety-critical diving requirement.