PACAF_Library_Subscription_JA_v7_10_Aug_2016_Redacted.pdf

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

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NOTE: If a Justification and Approval was approved for the preceding acquisition, a copy of the approved J&A for the predecessor action must be included in the staff package for approval of the instant J&A. This applies to J&A staff packages that are submitted for review and approval at a level above the contracting officer. The predecessor J&A will be used as a reference document by the approving official.

Choose the funding level for this J&A Document:

< $700K > $700K and < $13.5M > $13.5M and < $93M > $93M

Contracting Activity: 766th Specialized Contracting Squadron, 90 G Street, Bldg 1201, JBPH-H, HI 96853

Purchase Request / Local ID Number: FL1000-16-160169

Program / Project (and PE, if applicable): Integrated Library Subscription (ILS) for Seven (7) PACAF Libraries

Program Type (PEO or Other Contracting):

Authority (include full title): 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1) and FAR 6.302-1(a)(1)

Estimated Contract Cost (including options): $ J&A Type: Class Individual

COORDINATION (AFFARS 5306.304(a) )

Date

09 Aug 2016

Contracting Officer

Mr. ________, CIV, DAF

766 SCONS/PKZ, 808-448-29

Date Project Lead / Program Mgr / Requiring Activity

Mr. ________, CIV, DAF

AFSVA/SVPL, 210-395-73

APPROVAL (AFFARS 5306.304(a) )

Date

10 Aug 2016

Chief of the Contracting Office (COCO)

Ms. _______, DAF

766 SCONS/CD, 808-448-29

Signature

/Signed/

Signature

/Signed/

Signature

/Signed

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I. Contracting Activity.

Department of the Air Force 766th Specialized Contracting Squadron/PKZ 90 G Street, Bldg 1201

JBPHH, HI 96853-5320

II. Nature and/or description of the action being processed.

This Justification & Approval (J&A) has been prepared to award a sole source contract to the Sirsi Corporation (Sirsi), doing business as SirsiDynix, for the Symphony Integrated Library System (ILS) subscription services to seven Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) libraries. All seven PACAF libraries currently have the SirsiDynix Symphony ILS subscription services. SirsiDynix is the only provider with proprietary software rights for Symphony ILS subscription services. Market research has confirmed that no other alternative sources or resellers are authorized to provide Symphony ILS subscription services. Other vendors, including two small businesses, offer ILS subscription services but all ran a different software, and the current library bibliographies will not be easily converted. Migration to another ILS software will produce labor, travel, training, other cost, plus six to eight weeks of time on top of the subscription cost. Sirsi is the only responsible source for the Symphony ILS subscription services, and no other supplies or services will satisfy the agency's requirement. The contract will be awarded as a new Firm Fixed Price (FFP) contract with one base year plus four (4) - three month options. Previous purchase orders were issued sole source to Sirsi. This contract action will satisfy the PACAF libraries' continuing requirement until the projected award of an Air Force-wide contract, scheduled on 1 December 2017, by the 763 Specialized Contracting Squadron (763 SCONS/PKA) located at Scott Air Force Base, IL.

III. Description of supplies/services required to meet agency needs.

This J&A has been prepared to fulfill a continuing requirement for the Air Force Services Activity Libraries (AFPC/SVPL) to maintain and support the SirsiDynix Symphony Integrated Library System (ILS) subscription services for seven libraries throughout Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). The PACAF libraries are located at Eielson AFB, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Kadena AB, Kunsan AB, Misawa AB, Osan AB, and Yokota AB. The contract will provide hosting, licensing, tools, equipment, materials, software, and supervision to maintain and support the current ILS software. The libraries also have an integrated information management system which are designed to interface with the seven PACAF libraries.

The contract will host the application service provider (ASP) client/server software in a secure environment as its facility to allow the ILS to be available through Internet access on a 24-hour basis. The system is specifically designed to assist in the research for undergraduate and graduate education programs, mission related projects, and personal development within the PACAF libraries for bibliographic records and items. The ILS will allow users to perform a single search through all of the library's holdings to include holdings of all PACAF and Air Force libraries. For educational purposes, the software allows users access to Online catalogs, full-text articles, cover art, books for information provided by the PACAF libraries and Air Force Library Information Systems programs, and builds virtual spaces and contextualized searches for end users. This subscription is essential to ensure that Government personnel and library patrons can access and obtain current information, locate library materials at any of the PACAF libraries while allowing library employees to inventory all library materials, check out any materials to patrons, and/or track library inventory.

The proposed contract will have a performance period from 1 September 2016 to 31 August 2018, which includes one base year plus four (4) - three month options. In previous solicitations, it has only been a one year contract sole sourced to Sirsi Corporation. However, adding options allows the Government to control costs by establishing future prices and renewing the subscriptions quickly by accomplishing the administrative work up front. More importantly, this contract action will satisfy the PACAF libraries' continuing requirement until the projected award of an Air Force-wide Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract on 1 December 2017, procured by 763 SCONS/PKA located at Scott Air Force Base, IL. This will allow for a seamless transition between contracts. Exercising the first option would end 30 November 2017, in time to continue this requirement on the IDIQ contract. In the event the Air Force wide contract encounters any delays, we have additional options added to this contract to ensure there are no breaks in support. Sirsi typically does not provide options less than a year in duration. However, they have agreed to provide four (4) - three month options. This contract will be awarded using Operations & Maintenance (O&M) 3400 funds.

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Performance Period:

Base Year (1 September 2016 - 31 August 2017) - $ Option One (1 September 2017 - 30 November 2017) - $ Option Two (1 December 2017 - 28 February 2018) - $ Option Three (1 March 2018 - 31 May 2018) - $ Option Four (1 June 2018 - 31 August 2018) - $ Contract Total: $

IV. Statutory authority permitting Other than Full and Open Competition.

10 U.S.C.2304(c)(1) The property or services needed by the agency are available from only one responsible source and no other type of property or services will satisfy the needs of the agency, as implemented by FAR 6.302-1(a)(1), required by FAR 6.303-2(b)(4). In accordance with FAR 13.501(a)(1)(i), a sole source acquisition must be justified in writing and approved by specified levels of authority.

V. Demonstration that the contractor's unique qualifications or nature of the acquisition requires the use of the authority cited above (applicability of authority).

Sirsi Corporation is the only one responsible source for the SirsiDynix Symphony ILS subscription services, and no other sources can satisfy the agency's requirement.

Subsection 1. The seven PACAF libraries currently have the Symphony ILS subscription product. The current contract work was issued as a firm fixed-price purchase order #FA5215-15-P-0034 sole source to Sirsi, and will expire on 31 Aug 2016. This contract action will satisfy the PACAF libraries' continuing requirement including options until the projected award of an Air Force-wide contract on 1 December 2017. This planned acquisition is not a "bridge" effort. Therefore, this acquisition will be a follow-on contract for the renewal of the existing system's subscription.

Subsection 2. Sirsi is the only provider with proprietary software rights for Symphony ILS subscription services according to the Government market research. The market research also confirmed that no other alternative sources or resellers are authorized to provide Symphony ILS subscription services. Other vendors, including two small businesses, offer ILS subscription services but all vendors use a different software, and the current library bibliographies will not be easily converted. Migration to another ILS software will produce labor, travel, training, consultation costs, plus six to eight weeks of time on top of the subscription cost.

Subsection 3. AFSVA/SVPL & HQ PACAF/A1 have determined that award to any other source would result in substantial duplication of cost to the Government that is not expected to be recovered through competition and unacceptable delays in fulfilling the Air Force's requirements. A purchase from any other manufacturer other than the current contractor (SirsiDynix) would require the Government to incur unnecessary added costs and duplication of effort to replace the existing information management systems at all PACAF libraries, also creating a deviation from numerous Air Force libraries that are utilizing ILS products supported by SirsiDynix. There is an added cost (time and money) of training library staff, and six to eight weeks of migration to a new system other than Symphony. There is an added risk of integration of a new system into the Air Force network infrastructure that would require additional time with a high risk of a break in support to the library staff and its patrons.

Subsection 4. Accordingly, Sirsi is the only firm capable of providing the supplies and services described in Section III above without the U.S. Air Force experiencing substantial duplication of cost that could not be expected to be recovered through competition and unacceptable delays in fulfilling its requirements.

VI. Description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as practicable.

An inquiry on FedBizOpps showed three agencies solicited similar support; the Army and Air Force (AF) posted a sources sought and the Navy posted their intent to award sole source to Sirsi Corporation. After reaching out to the Army and the Air Force via email, the 763rd AFICA Specialized Contracting Squadron at Scott AFB, IL responded back. The Contract Specialist posted a sources sought on FedBizOpps on 21 January 2016 for a similar requirement, which resulted in a response only

Page 4 of 5Updated: 15 Mar 16 from SirsiDynix. Our team posted a sources sought on FedBizOpps on 22 March 2016, for two weeks, and had resulted in the same outcome. Only receiving a response from SirsiDynix confirms our assumptions regarding the industry capability to meet the needs of our customer.

Through market research, two small businesses were discovered, The Library Corporation and Mandarin Library Automation, Incorporated. After reaching out to the companies via email, both have responded stating that they do not offer maintenance support to our current system with SirsiDynix; one company stated that they do not believe there is a company that can provide the support for their product suite other than SirsiDynix. Unnecessary risks, additional costs and time associated with converting to another system will be discussed further in section VIII. Section VIII also mentions the AF-wide ILS contract that is currently in the planning stage by the Air Force Services Agency, further justifying the switch to another vendor as an inefficient use of time and money.

This acquisition will require a synopsis IAW FAR 5.201.

VII. Determination by the Contracting Officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable.

The Contracting Officer's fair and reasonable price determination will be based on comparison of proposed prices with the Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE) or/and comparison of proposed prices to historical prices paid, whether by the Government or other than the Government, for the same or similar items.

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

Market research revealed that the majority of the Air Force libraries utilize SirsiDynix systems. Other Government agencies use SirsiDynix systems in their libraries as well, which was discovered through an inquiry of FedBizOpps (FBO). In addition, there are more than 23,000 library facilities in more than 70 countries that use SirsiDynix products and services delivering a wealth of information to 300 million users worldwide. Alternative sources of supply exist in the commercial marketplace, such as Ex Libris, Innovative Interfaces, Inc., Pro Quest Work Flow Solutions and EBSCO Information Services. Although research has revealed that information management systems and upgrades are available from other manufacturers, the cost to the Government by migrating to a new system adds unnecessary risk, as these libraries would not recover quickly.

Companies solely provide software and maintenance support for their system. The only option would be to migrate to another system.

There are risks associated with switching to a new system such as the timeline to migrate and train the library staff, interoperability issues between the system and the Air Force network infrastructure, and bug fixes that accompany implementation of any new system. The software must be operational by the end of the current period of performance (PoP), which is 31 August 2016, to prevent a break in service, which must allow six to eight weeks to migrate from the current system to a new system. The ramifications of converting to a new system may potentially create a break in service, thus hindering the customers (students, professors, AF libraries and their employees) who require access to the software to complete their daily tasks and missions. Other systems are not compatible with the existing PACAF library information management systems without additional costs for replacement or conversion. A replacement system would also utilize a proprietary software component, therefore no actions could be taken to remove or overcome the barrier to competition.

Maintaining the SirsiDynix system allows for consistency and continuity across the Air Force libraries.

The customer provided market research in the previous solicitation that compared costs of systems currently used across the Air Force libraries. Costs for similar services with SirsiDynix ranged from $10K per year for small inventory (individual installation library) up to $227K per year for multiple bases (MAJCOM buys). Costs to consider when switching systems are the conversion and migration from the old to the new system, costs to acquire new software-licenses, and training and consultation of library staff, which the customer has estimated to be $512K for the first year. The cost and time would be significant compared to a software product and subscription renewal, especially considering our current funding environment it would be in the Government's best interest to maintain the current system for the seven PACAF libraries.

A lead librarian from the Air Force Services Agency in San Antonio, TX, Ms. _____, stated that they are currently pursuing an Air Force-wide ILS contract. This effort is underway with the anticipated contract award of 1 December 2017. We have coordinated with Ms. _____, the Contract Administrator from 763 SCONS/PKA, and with Mr. ____, the Program Manager, on the schedule of this solicitation. The sources sought for this acquisition posted on FBO 6 July 2016.

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With majority of the AF libraries utilizing SirsiDynix Symphony, it is in the Government's best interest to continue use of this system in the interim to facilitate a smooth transition to the Air Force wide contract; this also enables an efficient turnaround time for implementation. Replacing Sirsi Corporation's software as a service (SaaS) program only to replace it again shortly after would add unnecessary significant costs and time to the Government.

IX. Any other facts supporting the use of Other Than Full and Open Competition.

As this is a software subscription renewal (product), there will not be a requirements approval document (RAD). With an AF-wide ILS contract award scheduled for 1 December 2017, a purchase from any other manufacturer would subject the Government to incur unnecessary added time and costs to replace the existing information management systems at all PACAF libraries; additionally, unnecessary risk of a break in library data support to its customers and mission prove that Sirsi's service provides the best value to the Government.

X. List of sources, if any, that expressed interest in the acquisition.

See Section VI above.

XI. A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before making subsequent acquisitions for the supplies or services required.

In accordance with FAR 5.201, a notice of proposed contract action will be posted. Any sources who can meet the Government's needs by providing a compatible and seamless subscription to SirsiDynix Symphony ILS or other without additional cost will be considered. In the past four years, market research has proven to provide the same results, that Sirsi Corporation meets enterprise needs of the PACAF libraries' database and the greater Air Force Libraries Division, thereby establishing a contract with a one year base and four (4) - three month options provides the Government an efficient method of continuing service with pre-priced options, while enhancing our business relationship between the Government and Sirsi Corporation. The planned AF-wide ILS contract, which is scheduled to award 1 December 2017, reaffirms constructing a contract with a one year base plus four - three month options provides the best value to the Government, as the last option concludes on 31 August 2018; this allows for schedule flexibility in the event of any delays to the AF-wide contract.

XII. Certification by the Contracting Officer.

As evidenced by his signature, the Contracting Officer has determined this document to be both accurate and complete to the best of his knowledge and belief.

XIII. Certification by the technical/requirements personnel.

As evidenced by their signatures, the technical and/or requirements personnel have certified that any supporting data contained herein, which is their responsibility, is both accurate and complete.