Forest Technology Systems - FTS.pdf

Page 1 of 4 Revised 4/2016

Brand Name or Sole Source Justification (section 24-103-205, C.R.S. as amended)

This form must be completed for procurements where the basis for the vendor selection is:

1) There is only one specific product or service that can reasonably meet your need.

2) There is only one vendor who can reasonably provide that product or service.

You MUST meet criteria #1 to have a brand name sole source.

You MUST meet BOTH criteria to have a sole-source procurement.

Date of Request: 09/12/2018

Requestor: Kirk A. Will/Prescribed Fire and Fuels Unit Chief

Requesting Division or Unit: Division of Fire Prevention and Control/Wildland Fire Management Section

Before a decision can be made to approve your request for a Sole Source procurement, the following information is needed. Please provide all of the requested information on this form and submit it to the appropriate Purchasing Agent responsible for the procurement.

Vendor Name: Forest Technology Systems (FTS Inc.)

Vendor Contact, and Title: Theo Harvey/United States Fire Technical Sales

Vendor Phone Number: 250-857-4618

Vendor Email: tharvey@ftsinc.com

This is a recurring Procurement from to

Estimated price for term of Sole Source (attach proposal, if applicable):

Products $ Services $

This is a one-time procurement for this product or service

Estimated price for term of Sole Source (attach proposal, if applicable):

Products $174,000.00 Services $

Note: If additional space is required, use additional sheets of paper and submit with this completed form.

mailto:tharvey@ftsinc.com

Page 2 of 4 Revised 4/2016

1) BACKGROUND STATEMENT –

Provide information that would assist the reader in understanding the history (e.g., funding source, constraints, contractor’s business, development of the product or service, ownership of product or service) of this purchase.

FTS specializes in weather monitoring to support ongoing environmental monitoring and wildland fire and fuels management. FTS has several thousand National Fire Danger Rating System (NFDRS) Remote Automated Weather Stations (RAWS) deployed throughout the United States and numerous stations deployed in Colorado with our Federal and local partners. Per the Region 2 Incident Meteorologist (IMET), our wildland fire partners in Colorado currently only use FTS RAWs Stations due to FTS being the only company that offers telemetry on the stations. Stations must have telemetry for ease of access to data.

FTS equipment is specifically designed to meet and exceed the Interagency Wildland Fire Weather Station Standards & Guidelines (PMS426-3) published by the National Wildfire Coordination Group (NWCG). The FTS fire weather products are supported by the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) Remote Sensing and Fire Weather Support Unit (RSFWSU). Maintenance, service, equipment replacements, troubleshooting and support are available for FTS products from FTS directly and NIFC at the Boise Depot.

Interagency coordination, planning and communication are essential to success in emergency fire situations and wildland fire/prescribed fire operations, predictive services and suppression responses. FTS has many long term installations throughout Colorado with several wildland fire partners. FTS is very familiar with the specific deployment logistics concerns of the area. The following nearby fire and land management agencies rely on FTS monitoring equipment for their Fire Danger Rating data:

• Bureau of Land Management

• National Weather Service

• National Park Service

• US Forest Service

2) DIVISION NEEDS STATEMENT –

Describe in detail the product and/or service to be procured and how it meets your needs.

Purchase will be for 7 fixed RAWS Stations and 2 portable RAWS Stations to be used for deployment on State of Colorado wildland fires and prescribed fire projects. These products will meet our needs, by being linkable with current RAWS Stations in Colorado and also for ease of obtaining maintenance equipment and technicians. See below for the complete specs for the stations:

Model FIXFW-US - Fixed Fire Weather Station including:

• F6 Datalogger With G6 & Telemetry

• GPS Antenna Top of Cabinet Mount Cable 19.5ft

• Weatherproof Equipment Enclosure Keyway Mounts

• Tower Trileg Self Supporting 20 ft Mast

• Solar Panel Kit20WMount30ft Cable to Datalogger

• Battery GNB Sunlyte 100AH Starved Electrolyte

• Battery Cable Dual 10A Fuse F6 & H2 4 Ft

• THS Louvers Mounting Arm & 14ft Cable

• Rain Gauge Trileg Mount 20 ft Armoured Cable

• Fuelstick Moisture Sensor 12 ft Armoured Cable

• Fuel Stick Mount to Trileg Tower

• Wind Speed & Direction RM Young Sensor (SDI) w 50ft Armour Cable and Mount

• Solar Rad Sensor SDI Sun/Sky Mount 14ft Cable

• GOES EON2 Antenna Cable and Aimable Mount

Page 3 of 4 Revised 4/2016

Model QD-RVT2 - Quick Deploy Portable Weather Station - King Radio Option

• F6 Datalogger w/G6 & RVT2 QD Version (includes Telemetry)

• Voice Transmitter QDInternal ConnCustomer King R

• Quick Deploy Enclosure with Tripod Legs

• Quick Deploy Power Supply Solar Panel Batteries

• Wind Speed & Direction Sensor QD Mount Cable

• Quick Deploy Mast Height Extender 30"

• Temp Humidity Sensor Solar Shield QD Mount 6ft

• Rain Gauge QD Mount 20 ft Armoured Cable

• Fuelstick Moisture Sensor 12 ft Armoured Cable

• Fuel Stick Mount Quick Deploy Station

• Solar Radiation Sensor QD Mount and Cable

• Quick Deploy Station Shipping Cases (2)

• Cable AC Adapter to Solar Panel Port

• FTS Manual

3) FEATURES REQUIREMENTS –

What unique design or performance features does this product or service have that is essential to your requirements? Please provide a brief yet technical explanation as to why these features are essential.

Provide the manufacturer and model of your existing equipment. List the major features/capabilities of the product/service that are required:

There are several important considerations that make FTS the only choice for Fire Weather Monitoring applications:

• FTS designs and manufactures RAWS specifically intended for use with the National Fire Danger Rating System and exceeds the NWCG weather station Standards (PMS 426-3) on all aspects.

• FTS is 100% compliant on all aspects of PMS 426-3.

• FTS equipment is fully supported by the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC)

• The GOES Antenna is Omni-directional with high gain characteristics when aimed, which allows the unit to be deployed without antenna alignment anywhere in North America. This antenna is ice and corrosion resistant.

• The unit automatically acquires GPS timing and location information. This significantly reduces the setup time and level of complexity of deployment.

• There is no need to adjust any sensor co-efficient. This ensures the data collected is accurate and consistent without the need for in depth personnel training. This also significantly reduces the setup time and level of complexity of deployment.

• Power Management

• The FTS datalogger has microprocessor controlled power management built into every DCP.

This maximizes available solar charge and minimizes standby current draw.

• Every sensor and component on the FTS system is designed for low power consumption

• Physical characteristics

• To protect against physical damage from snow and ice loading, animals or other environmental impacts the FTS enclosure and mounting equipment is predominantly cast aluminum, anodized and powder-coated.

• Each electronic component has its own waterproof component enclosure which meets IP67 standards

Page 4 of 4 Revised 4/2016

• Interface considerations

• FTS weather stations are a completely stand-alone product, with a touch screen interface.

There is no need to ever interface to a laptop or connect to and government owned equipment.

• The FTS DCP has a built in touch screen and all programming features can be completed via the touchscreen and USB memory stick port.

• The ability to use the touch screen along with the military style connections greatly reduces the amount of training required for technicians to install, maintain and service the equipment. The FTS weather station can be completely serviced by untrained personnel.

• Supporting infrastructure

• FTS has unlimited free technical support M-F available to every FTS station user.

• FTS has extensive GOES monitoring capabilities which allow FTS to alert customers in the event of station failure or anomalies.

• In the last 2 years FTS has hosted over 30 free training workshops throughout the US and

FTS has trained over 400 equipment users at no cost. FTS typically visits the United States once per year for informal on-site equipment training and status updates.

4) COMPETING BRANDS INVESTIGATED –

What other suppliers did you contact? (Please include names of all sales representatives contacted and their telephone numbers.) Did you consider other products or services with similar capabilities? Indicate the specific brands/models of competitors’ products that were investigated and describe why, specifically, they do not meet some, or all, of the FEATURES REQUIREMENTS listed in Item #2. Requestor needs to state that to the best of his/her knowledge, these are the only companies that make this type of equipment.

After speaking with our federal partners in Colorado from the Bureau of Land Management and United States Forest Service as well as the Region 2 Incident Meteorologist, FTS is the only company that exists that makes this type of equipment. FTS is also the only company that makes equipment compatible with current RAWS Stations in place around the State of Colorado. To the best of my knowledge, and after research, no other companies can be found that make this type of equipment

5) NEGOTIATIONS –

Describe the negotiation efforts, if any, which have occurred with this supplier to obtain the best terms (price and delivery).

I have worked with the FTS U.S. Sales Representative to ensure that the best possible quote has been given for the equipment. FTS has worked with numerous other States and Federal Partners in the past to ensure proper pricing and best terms. The offer provided by the vendor is at an extremely reasonable price.

6) FUTURE PURCHASES –

Will this purchase obligate CDPS to a particular vendor for future purchases? For example, will future maintenance be necessary that only this vendor will be able to provide or will we need to purchase more of the same items or items that are compatible with the current purchase?

Yes No

If “Yes,” please provide an explanation of future purchases:

There will be annual maintenance and associated costs for the RAWS Stations. We can use the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) in Boise or FTS for the needed maintenance equipment. The cost is around $1000 per station per year for swapping sensors and maintenance. We will need to purchase the sensors from either FTS Inc. or NIFC. DFPC will also have qualified technicians to perform this maintenance.

Page 5 of 4 Revised 4/2016

7) BRAND NAME SOLE SOURCE –

Is the specific brand/model of product being recommended for procurement available from more than one source (i.e., dealers, distributors)?

Yes No

If “Yes,” this will be processed as a brand name sole source. Please provide the company names of known sources

8) CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT -

The Requestor agrees that there is no real or potential Conflict of Interest in recommending this product and/or service as a Sole Source procurement. (NOTE: If you do have a real or potential conflict of interest, please contact the appropriate Purchasing Agent.)

Requestor has read, understands, and agrees to this statement.

CERTIFICATION:

By signing below, you are certifying that the information submitted on this form is accurate. The EDO Purchasing Director will make the final determination of Sole Source or Brand Name Sole Source.

Signature Date 09/12/2018

Printed Name and Title: Kirk A. Will - Unit Chief of Prescribed Fire and Fuels

Page 6 of 4 Revised 4/2016

FOR PROCUREMENT USE ONLY

RESEARCH CONDUCTED BY PROCUREMENT STAFF:

POSTED ON VSS? Yes No

Related Comments (responses received, quantity, etc.):

DETERMINATION:

Sole Source approved – purchase as requested.

Brand Name approved – issue bid on a “no substitutes” basis.

Sole Source not approved – issue bid using performance specifications.

RESULTING COMMITMENT DOCUMENT NUMBER:

Purchasing Agent Signature ____________________________________________

Director of Purchasing (or delegate) Signature ____________________________________________

This approval is valid until: ___________________________

Page 4 of 4 Revised 4/2016

COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

PROCUREMENT AND CONTRACT SERVICES

COST ANALYSIS CHECKLIST

This form must be completed for each purchase above $10,000 for goods, and above $25,000 for services where the purchase is sole source justified or only one bid/proposal has been received. One of the boxes below must be checked and an explanation must be provided in the space provided at the end of this checklist.

The price being paid for goods or services is fair and reasonable based on:

Catalog or list price (or less) for STANDARD commercial item or service.

Price compares favorably with price for a similar item.

Market prices. Where an item has an established market price, verification of an equal or lower price establishes the price to be fair and reasonable. (For example, the purchase of metals, such as lead, gold, silver or commodities, such as grains.)

Special Governmental Pricing.

Professional Judgment. The Purchasing Agent is familiar with marketplace for the particular goods and services at issue and knows that the price is fair and reasonable.

Price set by law or regulation.

Price is the same as another purchaser paid. If the seller has no catalog, but has sold the same item to others in the recent past, the price can be determined to be fair and reasonable by verifying with those other purchasers what price they paid.

Price compares favorably to price paid for the same item or service, or similar item or service of like complexity under a previous purchase order, taking inflation into account.

Cost Analysis. Cost analysis shall be completed when price analysis is inadequate to verify that prices are fair and reasonable.

Cost analysis is the review and evaluation of each element of a cost estimate and proposed profit or fee to determine reasonableness, allocability and allowability. It is often used in conjunction with cost reimbursement contracts. Cost analysis should answer the following questions for the review and evaluation for any given cost element:

Is the cost necessary to perform the work and allocable to the work?

Is the cost necessary to operate the business?

Does the offeror follow applicable regulations?

Does the offeror have an acceptable accounting procedure?

Is the cost allowable in accordance with grant guidelines?

Would a prudent business person take this action in a competitive business environment?

Is the profit or fee negotiated, if any, reasonable for the degree of risk involved in performance of the work and does not exceed the limitations?

Explanation of above-checked justification: