FY22-29559_Brand Name JA_Redacted.pdf

Brand Name/Sole Source Justification under $250K

PMD Number: FY22-29559

Department: A57

Company Name/Brand: National Instruments Corporation

Description of Product, Supplies or Services required to meet the agency’s needs:

NSWC PHD Air Dominance Department (Code A57) requires the National Instrument (NI) circuit cards assemblies for use in the Power and Control Module Automatic Test Equipment (PCMATE). The MK 57 VLS is a surface ship combatant missile launcher that stores and launches a variety of missile types. The National Instrument circuit card assemblies are part of the (PCMATE), which tests the Universal Canister Electronics Unit (UCEU) assembly. The UCEU is responsible for missile preparation and hazard monitoring for the MK-57 Vertical Launching System (VLS).

Identification of Justification Rational:

☒ The Material or service must be compatible will aspects (Form, Fit, and Function) with existing systems presently installed.

☐ A patent, copyright, proprietary data, or licensing agreement limits competition.

☐ These are “direct replacement(s)” parts/components for existing equipment.

☐ Urgency.

Identification of the Justification Rationale Explained: **If using form, fit, and function, describe the current equipment and how the new item/service must coordinate or interface.

**If using patent, copyright, proprietary data, describe the proprietary data. **If using direct replacement, describe this below.

The Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) for the NI card assembly is National Instruments Corporation. MK 57 VLS has tested and integrated various NI circuit card assemblies for use in the PCMATE.

The Government conducted a trade study in which the program office and Technical Design Agent (TDA), determined that the use of the NI circuit card assemblies and NI in these test sets is the only technically viable option that meets requirements to support the VLS platform. This was based on the NI cards compatibility with existing software (LabVIEW and Measurement Studio, etc.), as well as backwards compatibility with other VLS applications. These NI circuit card assemblies form, fit and function are documented in the Technical Data Package (TDP).

Specific Characteristics of the Item or Service required that Limit the Availability to a Sole Source or Brand Name: **This is the most important section. Explain in detail why this company or brand are the only ones that can meet the requirement.

The NI cards are currently part of the Technical Data Package (TDP) and had been tested and integrated in the PCMATE. The Nation Instruments provides various software applications for automated testing such as LabVIEW and Measurement Studio for use in accordance with NI hardware. These software applications create programming tools for creating test and measurement applications with a graphical programming language. They provide the ability to connect to NI hardware’s only. They cannot connect to any other brand of hardware. In addition, the NI software has its own syntax which cannot be migrated into other software platforms without redesigning the entire source code. Therefore, any other brand of part will not work without vigorous testing to integrate the new part into the system.

If an alternate source was used, not only would the LabVIEW and Measurement Studio software source code have to be redesigned, but also additional resources would be required as all applicable documentations will need to be updated through Engineering Change Process (ECP) to introduce the new alternate brand of part into the system. Specifically, utilizing another source to meet our requirements will cause a substantial duplication of cost to the Government that is not expected to be recovered through competition. The Navy would incur a non-recurring cost approximately of $2,000,000.00 in order to identify and qualify alternate sources with the capability to produce the required equipment. The $2,000,000.00 estimate derives from the Baseline VII Tech Refresh efforts from 2011-2016 which included taking steps to ensure that any new sources are capable of producing a product that meets the established performance requirements. This includes the costs for the Government to conduct First Article Tests, Confidence and Functional testing for form, fit and function. These processes will add significant delays, cost overruns onto production phase. Therefore, utilizing a source other than NI card assemblies would compromise the continuity and integrity of the PCMATE.

Market Research Conducted:

The Government had reached out and found three vendors who will sell the NI cards. The mandatory source market research was conducted through OneTouch, GSA Advantage. One of the vendors, Technical Communities, Inc. (Testmart), is a GSA Advantage contractor.

Statement of Actions, if any to Remove Barriers to Competition in the Future:

NSWC PHD Contracts Office will continue to conduct market research as warranted to provide a broader vendor base as applicable for the types of supplies/services covered by this document. If another potential source emerges, NSWC PHD will assess whether competition for future requirements is feasible.

Contracting Officer:

I certify that this justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

WYNN.ARTHUR.P.JR.10804

80870 Contracting Officer Signature:

Digitally signed by

WYNN.ARTHUR.P.JR.1080480870

Date: 2022.05.03 12:37:06 -07'00'

Arthur Wynn, Contracting Officer, Code 0271, 805-228-6111 Date

Legal Counsel:

I certify that this justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

SURANE.JULIANNE.MARIE.1

522887796 Legal Office:

Digitally signed by

SURANE.JULIANNE.MARIE.1522887796

Date: 2022.05.03 12:54:29 -07'00'

Julianne Surane, Assistant Counsel Phone No. 805-228-8520 Date