JOFOC.pdf

JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL FOR SOLE SOURCE ACQUISITION

1. Contracting Agency and Activity. The Depaiirnent of the Interior, United States Geological Survey, Reston Acquisitions Branch, Reston, VA, plans to contract on a sole source basis. This document sets forth the justification and approval as required by FAR 6.302-1 "Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements".

2. Nature of Action Being Approved. The requested procurement is for award of a new Indefinite-Delivery Indefinite-Quantity (IDIQ) contract with Eureka. The proposed structure is a Finn flxed-Price contract. The estimated delivery time is 60 months.

3. Description of Supplies or Services. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Water Resources Division, Hydro logic Instrumentation Facility (HIF), requests award of a non-competitive procurement to Eureka for the purchase of water quality instrumentation for measuring a suite of water quality parameters at various USGS data collection sites throughout the United States.

This equipment will be delivered to the HIF, Stennis Space Center, MS. The HIF is the primary source for specialized hydrologic instrumentation used by the Water Resources Division. HIF is responsible for testing, evaluating, and warehousing numerous types of instrumentation and equipment. The equipment is sold and rented to district and field sites all over the nation to support their field data collection activities. Other Federal Agencies also purchase or rent equipment from the HIF's warehouse. The requested instrumentation is needed to support the mission requirements of USGS.

4. Estimated Dollar Value. The total value of the contract will not exc.eed $488,880.00 for a 60 month period. ($25,000 minimum guarantee)

5. Statutory Authority. The proposed action may be awarded on a sole source basis under the authority of Section 201 of the Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 ( 40 USC 501) and FAR 6.302-1 "Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements".

6. Rationale Supporting Use of Citation in No. 5. The requested equipment and instruments are used to measure water quality parameters (temperature, conductivity, pH, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, and chlorophyll) at USGS data collection stations. Eureka equipment is required because of its ability to meet applicable USGS accuracy specifications, and interoperability with existing monitoring network infrastructure. Water Science Centers deploy this equipment for extended periods at remote locations under harsh environmental conditions.

This network, and the data it produces, is a major element of the overall mission of the USGS.

Eureka holds patents and proprietary designs on its networked equipment. The equipment and instruments required for the operation of this network are highly specialized, must meet rigorous requirements for accuracy, be able to operate in demanding field conditions, and operate with _xisting network infrastructure. This network is a key system that represents a major investment :::resources through time by the agency. During the last two-and-a-half years the HIF alone has purchased Eureka products valued at more than $650,000; this does not include instrumentation purchased directly by field offices.

It is likely that an award to another source would result in substantial duplication of cost that would not be made up from any savings associated with competition. As an example, taking one of the instruments from the list of needed equipment (Manta+ Water Quality Multiprobes) the following duplication of costs has been estimated in consultation with a Water Science Center Data Chief. USGS WSC Data Chiefs are responsible for all aspects of hydrologic data collection and are the most informed and reliable source of information on time and costs associated with those activities. The reader should note that the hourly cost estimates include salary, benefits, and associated indirect costs ( overhead):

One-time HIF evaluation costs to ensure equipment procured via competition meets applicable USGS specifications:

• 6 weeks project scientist time to design, oversee, analyze, and report evaluation (240 hours x $75/hour =$18,000)

• 4 weeks technician time to conduct laboratory and field work to complete evaluation ( 160 hours x $50/hour = $8,000)

• 2 weeks HIF staff time to introduce new stock item(s) into USGS One Stop ordering system and stock them in HIF warehouse (80 hours x $45/hour = $3,600)

• Total estimated one-time HIF cost: $18,000 + $8,000 + $3,600 = $29,600

Recurring field costs associated with interfacing equipment procured via competition into existing infrastructure:

• 2 additional hours field technician time to successfully interface unfamiliar equipment into existing station (2 hours x $50/hour x 200 installations (nationwide) per year = $20,000/year)

• 3 hours additional technician training time to learn and practice new calibration procedures requires (3 hours x $50/hour x 200 installations (nationwide) per year = $30,000/year)

• 8 hours additional technician time to travel to station and troubleshoot problems associated with unfamiliar equipment (8 hours x $50/hour x 200 installations (nationwide) per year = $80,000/year)

• 4 hours additional technician and supervisory time to correct erroneous data or estimate lost data resulting from unfamiliar equipment during records working and review process (4 hours x $60/hour x 200 installations (nationwide) per year = $48,000/year)

• Total estimated annual field cost: $20,000 + $30,000 + $80,000 + 48,000 =

$178,000/year

Total estimated additional costs are $207,600. It should be noted that these costs are for a single piece of equipment. In addition, the additional costs incurred at the field technician level are recurring costs and would (albeit at lower levels as technicians became more familiar with new equipment) continue to be incurred in future years.

Data from the stream gaging network are used for multiple purposes, including decision-making during flooding that can affect life and property. Consequently, the USGS may face legal liability should a key station's data not be available or of compromised quality owing to unfamiliar network components. It is imperative that equipment be readily available to meet national network needs, and essential that it be available to meet urgent needs when flooding occurs. It is precisely during these times of high visibility and time-critical information flow that instrument and equipment problems associated with faulty or inaccurate instruments could be most damaging to the agency's reputation.

The required equipment often integrates into other systems in the USGS which includes SDI-12 (a communications protocol for environmental sensors and data acquisition systems) which provides continuity of data collection activities. New equipment must be built/calibrated the same as existing equipment to ensure an apples-to-apples comparison of previously collected data. If other equipment is introduced which is built/calibrated to different specifications, new data will be skewed prohibiting accurate comparisons to the long-term data set.

Eureka products have the following unique attributes, which meet the Government's minimum needs:

• Can support up to 11 sensors on a single sonde; this allows data to be gathered in real time with the same time stamp;

• In addition to common fluorimeters such as chlorophyll, blue-green algae, rhodamine, etc., Eureka products also detect tryptophan, crude oil, refined fuels, fluorescein and (upon request) custom fluorimeters for methane and CO2;

• Permanent calibration log files are stored within the instrument to include: millivolt data, and Sensor Response Factors;

• "Old" calculation points and "new" calculation points" are retained; these record the solution used, expiry date, and lot number; this information is used to supply additional meta-data for Aquarius software and assist with USGS requests;

7. Other Information N/A

8. The Efforts to Identify Additional Sources Including the Market Research Conducted.

A "Sources Sought" (G l 7PS00876) for Eureka water quality monitoring instruments or equivalent products was posted on FedbizOpps/FedConnect from August 8 to August 18, 2017.

No response was received. Eureka authorizes re-sale in international markets however, in the United States, all products must be purchased directly from Eureka.

An important component of the lllF's overall mission is to actively seek out new vendors and products that meet USGS hydrologic data collection needs as well as identifying new and emerging technologies that may improve or expand agency efforts. Consequently, market research is conducted by HIF staff on a continuous basis. HIF employees maintain numerous contacts with vendor representatives (both sales and technical staff), and are often some of the first to learn of new products and planned innovations from those vendors. HIF staff also provide information to vendors that help them ensure that new products will meet USGS accuracy and performance specifications. HIF staff attends industry trade shows and USGS national me.etings annually wh�re they can observe vendor demonstrations and discuss product capabilities. HIF welcomes vendors to visit our facility and provide presentations about, and demonstrations of, their products. Vendor visits to HIF are a frequent and regular occurrence. HIF staff also maintains a network of contacts with WSC technicians, professionals and managers. These personnel will often try a new device or manufacturer, and if they believe the equipment holds promise for USGS-wide usage, will contact HIF with a request to perform a rigorous equipment evaluation. The HIF conducts an annual process to seek input on new equipment evaluations.

The process targets the Water Mission Area Discipline Offices (Surface Water, Ground Water, and Water Quality), National Program Managers, WSC staff, and it offers vendors a mechanism to nominate their products for evaluation by HIF.

9. Future Plans to Permit Competition. To promote competition, HIF continually tests new devices as they become available on the market. HIF routinely attends vendor conferences, trade shows, meetings, and conferences where vendors are present. HIF also attends local Business and Procurement Expositions in order to make vendors aware of USGS needs and business opportunities. HIF encourages vendors to develop and submit products that meet USGS requirements. In addition, HIF promotes visits from vendors to demonstrate and provide information about their products.

10. Recommendation Program Office

Based on the above, I recommend this acquisition be conducted on a sole source basis and certify that the above statements are true and correct.

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11. Certifications from the Contracting Officer

a. The anticipated cost to the Government is fair and reasonable based on public price list.

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Date

12. Concurrence by Reston Acquisition Branch Chief

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