JA for Haworth Furniture_20240808_Redacted.pdf

CUI

United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM)

Brand Name Justification and Approval (J&A)

SOCOM FY24 Furniture

1 August 2024

CUI

3 (REV JUNE 2023)

CUI, IF APPLICABLE

competitive source selection was conducted in 2001 where USSOCOM selected Haworth as the contractor and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) to provide the furniture products during the full-scale renovation of the command’s central office building in 2001. Factors leading to its selection included its unique power capabilities that meet USSOCOM’s multiple computer workstation power requirements, while offering best value, durability, and availability of interchangeable replacement parts with the commands existing 3500 cubicle inventories. A follow-on source selection was conducted in 2007 where Haworth was again selected as the contractor and OEM to provide an additional $1.9M furniture requirements.

The required furniture must be interoperable with the existing furniture inventory and uniform in appearance appropriate to a 4-star Headquarters command. Additionally, the furniture must have significant capacity for wire management and power distribution because each USSOCOM workstation often runs up to five networks and two or more phones.

USSOCOM engineering has conducted market research of the new furniture products available. There are similar brand name furniture lines available in the market, such as Steelcase, Herman-Miller, HNI, Knoll, and Technion; however, no other brand can meet or exceed the wire management capability and “clean power” capacity that is required and available with Haworth products. The Haworth furniture panels can accommodate up to 160 individual CAT 6 network cables with proper security-level separation. Haworth Compose panels also offer the only internal “clean power” electrical distribution in the systems furniture industry, providing one neutral for each hot wire supplying power and containing three circuit wiring harnesses which will support up to six workstations. SOCOM’s furniture requirements are unique, with minimum of two computers and monitors at each desk. On average, there are three computers at each desk, but some functions have as many as five networks and three monitors at each desk. Haworth provides a proprietary integral electrical distribution system which supports the IT intensive requirements of USSOCOM while also meeting electrical and safety codes. No other furniture brands can meet this capacity.

Furthermore, Haworth furniture is the only brand interoperable with the existing inventory. As of July 2023, USSOCOM has established a $33M inventory of installed Haworth cubicles and working inventory to be re-utilized as required when office cubicles are reconfigured. Maintaining multiple types of inventories of systems furniture would create an additional space requirement as well as an increased administrative burden and additional costs. USSOCOM has approximately 500 office reconfigurations and furniture related Engineering Change Order requests annually which requires reutilization of existing furniture inventory supplemented by new furniture parts and hardware. The flexibility and interoperability of Haworth furniture allows for continuous repurposing of inventory as required during these Engineering Change Orders. Introducing any new brand or model of furniture will create an inventory which is not interchangeable with the existing inventory and will not be cost effective for the Government. For example, adding a single new workstation of a different furniture brand could require ALL the connected workstations to be replaced