HFE Recovery System JOFOC 7-21 80JSC022PA007.pdf

Rev.:01/2021

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

JOHNSON SPACE CENTER (JSC)

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

(JOFOC)

FOR 80JSC022PA007

1. Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.303-2(b)(1) – Identification of the agency and the contracting activity, and specific identification of the document as a “Justification for other than full and open competition.”

This document is a justification for other than full and open competition prepared by

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Johnson Space Center (JSC).

The procuring agency is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the contracting activity is JSC.

2. FAR 6.303-2(b)(2) – The nature and/or description of the action being approved:

This justification provides the rationale for contracting by other than full and open competition to award a sole-source contract to Progressive Recovery, Inc for a Hydrofluoroether (HFE) distillation and processing system to support Clean Room operations at Johnson Space Center.

3. FAR 6.303-2(b)(3) – A description of the supplies or services required, to meet the

Agency’s needs (including the estimated value):

This procurement is being requested by the Structural Engineering Test and Operations Office in support of Clean Room operations at JSC. The procured system must process HFE solvent by distilling and processing the fluid. Additionally, it must contain all of the main components necessary to transfer and process the HFE fluid, including storage of both the used and clean materials. The estimated value of this procurement is $297,100.

4. FAR 6.303-2(b)(4) – An identification of the statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition:

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 10 U.S.C. 2304(c) (1), as implemented by FAR 6.302-1. Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.

5. FAR 6.303-2(b)(5) – A demonstration that the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited:

The rationale supporting the use of 10 U.S.C. 2304(c) (1) is appropriate only when “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 described below.

Progressive Recovery provides a unique system that meets all of NASA’s requirements. This system will be compatible with the current cleaning solvent in use, HFE. Consequently, the Government will not need to purchase a different solvent. The scope of the job was discussed with the only other company found to be logistically capable of supporting the design; however, the Government would have been required to purchase the company’s proprietary solvent, which is not HFE. The fluid system from Progressive Recovery is compatible with HFE and JSC’s Clean Room processes for cleaning flight and human rated hardware, which have been developed with HFE as the preferred cleaning solvent. Changing cleaning solvents would require extensive development and testing efforts to certify the new cleaning solvent and result in significant modifications in documentation, process changes, and increased overall cost to JSC.

Additionally, this system operates in a fully automated manner when the system is in “auto” mode and no operator is required during normal operation. The system is composed of corrosion resistant stainless steel (304L alloy) which can still be used if the cleaning solvent changes from HFE to a different non-hazardous solvent and is equipped with 500 gallon tanks. Design consulting is needed for coordination to develop final system details.

Additionally, Progressive Recovery will be able to provide onsite start up and training. The system will provide added cooling to the clean solvent holding tank, which will reduce solvent losses for clean room users. Progressive Recovery will be able to add an Underwriters Laboratories (UL) label to the control panel for the system which shows that the electrical products have been tested to applicable standards.

6. FAR 6.303-2(b)(6) – A description of the efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as practicable, including whether a notice was or will be publicized as required by Subpart 5.2 and, if not, which exception under 5.202 applies:

A notice to the Government Point of Entry (GPE) website (Sam.gov) was published on TBD, in accordance with FAR Subpart 5.2. This posting informed potential sources of NASA’s intent to award this sole-source contract to Progressive Recovery, Inc. The results of this synopsis are summarized in Section 10 below.

7. FAR 6.303-2(b)(7) – A determination by the contracting officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable:

The Contracting Officer’s signature on this document indicates that the Contracting Officer has determined that the anticipated cost to the government will be fair and reasonable. The Contractor shall be required to submit a proposal to be evaluated and negotiated by the Government. Prior to execution of the contractual instrument, a proposal analysis will be performed. The proposal analysis will ensure that the final agreed-to price for the contract action is fair and reasonable.

8. FAR 6.303-2(b)(8) – Description of the market research conducted, and the results, or a statement of the reasons a market research was not conducted:

An Internet web search was performed to identify vendors or companies that can fabricate a distillation system to process the HFE fluid with respect to the quantity, quality, and fit within the square footage space constraints of the Building 9 South Clean Room at JSC. One company was identified that fit some, but not all of the Government’s requirements. This company was logistically capable of supporting the design; however, the Government would have been required to purchase their proprietary HFE solvent, which is not compatible with the solvent the Government already has in use. Switching cleaning solvents would result in major changes in documentation, processes, and increased cost for JSC. No other company was identified that could meet all of these requirements for processing the HFE for the JSC Clean Room. Progressive Recovery, Inc. was the only company found that could fulfill all of the requirements.

Additional market research was performed by accessing the Small Business Administration (SBA) Dynamic Search and SAM.gov. The SBA search identified one vendor, by using the North American Industry Classification (NAICs) code for this product and Statement of Work (SOW) keywords as search parameters. The company found by the search does not provide a product or system that meet the Government’s specifications. In SAM.gov, the results were narrowed by searching with the NAICs code and key words from the SOW.

With those search parameters, only one company was found and it did not offer a system that fit the Government’s specifications.

9. FAR 6.303-2(b)(9) – Any other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition:

None

10. FAR 6.303-2(b)(10) – A listing of the sources, if any, that expressed an interest in writing in the acquisition:

A notice of NASA’s intent to award this sole-source action was synopsized on the GPE website (Sam.gov) per FAR Subpart 5.2 (See Section 6 above).

11. FAR 6.303-2(b)(11) – A statement of actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before any subsequent acquisition for the supplies or services required:

NASA is not currently aware of any other source that is capable of providing the specific system needed to meet NASA’s requirements. However, NASA will continue to research and assess the marketplace for alternative sources. Additionally, NASA will continue to compare its requirements with available capabilities to determine industry’s ability to competitively fulfill the requirements.