JA-2025-04-1191 - For Posting_Redacted.pdf

Justification and Approval FAR Part 6 Authority

JA-2025-04-1191

FILE: 2600.3

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

(41 U.S.C. § 3304(a)(1))

Pursuant to the requirements of the Competition in Contracting Act (CICA) as implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 6.3 and in accordance with the requirements of FAR 6.303-1, the justification for the use of the statutory authority under FAR Subpart 6.3 is justified by the following facts and rationale required under FAR 6.303-2:

1. Agency and Contracting Activity.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Contracting and Procurement, and Acquisition Program Management (APM) propose to enter into a contract for delivery of Boarding Pass Scanners (BPS) and firmware updates on the basis of other than full and open competition pursuant to FAR 6.302-1, Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.

The Justification and Approval tracking number for this document is JA-2025-04-1191.

2. Nature and/or Description of the Action Being Approved.

This Justification and Approval sets forth the Agency�s rationale to award a single award Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract for the production and delivery of BPS units and quarterly firmware updates to support the Identity Management (IDM) mission requirements.

The name address for the vendor is GMbh, Gottlieb-Keim-Str.56, Bayreuth, 95448, Germany.

The anticipated period of performance is a five (5) year ordering period. The contract will allow for firm fixed price (FFP) orders to be awarded.

The Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE) is for the total ceiling value of

TSA anticipates using 2025 Aviation Funds to award any potential orders that would be issued under the subject IDIQ contract in Fiscal Year 2025.

The solicitation number for the IDIQ is 70T04025D7672N003 (Draft IDIQ number).

Background information about the requirement:

The IDM program is part of the screening of people traveling through U.S. airports. The BPS units are a primary tool for retrieving and validating passenger prescreening information along with other relevant passenger information that is located within the barcode on the boarding pass.

Historically, TSA has competitively awarded contracts for the production, delivery and quarterly firmware updates of BPS units. In 2013 and again in 2015, TSA issued two full and open competition solicitations on the Federal Business Opportunities (FBO) website for the purchase of

BPS units and maintenance. TSA awarded multiple award IDIQs to the three vendors including

DESKO, and TSA competed all delivery orders for the purchase of BPS units under the above multiple award IDIQs. Through the competitive solicitations and evaluations for delivery orders, TSA consistently found that other two IDIQ holders still did not meet all the requirements in the Functional Requirements Document FRD) and did not show progress towards meeting all of the requirements.

The most recent competitively awarded procurement is identified below:

Contract: 70T04018D9DAP2042

Contractor name: DESKO GmbH Contract type: Single Award IDIQ, Firm Fixed Price (FFP) Contract ceiling of Period of performance: September 28, 2018 � April 30, 2024 Place of performance: Contractor�s facility, unless otherwise specified in individual task or delivery orders Competitive with two offers received, with only one offeror deemed technically acceptable.

Small Business set-aside: No

3. Description of Supplies/Services.

The purpose of the intended contract is to establish a contract vehicle for the production and delivery of BPS units and quarterly BPS firmware updates with a five (5) year ordering period to support airport expansion and replacements for broken and outdated BPS units. The IDIQ contract will include two primary requirements needed to produce and update BPS at airport locations:

1. BPS production and delivery: This includes all hardware for these units and each unit will come with a two (2) year commercial warranty.

2. BPS quarterly firmware updates: This includes working with the air carriers to obtain the public keys, testing the software, and submitting the updates to TSA.

4. Identification of Statutory Authority Permitting Other Than Full and Open Competition.

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 41 U.S.C. § 3304(a)(1) implemented by the FAR Subpart 6.302-1 entitled �Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.�

5. Demonstration that the Nature of the Acquisition Requires Use of the Authority Cited.

If the subject Justification were not approved, and consequently, if the contract is not available to provide the needed supplies and services, TSA would have no way to replace BPS systems as they fail, and there will be a risk for a serious gap in security at the airports. The BPS units read a passenger�s boarding pass to show the appropriate level of screening, and a lack of BPS in the field would both decrease checkpoint efficiency and increase the efforts required of Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) who would have to revert back to checking passenger boarding passes manually. In addition, without a new contract vehicle to provide regular firmware updates for all existing BPS units deployed at airport passenger screening lanes, TSOs would be forced to manually authenticate boarding passes for new airlines or existing airlines, significantly increasing the amount of time necessary to validate travel documents and impact traveler wait times at security checkpoints.

This IDIQ contract will include two requirements:

BPS units: Based on competitive procurements from the past 10+ years (above), as well as current market research, is the only vendor capable of meeting TSA�s specific BPS requirements. The Procurement history (above) shows the lack of capability of previous potential vendors. Two vendors with 2013/2015 IDIQs showed promise, but ultimately failed to meet all of the requirements in the FRD, and a third potential vendor that submitted a proposal in 2018 was deemed not acceptable. In addition, the market research (below) shows a decided lack of interest in this next iteration of the BPS contract. The request for information (RFI) received only two responses, neither of which was determined to be capable or interested in this procurement, and a separate Notice of Intent (NOI) to contract using other than full and open competition received zero responses.

Quarterly Firmware Updates: There are currently over 2000 BPS units in use across TSA airports. This contract will support the quarterly updates for those units in addition to any new units purchased under this contract. The Quarterly firmware updates require award to be sole sourced to the specific Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) to support its units as the OEM is the only source capable of modifying its software. The proprietary information of the BPS units consists of the software, design and hardware associated with the units. TSA does not own the intellectual property or data rights for the units to support a third party providing quarterly firmware updates.

Therefore, per 41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(1), there is only one responsible source and no other supplies or services could satisfy TSA's requirements for required BPS units and quarterly firmware update services.

6. Description of Efforts Made to Ensure that Offers Are Solicited from as Many Potential Sources as is Practicable.

In addition to the Request for Information (RFI) and industry engagement noted below, TSA posted a Notice of Intent to contract using other than full and open competition on SAM.gov website on December 28, 2024, with no responses or additional vendors indicating interest.

7. Determination by the Contracting Officer that the Anticipated Cost to the Government will be Fair and Reasonable.

The Contracting Officer will ensure that the anticipated prices are fair and reasonable through price analysis techniques in accordance with FAR 15.404-1 prior to award. In order to determine fair and reasonable pricing, the Contracting Officer anticipates using the historical contract data and commercial pricing for comparison purposes.

8. Description of Market Research.

On May 1, 2024, TSA issued a Request for Information (RFI) for potential vendors on Sam.gov (TSA25- 04-0363) as a market research tool. The RFI resulted in two responses. One of the vendors notified TSA that they were a reseller of the Desko scanners and were not able to provide necessary firmware updates for existing equipment. The second vendor offered various means of biometric detection as well as identity document scanning and verification, and stated they were only interested if the technology included facial screening. Consequently, the results of the market research confirm that only one vendor is currently capable of meeting TSA�s functional and technical specifications as defined in the FRD and capable of providing firmware updates to BPS units.

Additionally, further online market research was conducted to determine if any other companies would be able to deliver BPS units and firmware updates in accordance with TSA requirements, but no other solutions are available.

Based on the market research findings outlined above, it has been concluded that no other vendor can produce BPS units that satisfy the TSA�s specific requirements for physical scanning hardware, nor can any other vendor provide quarterly firmware updates to BPS units in use in the field.

9. Any Other Facts Supporting the Use of Other Than Full and Open Competition.

None.

10. A Listing of the Sources, if Any That Expressed, in Writing, an Interest in the Acquisition.

None.

11. A Statement of the Actions, if Any, the Agency May Take to Remove or Overcome Any Barriers to Competition Before Any Subsequent Acquisition for Supplies or Services Required.

None

12. Contracting Officer�s Certification.

I certify that the data supporting the recommended use of other than full and open competition is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Shannon Welch Date Contracting Officer

13. Technical/Requirements Personnel Certification.

I certify this requirement meets the Government�s minimum need and that the supporting data, which forms a basis for this justification, is complete and accurate.

Jayson Allen Date Technical Representative

5/28/25

5/28/25

14. Legal Counsel Review.

I reviewed this Justification and Approval for Other Than Full and Open Competition in accordance with HSAM 3006.304-70 and find it legally sufficient.

Tom McGivern Date Senior Counsel

APPROVAL:

Charles Eppright Date Competition Advocate

5/30/25