JA_FAR 13.5_PAR Excellence_Redacted.pdf

CONTROL NUMBER VA-25-00065169

JUSTIFICATION FOR A SOLE SOURCE AWARD

FOR CERTAIN COMMERCIAL ITEMS

1. Contracting Activity: Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Procurement, Acquisition, and Logistics

Technology Acquisition Center 23 Christopher Way

Eatontown, New Jersey 07724

2. Description of Action: The proposed sole source action is for a firm-fixed-price contract to procure brand name PAR Excellence Weight-Based Inventory Management System (WBIMS) software, hardware, and support services. This effort is being conducted under the statutory authority of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 13.5, entitled “Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Products and Commercial Services”; the proposed vendor is PAR Excellence System, Inc., located at 11500 Northlake Drive, Cincinnati, Ohio 45249.

3. Description of Supplies or Services: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), John D. Dingell Medical Center (Detroit VAMC), Satellite locations, and Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC) have a requirement for brand name PAR Excellence WBIMS software, hardware, and support services to support inventory management. The WBIMS shall provide accurate real-time reading of quantities on-hand of varying medical and surgical supplies accessible by a web-based program and provide data mining capabilities that include at a minimum: current stock levels, recommended order points, average usage levels per item, and ability to track medical supply usage per patient. The system shall interface with the Generic Inventory Point (GIP) system and Integrated Funds Control, Accounting and Procurement business system, and provide real time visibility to our secondary inventory locations.

The total estimated value of the proposed action is .

4. Statutory Authority: The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 41 U.S.C. 1903 as implemented by FAR 13.501, entitled “Special Documentation Requirements”.

5. Rationale Supporting Use of Authority Cited Above: Historically, the Detroit VAMC has used a non-weight-based Point-of-Use (POU) system for inventory management. The facility has realized this system is not efficient as it requires staff to continuously scan the inventories to track changes. The current non-weight-based POU inventory system is reliant on manual processes such as scanning barcodes and data entry which are prone to human error and consume valuable time of the staff. The facility leadership researched how similar-sized facilities track their inventory and it was discovered that the facilities that have been the most successful in gaining efficiencies in inventory management are those that transitioned to a weight-based inventory management system that automatically tracks inventory in real time. A WBIMS helped these facilities by increasing staff efficiency, as it allowed nurses, clinicians and supply chain personnel to focus on their core job

PAR Excellence Detroit VAMC CONTROL NUMBER VA-25-00065169 responsibilities as opposed to inventory tasks. It also helped with cost control, as these facilities experienced fewer emergency orders and the associated costs of placing emergency orders. Additionally, these facilities experienced minimized waste from expired or obsolete stock, and reduced stockouts and overstocking due to the enhanced inventory accuracy that a WBIMS provides. The estimated cost savings for the Detroit VAMC in Full Time Employees is expected to be . This savings estimate is based on reduced travel time and trips between inventory locations and reduced manual tasks associated with inventory tasks by up to 15%.

Sites similar in size to Detroit VAMC have seen a average yearly reduction in supplies for their secondary supply closets. This significant cost savings is due to reducing expired products, overstocks, and staff feeling more confident in the system working correctly and not needing to take extra supplies for their areas.

The system is also designed to remain flexible to support both small and large teams to accommodate expanding patient needs. The PAR Excellence system provides clear criteria and measurable objectives, enabling managers and employees to track progress and identify areas for improvement. Which will increase the VA’s ability to care for a greater number of patients in a shorter period while simultaneously reducing the risk of error due to stock outs and the double ordering of supplies.

PAR Excellence provides a unique VA approved WBIMS solution that is interoperable with the existing GIP system which is capable of significantly increasing efficiency in on-hand inventory management of expendable supplies and in logistical support of clinicians, enhancing their ability to timely provide medical supplies and improved healthcare to Veterans. It is essential that the WBIMS be interoperable with GIP because GIP enables the remote loading of information into VA systems without delays and work-around complexities that otherwise can attribute to transferring data that can result in corruption and/or improper manual entries. GIP ensures the proper storage of medical and surgical products and produces an accurate real time accounting of quantities that is accessible through a web-based program. It also provides data mining capabilities that include minimum current stock level, recommended order points, average usage levels per item, and the ability to track medical supply usage per patient. The PAR Excellence WBIMS logs the inflow and outflow of supplies and disposables enabling the real time monitoring of changes in supply levels. It increases the VA’s ability to care for a greater number of patients in a shorter period by ensuring the necessary supplies are on hand and limiting the number of trips between inventory locations, while simultaneously reducing the risk of error due to stock outs and the double ordering of supplies. The PAR Excellence WBIMS system also minimizes the required level of human interaction and is the most viable solution for the VA based upon reduced staffing levels, the volume of commodity items passing through the system, and the increasing number of patients. The software is capable of interfacing with every inventory location throughout and across the Veterans Integrated Services Networks (VISN), creating more visibility and efficiencies across inventory locations due to having a more centralized inventory system. It’s currently being utilized in several different locations including VISN 10, Cincinnati VA Medical Center, 655 Saginaw VAMC, 583 Indianapolis VAMC, and 515 Battle Creek VAMC.

PAR Excellence is the exclusive designer, developer, manufacturer and maintainer of its proprietary, highly specialized, fully automated, turn-key, WBIMS, software, and associated maintenance and support services. Furthermore, PAR Excellence doesn’t authorize any reseller of its products or services and is the only WBIMS vendor with an approved Authority To Operate (ATO) on the VA network.

6. Efforts to Obtain Competition: Market research was conducted, details of which are in the market research section of this document. This effort did not yield any additional sources that can meet the Government’s requirements and have an approved ATO from VA. Additionally, the proposed action will be synopsized on the Contracting Opportunities Page in accordance with FAR 5.201. The ordering activity will make publicly available the justification along with the solicitation in accordance with FAR 13.501(a)(1)(iv).

7. Actions to Increase Competition: The Government will continue to conduct market research to ascertain whether there are changes in the marketplace that would enable future actions to be competed.

8. Market Research: The Government’s technical experts from the Detroit VAMC conducted initial market research in June 2025 by reviewing systems such as the

. is in real-time; however, the system is not weight-based and is not interoperable with GIP. is a comprehensive cloud-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution that provides a suite of applications for financial management, customer relationship management, e-commerce, and inventory management. While the solution is in real-time and provides multi-location inventory management, the system requires manual input and is not interoperable with GIP. offers industry-specific cloud solutions, including comprehensive ERP systems designed for varying sectors such as manufacturing, healthcare, and distribution. provides strong industry-specific solutions and is highly customizable; however, the system is not weight based and has limited interoperability with VA’s current interfaces. is a cloud-based inventory management software tailored for small to medium-sized businesses, focusing on simplifying inventory control and order management. While provides a user-friendly interface and multi-location management, the system is not weight based, is not interoperable with GIP, and lacks advanced features required for large organizations such VISN 10. The Government team also reviewed these systems against the VA 1761 policy for Supply Chain and found that none of the above options can comply with the requirement that they must be interoperable with the VA GIP system, as none of the systems have the required ATO. In addition to , there are two (2) other companies, , that can provide inventory management systems and have ATO in accordance with VA 1761. However, the are not weight based and therefore do not satisfy the Government's needs.

After comparing the alternative systems, the Government’s technical experts found that provided a precise weight-based inventory control that optimizes stock level based on weight metrics. The system functions with high precision in weight measurement which reduces discrepancies and offers advance automation for weight tracking in real time updates and seamless interaction with weighing scales. While the alternative systems reviewed by the Government’s technical experts have basic inventory tracking, the requirement for manual input and limited integration with existing infrastructure result in increased labor costs and a higher likelihood of human error, making them less efficient and reliable compared to .

The Technology Acquisition Center issued a Request for Information on July 11, 2025, via the Contracting Opportunities page via the System for Award Management to ascertain if there were any other sources that could meet the Government’s requirements. The respondents were asked to provide a brief summary describing their company’s capability to meet the requirements contained within the draft Product Description (PD) which included salient characteristics that the WBIMS shall include. Responses were received from two sources: .

did not demonstrate any capabilities to meet the Government requirements. response did not address the product requirements (software licenses, interface development and services, scale products, and storage products) or the capabilities to obtain them. Additionally, the capability statement neither addresses the WBIMS, inclusive of salient characteristics, nor the integration with the existing GIP interface and infrastructure.

response addressed a highly specialized, fully automated, turn-key, WBIMS solution capable of interfacing with the existing GIP system as required the VA 1761 policy. has provided services to 56 VA locations including various sites in VISNs 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, and 23.

Based on this market research, the Government’s technical experts have determined that is the only source of a WBIMS that is interopable with current VA systems, can interface with multiple locations in the VISN, doesn’t require manual inputs, and has the required reporting capabilities to meet the Government’s requirements.

9. Other Facts: None.

Technical/Requirements Certification I certify that the supporting data under my cognizance, which are included in this justification, are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

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CONTROL NUMBER VA-25-00065169

Fair and Reasonable Cost Determination I hereby determine that the anticipated price to the Government for this contract action will be fair and reasonable based on the techniques identified at FAR 15.404-1(b). If necessary, the Government reserves the right to enter negotiations.

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Contracting Officer Certification/Approval I certify that this justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief. This contract action exceeds the simplified acquisition threshold, but does not exceed $750,000, therefore, the certification required by FAR 13.501(a)(2)(i) serves as the Contracting Officer’s approval.

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