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CONTROL NUMBER VA-26-00056686

JUSTIFICATION FOR AN EXCEPTION TO FAIR OPPORTUNITY

1. Contracting Activity: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Procurement, Acquisition, and Logistics Technology Acquisition Center 23 Christopher Way Eatontown, NJ 07724

2. Description of Action: The proposed action is for a brand name firm-fixed-price delivery order to be issued under the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement (SEWP) V Government-Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) for brand name Philips IntelliVue Patient Monitoring systems and a software upgrade. The installation of the Philips IntelliVue MX Monitoring system and required infrastructure will support a 17-room expansion to the Emergency Department. Additionally, a software upgrade to the existing Philips hardware and infrastructure will bring all current systems up to the latest software version in preparation for the activation of the Emergency Department expansion at the Southern Arizona VA Health Care System (SAVAHCS).

3. Description of the Supplies or Services: The SAVAHCS requires additional bedside physiological monitors for an Emergency Department expansion, as well as upgrading the existing Philips infrastructure and hardware to the latest software version. The new monitors must fully interface with the existing facility-wide Philips IntelliVue Patient Monitoring System. Because the new monitors operate on a software version that is not backwards compatible with the current systems, an upgrade from Philips Bedside/Telemetry software PIC iX Revision C to PIC iX Revision 4 is require for all facility-wide systems.

To support the expansion, installation of hardware, cabling, 17 Philips IntelliVue MX450 monitors, and 6 Philips IntelliVue MX40 devices will be necessary. Infrastructure cabling will connect all new devices in the newly constructed space to the existing facility-wide Philips IntelliVue Patient Monitoring Network. Standardizing all systems on the updated software version ensures full interoperability, consistent clinical workflows, and reliable utilization of the new technology across SAVAHCS. VA requires that the solution remain fully compatible with its existing Philips monitoring infrastructure and hardware.

The Period of Performance for this effort is 12 months from the date of award.

4. Statutory Authority: Pursuant to Revolutionary Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Overhaul (RFO) VA Deviation FAR 16.507-7, the following brand name requirement is being justified and approved as an exception to fair opportunity under the statutory authority of Section 41 U.S.C. 4106(c)(2) as implemented by RFO FAR VA Deviation 16.507-6(b)(2), entitled “Only one awardee is capable of providing the supplies or services required at the level of quality required because the supplies or services ordered are unique or highly specialized”.

Philips Products and Services CONTROL NUMBER VA-26-00056686 For Southern Arizona VA HCS Emergency Department Expansion

5. Rationale Supporting Use of Authority Cited Above: Based on extensive market research, as described in Section 8 of this justification, it was determined that competition is viable among resellers of the Philips Bedside/Telemetry PIC iX Revision 4 software upgrade, Philips hardware and Philips IntelliVue MX Patient Monitoring Systems. Only Philips (or a Philips reseller) can meet VA’s requirements. These monitors are capable of biomedical device integration – a process where a medical device automatically documents clinical data, such as vital signs or medications administered. This allows healthcare personnel to focus on clinical care instead of looking at a screen or typing on a keyboard. Incorporating these patient care monitors into the expanded Emergency Department and having a software upgrade across the facility will greatly increase workflow optimization.

Furthermore, due to the proprietary nature of the Philips Physiological hardware and software to include PIC iX Rev. 4 brand name software and Philips IntelliVue MX medical systems, only Philips or its resellers can provide the required hardware and software to build upon VA’s existing Philips Physiological Bedside Monitoring System.

No other brand name is able to integrate with the currently installed Philips’ network monitoring system. Additionally, no other brand name will be interoperable or compatible with the currently installed Philips-based Physiological Bedside Monitoring System. Specifically, the current system and software communicate through a source code that is based on Philips’ proprietary data. No other software can provide this communication capability without this source code. In order for another entity to provide the required functionality and required software upgrade of the Philips PIC iX Revision 4, SAVAHCS would have to initiate a procurement for an entirely new physiological monitoring solution and replace existing software platforms, hardware, and infrastructure. The cost to replace the current infrastructure is estimated to cost approximately $5.0M and would take about 12 months to complete. This estimate is based on previous acquisition history and inventory costs. This estimated duplicative cost would not be recovered through competition. Therefore, only Philips or its resellers can provide the REV. 4 upgrades and installation of Philips IntelliVue systems.

6. Efforts to Obtain Competition: Market research was conducted, details of which are in Section 8 of this document. This effort did not yield any additional sources that can meet the Government’s requirements. However, the undersigned VA technical representative determined that limited competition is viable amongst multiple authorized resellers of the required brand name Philips hardware and software. In accordance with RFO FAR VA Deviation 16.507-7(c)(1)(i), this justification will be provided with the solicitation to all appropriate NASA SEWP V GWAC holders.

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

8. Market Research: VA technical experts conducted web-based market research in October of 2025, and January of 2026 to determine if any other brands were viable for this action. Specifically, the VA technical experts reviewed similar hardware and software providers from alternative vendors such as Mindray, Spacelabs Healthcare, and Edwards Lifesciences Physiological Patient Monitors. The VA technical experts determined that these products did not meet VA’s requirement due to their lack of interoperability with the existing Philips Patient Monitoring Systems and could not avoid the duplicative time and costs as outlined in Section 5 of this justification. Additionally, VA networking Subject Matter Experts regularly review industry trade publications and conduct internet research to ascertain if any other brand name software is available.

Additionally, market research was conducted in April 2026 by utilizing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement (SEWP) V Governmentwide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) Provider Lookup Tool. The Provider Lookup Tool yielded 59 contract holders, of which 13 are Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB) offering the required Philips brand name products. Following the Provide Lookup Tool query, a Request for Information was posted to NASA SEWP V GWAC on April 24, 2026, with a response due date of May 4, 2026. A copy of the draft Product Description was provided with the RFI. In response, two SDVOSBs responded, Alvarez, and Four Points Technology.

Therefore, there is reasonable expectation that competition exists on the NASA SEWP V GWAC amongst all SDVOSBs for the Philips Products and Services for Southern Arizona VA HCS Emergency Department (ED) Expansion.

9. Other Facts: N/A