JA_UCAS Towers Landa V5.pdf

DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY

NAVAL AIR WARFARE CENTER AIRCRAFT DIVISION

LAKEHURST, NJ 08733

J&A Number: 21-0239

JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL

FOR USE OF OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

1. Contracting Activity.

Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD) Lakehurst, NJ

2. Description of the Action Being Approved.

This Justification and Approval authorizes and approves the issuance of a Firm-Fixed-Price contract for a procurement of six modified Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) 150’ and 85’ portable telescoping towers from Landa Mobile Systems LLC (Landa Mobile). The towers will meet Federal Aviation Administration lighting requirements and will be installed for applications on and around airfields for Counter Unmanned Aerial System (C-UAS) testing. The portable telescoping towers are anticipated to be delivered within 30 days of contract award.

3. Description of Supplies/Services.

The NAWCAD Webster Outlying Field (WOLF) Combat Integration & Identification Systems (CI&IDS) Division has been tasked by the Integrated Battlespace Simulation and Test Department to procure COTS 150’ and 85’ portable telescoping towers to support C-UAS testing at WOLF, which has been designated a C-UAS test range by the Joint C-UAS Office. The requirement includes six portable telescoping towers that will increase validity of Test and Evaluation (T&E) activities conducted at WOLF by holistically replicating theater installed C- UAS systems. C-UAS test results obtained from in-theater locations will be sent back to WOLF where the environment needs to be recreated in order to assess the findings. The six portable telescoping towers will elevate C-UAS equipment to antenna heights that are operationally-relevant to theater C-UAS while also supporting T&E equipment required to generate electromagnetic environments simulating the theater radio frequency environment.

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

10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1), FAR 6.302-1, Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.

5. Rationale Justifying Use of Cited Statutory Authority.

This acquisition is designed to outfit WOLF with the equipment required to replicate already-fielded operational sites. Landa Mobile is the sole manufacturer and distributor of the required portable telescoping towers. Landa Mobile owns the proprietary rights to the portable telescoping towers and has no intention on selling the propreitay rights to the Government. The

Landa Mobile portable telescoping towers are the only towers that meet the Government’s requirements for the C-UAS application. These towers are the same exact make and model towers that are being used at all operational C-UAS sites. The need to have the exact make and model is necessary for this requirement as these towers have been proven to be compatible with C-UAS performance and have been tested operationally.

Additionally, if another vendor or the Government were able to produce a similar portable telescoping tower, it would result in an unacceptable delay to the program schedule. It could reasonably be anticipated that the Government would incur a schedule slip by a total of 18 months. There would be a requirement for development, non-recurring engineering and production of these towers which would take a minimum of six months. There would also be a requirement to test the new tower system for conformance with the C-UAS, which would take approximately 12 months. Given the program schedule, these towers are required to be delivered to the Government by June 2021. If the portable telescoping towers are not delivered in time to meet the program schedule, future test events will be impacted, thus increasing the risk for identifying known threat identification at the operational sites leaving the sites vulnerable for attack.

6. Description of Efforts Made to Solicit Offers from as Many Offerors as Practicable.

NAWCAD WOLF CI&IDS conducted market research through various methods to identify commercially-available solutions for a mobile telescoping tower. After reviewing several commercial solutions located via beta.SAM.gov website and Dynamic Small Business Search, Landa Mobile LMS 150 XHD (150' Hydraulic tilt) and LMS 85XHD (85' Hydraulic tilt) Crank-up towers were identified as the only tower solutions for the C-UAS application.

On 2 March 2021, a Request for Information (RFI), N68335-21-RFI-0150, was posted on the beta.SAM.gov website to survey the marketplace for additional sources with the ability to meet the Government’s requirements. The RFI closed on 8 March 2021 and one response was received from Black Sage Technologies, Inc. After review, the Technical Point of Contact determined this company could not meet the specific requirements. The vendor was notified via e-mail that they were determined not technically capable of meeting the requirement.

A pre-solicitation synopsis was posted on 12 April 2021 and closed on 27 April 2021. One response was received from Axiom Towers. Axiom Towers was notified via e-mail that their product does not meet the Government requirement for the following reasons: Wind load capacity that is less than what the Government requires; Too short at only 104’ when the Government requires a tower to be 150’; Does not have guyed cabling while the requirement is for towers to posess guy cabling (3 guy cables are required every 30’).

Axiom Towers was also notified that the posting was not a request for proposal and that the Government intends to award this effort on a sole source basis to Landa Mobile, as stated in the synopsis. Axiom Towers did not take exception to the Governments analysis.

7. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Cost.

The Contracting Officer shall ensure that the price negotiated for this acquisition is fair and reasonable In Accordance With (IAW) FAR Subpart 15.4. The Contractor will submit a proposal with other than certified cost or pricing data and sufficient information to support the accuracy and reliability of the estimate. The proposal will be reviewed by experienced technical personnel at the NAWCAD WOLF CI&IDS Division and the Contract Specialist. The Contracting Officer will utilize cost and price analysis IAW FAR 15.404-1, including a review of historical data and commercial price lists, as the basis for negotiating a fair and reasonable price.

8. Actions to Remove Barriers to Future Competition.

For the reasons set forth in paragraph 5, at this time Landa Mobile is the only vendor with the portable telescoping towers that meets the Government’s requirements. NAWCAD WOLF CI&IDS will continue to monitor the market for technological advances that may drive changes to the system design and would allow future competition by conducting market research to determine if there are any future vendors that can comply with all form-fit-function standards detailed within the Program of Record accreditation.