JOFOC.pdf

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

(NASA) Kennedy Space Center (KSC)

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

(JOFOC)

For PERATON OS COMET SOFTWARE

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 JOFOC prepared by National Aeronautics and Space Administration

(NASA) KSC.

The procuring agency is NASA and the contracting activity is KSC Procurement.

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 Peraton for the purchase of three new Software (SW) license sets (AD7, AD8, and LD3), as well as Launch Control System (LCS) site maintenance and license renewal.

The Engineering Directorate at KSC requires the acquisition to provide continued support for the Spaceport Command and Control System (SCCS). This requirement has been procured in the past as a sole-source requirement from the software manufacturer, Peraton, Inc., as they are the sole developer, licensor, distributor, and maintenance provider for Operating System (OS) /Comet software.

3. FAR 6.303-2(b)(3) – A description of the supplies or services required, to meetthe Agency’s needs (including the estimated value):

This requirement is for the purchase of three new Software (SW) license sets (AD7, AD8, and LD3), as well as Launch Control System (LCS) site maintenance and license renewal

Peraton will supply the OS/Comet annual software maintenance renewals, which provide the Government with patch versions, minor point release versions, e-mail support, and telephone technical support. The software is used in the development, testing, and production of next generation launch support and ground systems.

Continued maintenance is required to provide the core command and telemetry processing capabilities and new licenses and maintenance are required to expand the capabilities of the SCCS. The Period of Performance (POP) for this requirement is 10/01/2020 – 09/30/2021, and it includes three options for one year each.

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

Pursuant to FAR 13.501(a)(1)(ii), the statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 41 Universal Switching Corporation §1901 as implemented by FAR Subpart 13.5—Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items, which permits contracting for commercial items on a sole source basis. This requirement meets the definition of a commercial item in accordance with FAR 2.101.

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 authoritycited:

The rationale supporting the use of 41 U.S.C. §1901 is greater than the simplified acquisition threshold, but not greater than for which the Contracting Officer reasonably expects, based on the nature of the property or services sought and on market research, that offers will include only commercial products or commercial services. The requested licenses and maintenance are specifically designated to be compliant with the existing licensed software products, operating systems, and hardware platforms, and cannot be substituted with another manufacturer’s product. No other product is compatible with NASA’s current architecture. Purchasing a maintenance renewal is significantly less costly than replacing the OS/Comet software that has been integrated into and is currently being used in the SCCS.

Re-procurement of software would cost anywhere from three to five times more than the maintenance on existing licenses. Thus if we purchased new licenses versus paying maintenance for our existing licenses then cost to the Government would be expected to be in the range of . Any licenses of another brand or type would then also require yearly maintenance as well. In addition, Peraton has agreed to cap the annual maintenance cost at the current rate for the next four years so NASA’s total maintenance costs for OS Comet on a per license basis will be decreasing moving forward as we add additional licenses. The purchase of new software would require the redevelopment of software efforts, including research, development, integration, verification, and validation tasks and certification performed over multiple years. Changing the underlying vendor software for such a vital piece of the system at this stage in the process would not be possible. Therefore, continued software acquisition from Peraton, Inc., is necessary. Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy Agency requirements for OS/Comet.

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 5.202applies:

A notice to the Government Point of Entry (GPE) Web site <beta.sam.gov> will be published, to be determined, in accordance with FAR Subpart 5.2. This posting will inform potential sources of NASA’s intent to award this sole-source contract to Peraton. The results of this synopsis are not yet available; however, previous market research is summarized in Section 10 below.

Market research was conducted to identify potential sources that could meet the requirements for this effort. However, as discussed in Item 8, Peraton, Inc., is the sole distributor of the requested licenses and maintenance. No other contractor has the capability to meet the requirements without substantial duplications of costs to the Government. A combined synopsis/solicitation notice will be executed in accordance with FAR 12.603.

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. The anticipated costs to the Government will be determined fair and reasonable based on historical pricing from the contractor for performance of similar services. The Contracting Officer will perform price analysis using the techniques found in FAR 13.106-3(a)(2)(ii) prior to award to ensure that the final agreed-to price 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:

Market research was performed in spring 2010 for this effort in accordance with FAR Part 10.

The Procurement office attempted to obtain competition through NASA Solutions for Enterprise Wide Procurement (SEWP). The results revealed that this acquisition cannot be procured through this method. Additionally, Peraton provided documentation stating they are the sole distributor of the licenses and maintenance and that no other contract or contractor vehicle exists as an alternative method for procurement.

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

Peraton, Inc., is uniquely qualified to provide these services to the Government because the requirement is for maintenance of existing proprietary OS/Comet software, and they are the sole distributor of the requested maintenance renewal. No other contractor or contract vehicle exists as an alternate method for procurement as substantiated by the manufacturer’s attached letter.

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

A notice of NASA’s intent to award this sole-source action will be synopsized on the GPE Web site <beta.sam.gov> per FAR Subpart 5.2 (See Section 6 above). When this procurement was posted to the GPE in spring 2010 under the SEWP contract, no sources expressed interest.

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:

Market research will continue to be conducted to determine if any other vendors have the capability to meet NASA KSC’s future requirements. The Agency will continue to examine the market in the future for alternative solutions or new sources before executing any subsequent acquisitions for the same requirements.

PERATON OS COMET

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

SIGNATURE PAGE

Technical Representative: I certify that the facts presented in this justification are accurate and complete.

Contracting Officer: I hereby certify that the above justification is complete and accurate to the best of my knowledge and belief.