JOFOC_For_RA-4500_6_29_23_1.pdf

UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

MISSION SUPPORT DIVISION

ACQUISITION AND ASSISTANCE

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

Upon the basis of the following justification, I, as Contracting Officer, hereby approve the use of other than full and open competition for the proposed contractual action pursuant to the authority of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart of FAR 13.106-1(b)(1)(I) “Soliciting from a single source.”

1. Identification of the agency and contracting activity.

Contracting Office:

Region 6 – Mission Support Division 1201 Elm Street Dallas, Texas 75270

Project Office:

USEPA Region 6 Laboratory 10625 Fallstone Rd.

Houston, TX 77099

2. The nature and/or description of the action being approved, i.e., sole source, limited competition, establishment of a new source, etc.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in Region 6, Dallas, Texas intends to award a sole source Purchase Order under Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 13.106-1(b) “Soliciting from a single source” to AGS Scientific Inc. for a Nippon RA-4500 mercury analyzer.

3. A description of the supplies or services required to meet the agency’s needs.

The EPA requires a Nippon RA-4500 mercury analyzer, a personal computer (PC) controller for the mercury analyzer, a standard manufactory’s warranty, and installation and training services.

This mercury analyzer will replace existing equipment used for the analysis of trace mercury in routine aqueous and solid samples. The analyzer will utilize the latest available technology to reduce costs and hazards associated with the purchase, use, and disposal of hazardous substances. The period of performance is ninety days.

4. The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition.

This acquisition is being conducted under the authority of FAR 13.106-1(b)(1)(a) “Soliciting from a single source”. The basis for this recommendation is that there is only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. This document contains sufficient facts and rationale to justify the use of FAR 13.106-1(b)(1)(I) as the authority for this action.

5. A statement demonstrating the unique qualifications of the proposed contractor or the nature of the action requiring the use of the authority.

The Nippon RA-4500 mercury analyzer is developed by Nippon Instruments Corporation (NIC) which has stated that the sole North American reseller for this instrument is AGS Scientific Inc.

located at 1 West Bronze Lane, Bryan, Texas 77807-9701. The Nippon RA-4500 is the only fully automated instrument compliant to the EPA methods listed below for total mercury in drinking water and other liquid and solid matrices.

• EPA Method 245.1: Determination of Mercury in Water by Cold Vapor Atomic Absorption

Spectrometry

• Method 245.2: Mercury (Automated Cold Vapor Technique) by Atomic Absorption

• Method 245.5: Mercury in Sediments by Manual Cold Vapor Atomic Absorption

• SW-846 Test Method 7470A: Mercury in Liquid Waste

• SW-846 Test Method 7471B: Mercury in Solid or Semisolid Waste

Additionally, the Nippon RA-4500 also uniquely performs the following:

A. Automated Digestion – Digestion is automated within the instrument itself, providing the lab a benefit in allowing for a more accurate and robust result and faster turnaround time.

B. Mercury Trap – Mercury waste is contained in the trap which is removed and taken away for disposal by the vendor during the yearly preventive maintenance, saving the lab the expense and hazard of disposal.

C. Built in Air Pump – The built-in gas will eliminate the instrument’s need for nitrogen, saving the lab money.

D. Smaller sample volume – the automated digestion uses much smaller sample and reagent volumes than other CVAA instruments, reducing cost and hazardous waste. Stannous chloride reagent is especially expensive to buy and dispose of.

The minimum specifications of the RA-500 mercury analyzer are attached to this justification.

The laboratory currently has a Nippon RA-500 and is procuring another to keep up with sample demand. Without it, the sample demand will not be met.

6. A description of efforts to ensure that offers were solicited from as many potential sources as is practicable.

A notice of intent to sole source was posted to the Government’s Point of Entry (GPE) (Sam.beta.gov) and FedConnect on 05/10/2023 to inform industry of the government’s intent to sole source this requirement to AGS Scientific Inc. In accordance with FAR Part 5.207(c)(16)(in), all responsible sources were given an opportunity to provide a bid, proposal, or quotation. The notice was posted for a period of 15 calendar days. No responses were received.

5. The anticipated dollar value of the proposed acquisition, including options if applicable, and a determination by the Contracting Officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable.

The total estimated value of this requirement is $50,000.00. The Contracting officer will ensure the order represents the lowest overall cost alternative to meet the Government’s needs.

6. A description of the market research conducted and the results.

In accordance with FAR Part 10, Market Research was conducted and concluded that at this time AGS Scientific, Inc. is the only vendor who can meet the government’s requirements. The EPA has no plans at this time to select another vendor due to the factors outlined in Section 5 of this document.

7. Any other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition.

Letters were provided by Nippon Instruments Corporation (NIC) noting that AGS Scientific, Inc. is the sole provider in North America of all products, customer support, and service contracts for all mercury analyzers manufactured by NIC – Japan. There are no other affiliates in North America that provide and/or support NIC’s products in this region.

8. A listing of any sources that expressed a written interest in the acquisition.

There are no other sources that expressed a written interest in the acquisition.

9. A statement of any actions the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition if subsequent acquisitions are anticipated.

The Agency will continue to conduct market research for subsequent similar requirements to determine if any additional viable sources become available.

CERTIFICATION

I, hereby, certify that this requirement does not exceed the Government’s minimum needs or scheduled requirements, and that the basis for award under other than full and open competition is complete and accurate to the best of my knowledge and belief:

Sonja Johnson Date Contract Specialist

Adrianne Wells Date Contracting Officer

RA-4500 Automated CVAA Specifications

The following lists the minimum acceptable specifications for the RA-4500 Automated CVAA:

Instrument Dimensions

The instrument dimensions must be less than or equal to 24 inches height by 23 inches width by

21 inches depth. The instrument must not weigh more than 100 pounds.

Power

(1) AC 100, 220 ～ 240V 50/60Hz

(2) Voltage variation: within ±5%

(3) Power capacity: 1.5kVA（Excluding PC and printer）

(4) Power quality: Non surging, no high-frequency waves, and noiseless.

(5) Distance from power supply: 2m or less

(6) Ground-fault circuit interrupter: 15mA (7) Grounding: Grounding terminal with ground resistance of 100Ω or less.

Automated Sample Digestion/Analysis

(1) The instrument has a drive system turn table of acid-resistant aluminum with capacity to digest and analyze 80 – 5 ml samples. Turn table has infra-red radiation heater, that heats to

95±5℃ and fan cools to room temperature during digestion of samples. Turn table has magnetic stirring capability for each sample. Turn table is equipped with an over-temp circuit for safety and includes a NIST-traceable calibration protocol to ensure regulatory compliance.

(2) Instrument has a reagent dispense mechanism with a reagent-resistant resin bubbler for adding potassium permanganate, sulfuric acid, nitric acid, potassium persulfate, hydroxylamine hydrochloride, stannous chloride, and distilled water with separate injection heads for acids/oxidants and reductants. Instrument has LED color light sensor that verifies permanganate oxidant strength without touching sample. These systems virtually eliminate any possible cross-contamination from sample to sample.

(3) Instrument provides full recovery of organic and inorganic mercury , even at low concentrations. Advanced non-dispersive double-beam cold vapor atomic absorption detector design significantly reduces noise levels, allowing for accurate and precise measurements down to 1 part-per-trillion (ppt), or less. Measurement method is reducing vaporization with open air-supply (peak height measuring and integration measuring selectable). Light source is low pressure mercury discharge lamp, wavelength 253.7nm.

Photo-tube detection.

(4) Measurement technique is suitable for a wide variety of aqueous samples, including drinking waters, industrial wastewaters, river waters, lake waters, seawaters, rain-runoff, and solid extractions.

(5) Mercury trap removes mercury waste by absorption with activated carbon. Mercury trap taken away and disposed of by preventive maintenance contractor.

(6) Complete automated digestion and analysis performed in safety lock system body case.

Minimal installation space is required. Exhaust capacity 1.6～1.8m3/min（ Sirocco fan）.

Performance

Detection limit 0.0025ng/5mL (0.5ppt), maximum range 500ng/5mL (100 ppb), measuring time

120sec ～ 300sec.

Instrument Installation Supplies and Consumables

Instrument must be delivered with all supplies and consumables necessary to run the instrument. An installation kit must be supplied. Instrument, accessories, and supplies must be shipped to EPA Region 6 Lab as provided by the EPA point of contact. Contractor technical representative will travel to EPA Region 6 Lab to install at contractors expense.

Software

Onscreen information : Peak wave profile, calibration curve graph, start/end time, measurement results. Device control : Dispensed reagent (type, amount), heating (temperature, time), cooling time, items to be measured, recovery after abnormal stop. Data processing : Calibration curve

(linear equation x 3 types, cubic equation x 3 types), unit setting, concentration computation, base line correction, statistical calculation (average value, standard deviation, CV%). Printing :

Memo, calibration curve graph/formula, measured value table, statistical calculation, peak wave profile, print preview. Precision management : Standard check, high concentration detection function, blank check.

Computer Criteria

HP EliteOne 840 23.8-inch G9 All-in-One Desktop PC; Intel Core Processor family; Chipset: Intel

Q670 (vPro); 64 GB DDR5 – 4800 SDRAM memory, transfer rates up to 4800 MT/s; OS:

Windows 11; Communication: Ethernet/wireless communication with Lab LAN.

(1) Memory Slots: 2 SODIMM

(2) Internal Storage: 256 GB

(3) Graphics: Integrated, Intel UHD; Discrete: NVIDIA GeForceRTX 3050 Ti Graphics

(4) Expansion slots: 1 - M.2 2230/2280; 2 - M.2 2280 (1 - PCIe M.2 2230/2280 slot for

WLAN or Storage and 2 - PCIe M.2 2280 slot for storage.)

(5) Memory card device 1 - 5-in-1 SD media card reader

(6) Ports and Connectors: Left side 1 - headphone/microphone combo; Right side 1 -

SuperSpeed USB Type-C® 10Gbps signaling rate (charging) 1 - SuperSpeed USB

Type-A 10Gbps signaling rate;

Rear1 - RJ-45 1 - HDMI 2.0a 2 - SuperSpeed USB Type-A 10Gbps signaling rate 2 -

SuperSpeed USB Type-A 5Gbps signaling rate 1 - Dual-Mode DisplayPort™ 1.4 1 -

SuperSpeed USB Type-C® 20Gbps signaling rate

(7) Input devices: HP Wired Desktop 320K Keyboard; HP USB and PS2 Washable

Keyboard; HP Wireless Premium Keyboard; HP Wired Desktop 320MK Mouse and

Keyboard; HP USB Premium Keyboard; HP USB Business Slim Antimicrobial

Keyboard; HP USB Business Slim SmartCard CCID Keyboard; HP 655 Wireless

Keyboard and mouse combo; HP 455 Wireless Programmable Keyboard; HP USB

Fingerprint Mouse; HP USB optical mouse; HP Wired Desktop 320M mouse; HP 125

Wired Mouse; HP 128 Laser Wired Mouse; HP USB Premium Mouse; HP Wireless

Premium Mouse

(8) Communications: LAN Intel® I219-LM PCIe® GbE NIC, vPro®; Intel® Wi-Fi 6E AX211

(2x2) and Bluetooth® 5.3 wireless card, vPro®; Realtek Wi-Fi 6 RTL8852BE

802.11a/b/g/n/ax (2x2) and Bluetooth®️ 5.3 wireless card

(9) Camera: 5 MP Swivel camera with integrated dual array digital microphones; 5 MP

Swivel IR camera for face authentification with Windows Hello with integrated dual array digital microphones and Color Light Sensor; 16 MP Swivel IR camera for face authentification with Windows Hello with Color Light Sensor and Time of Flight

Sensor

(10) Environmental: Operating temperature: 10 to 35°C; Operating humidity: 10 to 90% RH

(11) Software: HP Notifications; HP PC Hardware Diagnostics UEFI; HP Support Assistant;

HP Connection Optimizer; HP Privacy Settings; HP PC Hardware Diagnostics

Windows; HP Desktop Support Utilities; MyHP; HP QuickDrop; HP Easy Clean;

Touchpoint Customizer for Commercial;

HP Easy Clean Keyboard Driver; HSA Fusion for Commercial; HSA Telemetry for Commercial

(12) Available software: HP Smart Support

(13) Security management: Trusted Platform Module TPM 2.0 Embedded Security Chip shipped with Windows 10 (Common Criteria EAL4+ Certified)(FIPS 140-2 Level 2

Certified); HP Secure Erase; HP Sure Click; HP Sure Sense; Absolute Persistence module; HP Sure Admin; HP BIOSphere Gen6; HP Client Security Manager Gen7; HP

Tamper Lock; HP Sure Start Gen7; HP Sure Run Gen5; HP Sure Recover Gen5

(14) Security Software Licenses HP Wolf Pro Security Edition

(15) Fingerprint reader

(16) Management features: HP Client Catalog (download); HP Driver Packs (download);

HP Image Assistant (download); HP Client Management Script Library (download); HP

Connect for Microsoft Endpoint Manager; HP Manageability Integration Kit (download);

HP Patch Assistant (download)

(17) Power: 240 W internal power supply, up to 92% efficiency, active PFC; 280 W internal power adapter, up to 92% efficiency, active PFC

(18) EPEAT® registered

(19) ENERGY STAR® certified

(20) Sustainable impact specifications: Ocean-bound plastic in speaker enclosure; 40% post- consumer recycled plastic; 30% ITE-derived closed loop plastic; Low Halogen; 80

Plus® Platinum power supplies available

(21) Display Color Gamut 72% NTSC

Delivery and Installation

The instrument, accessories, and supplies must be shipped to EPA Region 6 Lab. Contractor technical representative will travel to EPA Region 6 to install at contractor expense.

Support and Preventative Maintenance

Two-year manufacturer warranty and preventive maintenance at one year included.