JOFOC FSS Extension_Redacted.pdf

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames

Research Center (ARC) Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000

Justification for Other than Full and Open Competition [FAR 6.303-2(b)(1)]

Summary Information:

Initiating Office: NASA Ames Research Center (ARC)

Office of the Chief Financial Officer (Code C)

JOFOC Number:

Contracting Activity:

JA-FY20-J03

NASA ARC

Purchase Request No.: Certification of Funds Memo Dated November 20, 2019

Procurement Title: Financial Support Services (FSS)

Total Estimated Value: “FOIA EX. 5”

Period of Performance: The period of performance of the contract extension being requested under this JOFOC is January 14, 2020 –

January 13, 2021. This reflects a twelve (12) month base period with no options.

Statutory Authority:

[FAR 6.303-2(b)(4)]

10 USC 2304(c)(1), Only One Responsible Source and

No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency

Requirements

This justification for other than full and open competition (JOFOC) has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.303 and NASA

FAR Supplement (NFS) 1806.303.

Detailed Information:

A. Nature and/or description of the action being approved. [FAR 6.303-2(b)(2)]

NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) proposes to negotiate a sole source contract extension with

The Logical-R Joint Venture, LLC (“Logical-R”), located at 16902 El Camino Real Ste 3C, Houston, TX 77058-2621, to extend Contract Number NNA14AC46C, Financial Support

Services (FSS) for twelve (12) months.

JOFOC Number JA‐FY20‐J03

Contract Number NNA14AC46C was awarded on September 10, 2014 after a competitive procurement. It contained a 45-day phase-in period, a contract base period of two (2) years, and three (3) successive option periods of one-year each. Performance began after phase-in on

January 14, 2015 and the contract expires on January 13, 2020. Under the FSS contract, Logical

R provides resources management, financial management, program analysis and business integration, end user services support, special financial analysis, and contractor travel and training services to Ames Research Center (ARC) and Armstrong Flight Research Center

(AFRC).

The FSS contract is a hybrid contract consisting of a Firm Fixed-Price (FFP) Core, an Indefinite

Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) component under which FFP task orders are executed, and a Time and Materials (T&M) Contract Line Item Number (CLIN) for travel and training services. The Period of Performance (POP) of the Core, the T&M CLIN, and ordering period under the IDIQ will all be extended. The contract ends January 13, 2020; the duration of the extension is twelve months with a POP from January 14, 2020 to January 13, 2021.

This JOFOC documents the basis and authorities to increase the contract value and enter into an extension period for a maximum of eighteen months. This extension will allow time to complete the competitive procurement for the FSS-2 follow-on contract, which is currently on-going.

ARC has prepared a Request for Deviation from FAR 17.204(c) and NFS 1817.204(e)(1) to extend the FSS contract beyond its original five-year period of performance. It is being routed to

NASA Headquarters for approval by the Associate Administrator for Procurement.

B. Description of the supplies or services required to meet the Agency’s needs, including an estimated value. [FAR 6.303-2(b)(3)]

The purpose of this JOFOC is to extend the period of performance of the current FSS contract and increase the contract value for a maximum period of 12 months, pending completion of a competitive procurement for the FSS-2 follow-on contract.

As indicated above, the FSS contract is a hybrid contract consisting of Core and IDIQ requirements. The current contract ceiling value is “FOIA EX. 5” and includes the Phase-in costs ($“FOIA EX. 5”), Core services ($“FOIA EX. 5”), and a Maximum IDIQ value of

($“FOIA EX. 5”), including a T&M CLIN for training and travel ($“FOIA EX. 5”).

It is anticipated that by the end of the proposed extension, the Core value will be fully utilized and will need to be increased by approximately $“FOIA EX. 5” million. The $“FOIA EX. 5” million was derived by using historical actuals and applying a five (5) percent escalation rate.

An increase to the maximum IDIQ value ($“FOIA EX. 5” million) will not be required, as it is not anticipated that the maximum order quantity will be exceeded during the 12-month extension period. The task orders issued to date are valued at $“FOIA EX. 5” million; the estimated value of the task orders anticipated to be issued during the 12-month extension is $“FOIA EX. 5” million and includes the T&M CLIN; a total of $“FOIA EX. 5”million.

The current contract ceiling value of $“FOIA EX. 5”will need to be increased to $“FOIA EX.

5”due to the $“FOIA EX. 5”million increase to the Core. The $“FOIA EX. 5”million projected value of all task orders to be issued against the contract still falls within the IDIQ contract ceiling.

C. An identification of the statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition. [FAR 6.303-2(b)(4)]

The statutory authority for this contract extension is 10 USC 2304(c)(1), Only One Responsible

Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.

D. Demonstration of the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited. [FAR 6.303-2(b)(5)]

In accordance with FAR 6.302-1(a)(2), it is determined that the incumbent contractor, Logical-R is the only responsible source that can reasonably satisfy the Government’s requirements of the

FSS contract and no other type of supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.

Failure to extend the contract would result in disruption of critical services being provided to the

Government. The lack of services would have harmful consequences for ARC and AFRC, not only because of the services provided, but how they affect the day-to-day operations of the

Centers as outlined below.

The Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO) at ARC is largely supported by contractor employees. Logical-R provides mission-critical services which include budget formulation, budget operations, budget execution, financial reporting services, labor processing and analysis and cost accounting, reimbursable agreements management services, quality assurance services, program planning and control, cost estimating, earned value management, business systems support services, financial management business information services, and special financial analyses.

In addition to the services outlined above, and perhaps more critically, the travel support to ARC and Armstrong would be gravely affected. The learning curve associated with using the travel system (JIRA) has been observed to be at least two and a half (2.5) to three (3) months, one quarter of the proposed extension period. Logical-R provides “FOIA EX. 5” percent of the workforce providing this support. The number of vouchers processed during the latest reporting periods was “FOIA EX. 5” and averages “FOIA EX. 5” each month. The volume of work and the long learning curve would impact the services provided during the proposed 12-month extension.

Based upon market research and the synopsis posted to the beta.sam.gov website (SAM), as further described below, Logical-R is the only responsible source interested in providing services for a complex contract for a short 12-month duration, given that a follow-on procurement resulting in a potential 5-year contract is currently on-going.

E. 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

Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 5.2 and, if not, which exception under 5.202 applies.

[FAR 6.303-2(b)(6)]

On November 14, 2019, a synopsis was posted to SAM to inform the public of the Government’s intent to extend the period of performance of Contract Number NNA14AC46C. The synopsis provided instructions for interested organizations to submit capabilities and qualifications to perform the effort to the Contracting Officer. The synopsis was posted for over 15 days with a response date of November 29, 2019. The Government received two responses to the posting of the synopsis:

- One Offeror did not comply with the instructions to submit a capabilities statement and would therefore normally be considered non-responsive; however, the Government conducted research on the company and discovered that they only registered in SAM as a Domestic business on September 18, 2019. There was insufficient evidence of their capability to perform the services required.

- A second Offeror did submit a capabilities statement; however, after a technical review of the submitted documentation, the Government was not convinced that the Offeror could provide the full depth and breadth of the services required. The contractor appears to provide services and solutions to maximize information technology related to financial services, but did not provide examples nor demonstrate relevance to the services required under the contract. The

Government determined there would be significant risk to operations, given the learning curve using the systems and short timeframe to begin performance.

As only two vendors responded to the synopses and neither were capable of providing the services required, by default, Logical-R is the only responsible source capable of providing the services required by the Government. It would neither be feasible, nor reasonable, to conduct a separate competition and award, potentially to a different contractor, for a twelve-month period, simultaneously with the competitive follow-on FSS procurement already underway.

F. A determination by the contracting officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable. [FAR 6.303-2(b)(7)]

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.

As indicated in paragraph B above, the 12-month contract extension would result in an increase to the Core value of the contract by $“FOIA EX. 5” million and the IDIQ ceiling will remain unchanged.

The Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE) for the extension period was based on historical costs on the FSS contract, the anticipated escalation rate for the extended period, and the estimated labor costs to perform all requirements projected to be ordered under the extension.

The Contractor Officer will request and evaluate a proposal for the contract extension in accordance with FAR 15.402(a) and FAR 15.404. The proposal analysis will include cost analysis techniques including historical costs to ensure that the final agreed-to costs for the Core value and the task orders anticipated for award during the extension period are fair and reasonable. The Government will prepare a Pre-negotiation Position Memorandum prior to the initiation of negotiations which will be approved in accordance with FAR 15.406 prior to the conducting of task order negotiations.

G. Description of the market research conducted and the results or a statement of the reasons market research was not conducted. [FAR 6.303-2(b)(8)]

The Contracting Officer and Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) conducted market research in support of the decision to extend Contract Number NNA14AC46C with Logical-R, based upon the COR’s technical knowledge of the current FSS requirements and those projected for the extension period.

As indicated in Paragraph E above, the Government posted a synopsis on the beta.sam.gov website on November 14, 2019. The purpose of the synopsis was to (1) notify industry of

NASA’s intent to extend the contract on a sole source basis and (2) solicit information about interested sources that are capable of providing the required support during the extended period of performance. Interested organizations were invited to submit their capabilities and qualifications in writing; however, as indicated in Section E above, the Government determined that they were not capable of providing the services required.

The Contracting Officer and COR also conducted market research via various Government databases, including the Dynamic Small Business Search (DSBS) and the NASA Vendor

Database (NVD). It was found that although several firms could provide financial support services, only Logical-R would be able to perform the full breadth and depth of work without adversely impacting Government operations, given the short (12-month) period of performance.

Furthermore, none of the firms listed in the databases responded to the Government synopsis.

H. Any other facts supporting the use of other than full and open completion. [FAR 6.303-

2(a)(9)]

Procurement efforts for a follow-on to the FSS contract began in March 2019, when ARC was directed to develop a regional contract to encompass Armstrong Flight Research Center

(“Armstrong”) and John H. Glenn Research Center (“Glenn”). Services for Armstrong had already been provided under the current FSS contract; however, Glenn was not previously included. This necessitated a change to the procurement strategy, the performance work statement (PWS), IGCE, and all of the supporting documents. The procurement timeline was further impacted by the delay in identifying Source Selection Authority (SSA), which was finalized in August 2019.

Once the above decisions were made, ARC revised the impacted documents and presented the procurement strategy to the SSA on “FOIA EX. 5”. Just prior to the briefing, ARC was advised to revise the scope of the requirement to remove Glenn, which would necessitate revision of the key procurement documents. During the briefing, the SSA noted that market research revealed the services being procured were readily available in the commercial marketplace and so directed that the acquisition strategy be revised to use FAR Part 12 versus the approach presented using

FAR Part 15. This caused another revision to the procurement documents which caused further delays.

The current contract expires on January 13, 2020. The Agency Procurement Lead Time (PALT) for services of this complexity and magnitude is customarily 365 days from procurement strategy meeting (PSM). Because of the substantial revisions to the procurement strategy and key documents, there is insufficient time to award an interim 12-month contract for these services before contract expiration. A 12-month extension to the current contract will preclude disruption of critical services while continuing the on-going competitive procurement.

As indicated above, ARC is currently in the pre-solicitation phase of the follow-on competitive procurement (FSS-2). The change in acquisition strategy necessitates a complete revision of all of the pertinent documents for the follow-on contract; the projected timeframe to release the solicitation is “FOIA EX. 5”. Contract award is anticipated in “FOIA EX. 5” and a “FOIA EX.

5”-day phase-in is currently anticipated, based upon historical experience.

The System for Award Management (SAM) Exclusion Summary contains no active exclusion records for The Logical-R Joint Venture, LLC. Their latest Contractor Performance Assessment

Report (CPAR) ratings were mostly Exceptional with two ratings of Very Good and one rating of Satisfactory.

I. A listing of sources, if any, that expressed an interest, in writing, in the acquisition. [FAR 6.303-

2(b)(10)]

The following two Offerors indicated interest on the synopsis posted on November 14, 2019:

“FOIA EX. 4”

“FOIA EX. 4”

J. A statement of the 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. [FAR

6.303-2(b)(11)]

Market research conducted in conjunction with the follow-on FSS-2 procurement indicates that there will adequate competition. Therefore, there are no actions the agency needs to take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before any subsequent acquisition for the follow-on FSS-2 requirements.

For the foregoing reasons, The Logical-R Joint Venture, LLC is the only responsible source that can reasonably satisfy the continuing FSS requirements for up to 12 months to permit completion of the competitive follow-on FSS-2 procurement.

Requirement Initiator:

Michael Rowland Contracting Officer's . Representative

Contracting Officer:

Rima Zimmermann

CONCURRENCE:

Directorate Manager:

Ken Ledbetter (Acting) CodeC

Procurement Officer:

Kelly G. Kaplan

Center Competition Advocate Deputy Center Director:

Carol W Carroll

JOFOC Number JA-FY20-J03

SIGNATURE PAGE

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

12/20/2019

Signature Date

I hereby determine that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable and certify that this justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

[FAR 6.303-2(b)(l2)]

Digitally signed by Rima

Rima Zimmermann Zimmermann Date: 2019.12.20 15:48:29 -08'00'

Signature

KENN ETH

Digitally signed by

KENNETH LEDBETTER

LEDBETTER

Date:2019.12.22

09:41 :34 -08'00'

KELLY

KAPLAN

Signature

Digitally signed by

KELLY KAPLAN

Date: 2019.12.22

20:48:14 -08'00'

Signature

Date

Date

Date

Date

"FOIA EX. 6"

APPROVAL:

Head of the Contracting Activity:

(; �ugene L. Tu <'S vw ARC Center Director

Cc (after approval)

JAB/241-1

JOFOC Number JA-FY20-J03

Signature Date

"FOIA EX. 6"